Why I take party pictures?

There are many kinds of photography: landscape, portrait, studio photography, astrophotography, wedding photography, street photography, macro photography, and many more. So why focus on party photography?

I don’t think it is due to a single reason but rather a combination of circumstances.
First of all, a very practical reason: when I started living in Korea I had a very time-consuming job. I would work every day until late and even work weekends quite often.

Work hard, party even harder.

Yes, I love the Korean nightlife so I went out a lot. (Or at least I used too. Today is August 11, 2021. Last time I shot a party was in May 2020. I sure miss it). I had owned a few digital cameras before getting my first DSLR, from compact point-and-shoot cameras to a digital bridge camera. Then, because I finally had a regular job and buying a car was far from my priority in a city like Seoul, I got a DSLR. And well, I was carrying it everywhere. You might wonder why I would carry around a 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs) camera with a lens about as heavy attached to it. That’s because it was rather expensive relative to the money I was making and whatever “gifts” I had bought myself until then. Therefore, I felt compelled to carry it around with me to get my money’s worth.

And just like that, I became a party photographer

At first, I would take it out to snap pictures of my friends mostly. However, when you are lugging around a big DSLR with a big flashlight sitting on top of it, other people start to assume you are THE party photographer. And just like that, people started posing for me.

As I didn’t want to make people feel bad—it is not really easy explaining yourself to people dancing in a club next to a giant loudspeaker—I indulged them.

While my technique was not the greatest and I still had a lot to learn, I got hired by a party planner friend of mine for gigs now and then.

Why party photography, though?

I must say I love spontaneity in photography. I do appreciate all kind of photography. That said, when it comes to my photography I am about “capturing the moment” rather than coming up with mind-blowing composition. If the composition happens to be good, then it’s a bonus. I don’t aspire to revolutionize photography. I just want to capture the fun of nightlife. I remember looking at work from local photographers like Kaipaparazzi or Hospital Photograph and thinking “Damn, that looks fun!”. Therefore, if I too can make you feel like you were there at the party, or even better, make you wish you were there, then I am happy.