Scottie Miller

I’ve been beating on piano keys, off and on, since I was a little kid. I can get through an old Beatles song, and I know the chords to St. James Infirmary. But don’t ask me to play the song in another key, unless you give me a day to figure it out. Which means my career on stage with a five-piece blues ensemble is still a ways off. And let’s face it, I’m running out of time.

Turns out I’m a better photographer than I am a musician. So if I can’t make the band sound better, why not try to make them look better? With all the Facebook accounts out there, every group is in need of a constant supply of new photos. Not to mention posters for the next gig.

Thus I’ve become a bit of a fixture in some of the local bars and musical hangouts. My idea is to do good work, have fun, and avoid creating another real job. So the photos are free, no strings attached. If people start to pay me, then it’s going to be another job, and that I don’t need.

Master of the keyboard, Scottie Miller.

Because it’s not a real job, I go when and where I want. With one exception, the gigs are all close to home. In most cases, the venues are low key and exude a good vibe. Whether I know the musicians or not, I try to show up early to introduce myself and exchange business cards with the guy who runs the band. At some point, usually after the second set, I put the camera gear away and either head for home, or switch to customer mode and order a cool one.

Once home, I eventually get around to processing the photos, at which point I send a CD to the band, and sometimes the bar owner as well.

What I’ve learned is that the light – especially inside – often sucks. Which adds to the challenge of course. The other more daunting challenge is to capture an image of the performer that captures a bit of his or her special karma and spirit. Unlike the images we use in our Wolfgang books, I process most of these images myself - instead of relying on staff to do the work of cropping, and adjusting the levels and the color.

Tom Burns, the man behind Mississippi Driftwood.

Now remember, if you see my truck parked outside some dive bar in Minneapolis on a Wednesday night, don’t just assume that I had a bad day and took my troubles to the bar. No, I’m actually working. Not on a job – but rather on trying to create my own version of harmony and tension, my own rendition of the blues.

John Beach, another keyboard master, and long-time fixture on the local blues scene.