The Magic City has slowly built a core following around our fantastic restaurants, musicians, poets, artists, community events, and countless other uplifting categories. We have come a long way, and leaned on supporting each other, to build something better as a collective. These moments, these memories, and the magic that is Birmingham couldn’t be what it is without such a thriving photography scene. The talented time-capturerers not only display the work of creatives from the city to computer screens around the nation, but are creating art with every click of their camera. We are thankful for them. We asked a few of the city’s favorites to share a few thoughts and pictures with us–we hope you enjoy. As we do have so many, there will be more photographer highlights in upcoming months. Everyone on this list was recommended to us by residents in Birmingham.
Larry O. Gay Photography
(Found on Instagram at @larrylog and Facebook at Larry O. Gay)
What do you photograph for an income?
Events, magazines and art photographs.
What do you photograph for fun?
Street photography, shadows, colors, reflections, old houses, building, abstracts, graffiti art and trains.
What first inspired you to get behind the camera?
I always had a love for art and photography. I would always buy Ebony, Look and Life Magazines or go to the libraries just to look at images.
What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer in the Magic City?
Meeting people in and around the city, the old architecture, trying to create art where it seems like none, abstracts, reflections and murals.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Photography helps me see the world differently and it helps me to meet people that I probably wouldn't have otherwise.
DeShanna Monay - Face Photography LLC
(Also found at DeShanna Hampton and @curvygurl76 and @face_forever100)
What do you photograph for an income? What do you photograph for fun?
I capture birthdays, milestones, weddings, proms and families for income.
I create themed shoots for fun, such as anything high fashion. I’ve even done a Black Panther Party re-creation.
What first inspired you to get behind the camera?
I needed a hobby and I’ve always been creative so I thought photography would suit me, and I was right!
What’s a fun recent shoot or milestone you just had?
I had the privilege of capturing my good friend Emmanuel in a baseball field parking lot. It was pure magic!
What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer in the Magic City?
Being able to capture the hidden gems of the Magic City while providing a great service to my community.
Anything else you’d like to share?
I’m honored to share my gift with the world! Contact me and let’s make MAGIC!!
Darrell Nance - whalewolves.com
(@thinkdarrell on Twitter and Instagram)
What do you photograph for an income? What do you photograph for fun?
Nowadays for income it's been a lot of pivoting to virtual events and streaming. Live music is what I love to photograph and have spent my many years doing.
What first inspired you to get behind the camera?
I took a photography class in high school that I enjoyed, but what really spurred it was moving to Boston to work for a record label. There was a need for some coverage for videos and photos and that sent me down a path that's continuing to this day.
What’s a fun recent shoot or milestone you just had?
I worked with Alabama Public Television to create a live streaming music show! It was pretty great experience to work with.
What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer in the Magic City?
the musicians. it's pretty incredible to be afforded the opportunity to capture the talent on a stage
Anything else you’d like to share?
legalizedtheft.org is a project I'm working on currently. Initial focus is on Asset Forfeiture, a subject highlighted most recently in Brookside. The example in Brookside may seem extreme, but this type of behavior is not just accepted but in many cases promoted.
Tony Haute - THS Productions
(Found on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram)
What do you photograph for an income? What do you photograph for fun?
Most of the photography I take is income-based LOL! I love photography and I love being an active contributor to the artform. When it comes to the "Fun" portion of the question, all aspects of photography are fun and I thoroughly enjoy every moment. Like I'm totally obsessed with photography, LOL!
What first inspired you to get behind the camera?
My Mother. My mom always had a camera at every event and family function. She took thousands of photographs, like honestly speaking, she has a huge floor chest full of photos that span the course of 30+ years. I believe the reason my connection with photography is so strong is due to her. I love you Mom! (She is still alive BTW, LOL!)
What’s a fun recent shoot or milestone you just had?
There are always milestones one could and should celebrate, so here we go. I am very proud to be a part of a collective group of wonderful creatives and the group is called "One Unit Productions" (1UP). They really keep me centered and I appreciate growing with them. We challenge each other to our best potential and we believe in fostering the creative mind. We are planning several free events throughout the year to help stimulate the photography community and to maintain a strong creative presence for Birmingham, AL.
What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer in the Magic City?
I am able to showcase my city in such a magical light and to let other creatives know that you can be from anywhere and still create beautiful, high quality, professional works of art that can stand next to major magazine editorials, large corporation AD campaigns, and highly acclaimed photographers. We can't sleep on another creative just because of where they are located. We truly have amazingly talented people here in Birmingham, AL and we must take pride in where we are from.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Two of my favorite sayings, "Knowledge is useless unless you share it" and "Success isn't easy because if it were, everyone would be able to achieve it quickly."
We are thankful to have so many talented and passionate photographers in Birmingham, and these four creatives for all that they do to uplift the city around them. We can’t wait to see what moments y’all capture next.
Xavier McClure-Moore - XMAPHOTO
(Found on Instagram at @xmaphoto)
What do you photograph for an income? What do you photograph for fun?
I used to take portraits and do some small events as paid gigs years and years ago. I still do on rare occasions, but now I mainly photograph the streets in Birmingham or wherever I am. Street photography is both my fun and my work. I'm currently working on putting photos from Five Points South into a series of zines (Jovian Gaze) throughout the next few years.
What first inspired you to get behind the camera?
I've always enjoyed playing with cameras since I was a kid and disposable film cameras were a national interest, so a good bit of my influence comes from family photographs. What inspired me to get serious was a trip to France after high school. Due to some bad luck, all I could afford to do was take pictures of what I saw. That trip shaped how I would look at photography from then on. I'm pretty sure this was also after learning about Hopper's painting "Nighthawks".
What’s a fun recent shoot or milestone you just had?
Every time I go into town with my camera, it's like a game. I feel like I'm on safari in the streets, so there's rarely a boring shoot. A big milestone for me would be printing and distributing my first zine of Five Points photos. Making a photo book of any kind has been a dream of mine, and I'm glad I got to make it happen at least once, hopefully a few more times too.
What’s your favorite thing about being a photographer in the Magic City?
The best thing about being a photographer here is the fact that this city is big enough for me to do what I do. I see a few faces often, but there's enough people to give me variety as well as for them to forget they saw me. Stealth can be one component for street photography, and I use it as often as I can. That said, one thing I've learned it takes to make a great street photo is to always be prepared to talk to someone, and many of the conversations I have with people are what makes documenting life the most interesting.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Shout out to Gav Robinson and Larry O. Gay.
Cover photo from Tony Haute of THS Productions
