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An interview with Lindsey Byrnes

When Lindsey Byrnes said she was interested in contributing to AfterEllen.com, we were thrilled. Lindsey is an accomplished photographer with years of editorial experience, having worked on the staff of publications like Thrasher and Juxtapoz. More recently, she’s been behind the band and skate photography in a Vans’ book, Off the Wall: Stories of the Sole and Tegan and Sara’s three-book series On, In, At. Lindsey has shot behind-the-scenes photos of the duo as well as photographing actors like Alia Shawkat and artists like B.O.B., Joan Jett, Margaret Cho, Holly Miranda, Uh Huh Her, Girl in a Coma, An Horse and Hesta Prynn. In other words, she has likely shot one of your favorite artists and created one of your most loved photos of them.

Lindsey took the time to answer some questions about her life as a photographer in L.A. and upcoming projects, including a hopeful future in talk shows.

AfterEllen.com: How did you become interested in photography? Lindsey Byrnes: I’d say, I have always been interested in photography, even when I didn’t know it. I have always loved reading magazines more than books and I was the one in my family who was obsessed with all of our family photos. Always making photo albums and taking pictures of my friends.

When I play the “what if game” and wonder what is the one thing that I would save if my house burned down, the answer has always been photos. I’ve always felt that photos are the only things that are irreplaceable. But maybe I’m just looking for a foreshadowing that wasn’t really there.

I really got interested in photography in 2000. I was working at High Speed Productions, Inc. the publishers of Thrasher, Slap and Juxtapoz magazines. They bought me a Yoshica T4, a point and shoot that I still use today. I was in charge of the events and wanted to document them, so we could promote the events in the magazines after the fact. I always had that camera with me. One day, I was at home and was watching the making of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue and they were interviewing Terry Richardson. He had the same camera and was talking about how it is not about the equipment as much is it is about a person’s eye. I started looking at my photographs differently after that. Even though I was on the marketing side of things, my job was very creative and the people I worked with were so creative that there was a lot of room to mix the two together. The editorial staff was open to me contributing.

One day I went and shot a band playing live and that was it, I caught the bug. I started asking the staff photographers more about their cameras and techniques. And when they actually published my work, well that feeling was so good that I kept doing it.

AE: When did you decide to make it your profession? LB: It has been a very long process. But in the end, I think it chose me. I never thought to make a career out of photography. OK, that’s a lie – of course I thought about it but not until I already had a decent body of work and experience. The funny thing is that I have been working towards a career in photography for many years and wasn’t conscious of it. I was just shooting and learning.

A few years back I was going through a transitional period and was asking myself a lot of questions. What do I want to do? Am I on the right path? You know those types of things. My friend Jen knew how interested in photography I was and introduced me to a very talented photographer named Mel Barlow. I started helping her out here and there and we became very close friends. She is a true inspiration!

While that was happening, I got a job offer to photo edit the Vans book, Off the Wall Stories of Sole. I was just like “Ah, OK, I guess this is what I am supposed to be doing now.” It just seemed that I was on the right path. That led into the Tegan and Sara books.

AE: What can you share about the Vans book you’ve worked on? LB: The Vans book project was an amazing experience. The author, Doug Palladini, and I were acquainted through my time at Thrasher and when he asked me to photo edit the Vans book, I was honored.

Vans is a very well established brand with such a long history. I was able to work with some amazing photographers. I have a lot of licensing experience – mainly licensing music to use in skateboard videos/cd compilations – and I was able to put those skills to use but this time with photographers. It was so rad to call up these great talents and be like “Hey, I want to use your shots and pay you for them in this really cool project!”

AE: What is the extent you work with Tegan and Sara? LB: I worked with Tegan and Sara from idea all the way to actual production of the books set. Really in every aspect, we all worked as a collective. It was seriously amazing. They both have so many great ideas and Emy [Storey], their art director is a genius. I can honestly say that it was one of the best working experiences of my life. Tegan had the idea and they wanted someone who they knew and trusted to come on the road with them. I think when you get to a certain level giving someone access to document your daily life is a decision that has so many things to factor in, and trust is one of the big ones. As well as the idea that this person/photographer will be hanging out with you day in and day out.

The fact of the matter is that nobody likes getting their photo taken 24 hours a day, if at all. But Tegan and Sara wanted to show their audience what it was really like on the road all the moments – even the boring stuff. I joked halfway into it and wanted to call the book “waiting to live” because it was so amazing to me how much waiting and prep goes into that 90 minute performance. Being a touring musician is hard work and most of us only see the glamorous parts, we aren’t privy to the realities of life on the road. All the blood sweat and tears that goes in to that moment, the moment that Tegan and Sara as musicians live for, to play their songs for us.

It gave me such a different perspective. I really wanted to convey that through the books. Of course, there is still the element of imagination that we can build around one photograph, that glimpse into the real moment and that is also cool where video kind of gives you everything.

AE: What other projects are you currently working on or excited about coming up? LB: I’m going to go out on the road with Margaret Cho for a few dates and document that. I have never been out on a comedy tour and she is just an incredible person. She has been at it a long time and has a lot of knowledge. She is so funny and genuinely down to earth.

I just wrapped up a shoot for Rachel Antonoff, a New York Designer, for her next season, and I cannot wait until people see her collection – it’s brilliant.

I have art up in a group show called “Today” at 210 AR4T Space in Laguna Beach, which is very exciting. I have not made my prints available to the public since the last gallery show I was in, about four years ago. I wasn’t making showing a priority and so this is extremely exciting for me. AE: Do you feel that your queerness has anything to do with your photography? Does it influence in any way? LB: Of course. Every part of me influences my work and my decisions and my life as a whole.

AE: What is your dream project? LB: This is going to sound super cheesy, but I really feel like I’m living my dream. Everything I do is as important to me as the next thing. Of course I have goals that I have set for myself and have aspirations and ambitions, like being a staff photographer for every huge magazine in existence and shooting Nike’s new print campaign. You know, small things like shooting the next cover of Vogue!

And in reality, I am very conscious of the fact that I am so very lucky to be doing what I do and really enjoy it. I’m just putting one foot in front of the other and trying to stay in the moment, you know? I’m stoked on what I’m doing and not getting caught up in what I am not doing.

Photography helps me to stay in the moment and I don’t want to live for the future; I want to live for right now. If I spend too much time in the past or the future, then I am not living the here and now and time is just wasted. I want to savor every moment.

I want to host a talk show but, like, all about sex. I want to be the Dr. Ruth of our generation; Dr. Drew without the actual Ph.D! Actually, I’m working with my friends, Jack and Rachel Antonoff, who have come up with a web series that they want to do. I will be a correspondent . Since I’m totally not a doctor it should be a complete s–t show.

AE: Is there anything that you want people to know about you as a person, photographer, artist, etc? LB: That is a great question. Of course there are a million things I want you to know about me, if it means you will like me more. Truthfully, I am just like any other insecure artist-type or human for that matter – I want to be adored and respected.

I don’t have an inflated idea of myself, or what I do. Most of the time I recognize that I’m merely a person recording moments in time with the push of a button. And sometimes I get to collaborate and create pieces of art. I am so lucky and am so grateful of all that I have.

Find out more about Lindsey at her website, lindseybyrnes.com.

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