I’ll be honest: I don’t know too much about Diggy Simmons. Sometimes in my line of work, that’s how it works, but you come to know artists quickly. Just by shooting them you get a sense of what they’re about and what their music’s about. Strangely enough, this wasn’t a performance of Diggy’s that I was shooting (though at the time I thought it was until I saw him walk past me backstage after the meet n’ greet in full basketball attire). Now while I do prefer to shoot artists performing and meeting their fans, I thought it was an awesome experience to be an impromptu sports photographer for the night.
That being said, I’ve gained a whole new respect for the work of sports photography, which is somewhat like concerts in having to keep up with the performers and “get the great actions shots”. When it came to Diggy himself, even though he didn’t score a lot of shots himself, he seemed to be having a great time and enjoying himself. Even more so when he was signing cd’s and posters for fans at the meet n’ greet. He genuinely seemed to care and love his fans. When you’re in this line of work for a while, you start to get a sense of who really genuinely loves their fans and appreciates them. It’s important to see that sincerity in music and in a young artist like Diggy. Scroll down to see all the photos from the Loose Cannon Celebrity Basketball Game and Diggy’s meet n’ greet in St. Louis last night.
As a photographer and music lover, I think it’s important to get outside your comfort zone and both listen and shoot bands you’re not used to. If you continue to back yourself into a corner creatively, eventually the thrill of loving the music and shooting the bands may go stale if you’re not careful.
