Happy accidents
If it weren’t for a fateful knee surgery in 2003, Aloysius Lim might have never picked up a camera, become a concert photographer, and shot the likes of Paramore, Robbie Williams and Elton John, among stalwarts of the Singaporean scene like Electrico.
It was during a three-month recovery period on medical leave from the Air Force that Aloysius developed a curiosity for toy cameras. Lomography—a form of film photography that often produces quirky, artistic visual effects—was gaining popularity in the early 2000s, so he bought a Lomo LCA on a whim. After a few false starts adjusting to the idiosyncrasies of analogue photography (“I loaded the film wrongly, twice!”), he started taking pictures of everyday sights around his neighbourhood. “That’s when my love for image-making began,” he shares.
Today, Aloysius’s practice is split between music and wedding photography. “People ask me why I chose the two most difficult forms of photography!” He laughs. “For wedding shoots, you’ve to be on your feet for maybe 10 to 12 hours from morning, and in concert photography, everyone’s running around in low light. Weddings are mellower, and you have more time and space to be creative than in a rock concert, but in both cases you have to be on your feet, alert, both eyes open when looking through the viewfinder.”
When Aloysius started in the mid-2000s, the idea of a music photographer was unheard of, especially in Singapore. Aloysius recounts feeling a bundle of nerves in his early years in the profession, and he’d often share his pictures on the Internet to get advice from music photographers overseas. With the rise of social media, particularly Instagram as a medium for publicity, the role of the music photographer has become increasingly valued by bands, promoters, music companies and fans alike. Aloysius himself is now a mentor for Baybeats Budding Photographers programme.
Reflecting on what he has learnt about music photography over the past 15 years, Aloysius shares that it’s not so much technical ability that makes a difference, but calmness and focus. “As a mentor for Baybeats, I notice photographers who are starting out tend to go all out in the first couple of minutes, then burn out and not know what to shoot anymore.” It’s understandable to start with a burst of nerves and adrenalin, “since you have three songs and you want to nail a shot—that jumpshot, or some action that you're expecting.” But as thrilling as it is, what’s most crucial, Aloysius advises, is to take at least the first 30 seconds of a concert to calm down, take stock of your bearings, and play around with your camera settings. “You’ll find a sweet spot in the camera settings that will work. Then just focus on getting the composition right, getting the picture right.”
To share what he’s learnt, Aloysius took me through some of the highlights of his own journey as a gig photographer.
