Concerts
Concert photographer in Montreal
A concert photo should have the music in it.
I've photographed hundreds of concerts since 2015, for the Orchestre Métropolitain, the Orchestre classique de Montréal, GFN Productions and the CMIM. Orchestras Canada called me "one of Montreal's most sought-after photographers for classical musicians". I studied piano for six years and I listen while I shoot, so I'm on the soloist before the phrase arrives. I often send a first gallery before midnight the same evening for the press, and the highlights are in your inbox before 11 the next morning.
Concerts from $600 plus tax. The details are below.
Tell me about your concertSee the photos
Maria Dueñas at the CMIM, 2019
Photos with the music in them.
A concert photo can be sharp and well lit and still have no music in it. I studied piano for six years and I listen while I shoot. That is how I choose the moment and the angle, and why I'm on the soloist before the phrase arrives, not after.
One of Montreal's best-known music critics wrote to me about my photos of one concert: "Magnifiques et émouvantes !"
What you get
A photographer the hall doesn't hear.
I've photographed at the Maison symphonique so often that I know its angles, its doors and its backstage. I move through the hall all evening to get different angles, and I only open a door during a loud passage. My cameras are silent, I never use flash, and I dress for the hall. I photograph the rounds of the CMIM, where a candidate is being judged and a noise could cost them.
Musicians who know the photographer.
After 11 years, many of the musicians on Montreal's stages know me personally. They wave when they see me, backstage and from the stage. People are at ease with someone they know, and it shows in the photos: the conductor's smile, two players hugging after the last note. At the Orchestre Métropolitain's open-air concert at Mount Royal, I photograph the orchestra with more than 50,000 people on the hill behind it.
Photos when you need them.
When the press is waiting, I often send a first gallery before midnight the same evening. Otherwise the highlights reach you before 11 a.m. the next day, and the full gallery follows within a week. I edit every photo myself.
"Whether for portrait, group or performance shots, he produced high quality photos delivered fast and used by every single media outlet covering the competition."
Dina Barghout, former Director of Sponsorships, Marketing and Communications, CMIMWho I shoot for
- Orchestre Métropolitain: its yearly open-air concert at the foot of Mount Royal, in front of more than 50,000 people
- Orchestre classique de Montréal: the concert season
- GFN Productions and the OPCM: film-music and symphonic concerts
- CMIM: the competition, most years since 2016
- Schulich School of Music of McGill University: concerts and competitions
- Opéra de Montréal: concerts and opening nights
- Ensemble Caprice, Ensemble Obiora, Arion Orchestre Baroque, Ensemble ArtChoral, the NEM, collectif9 and JMC
Hundreds of concerts and more than 40 organizations since 2015. My photos have run in The Strad, on CBC and in Rolling Stone Québec.
Planning a gala or a benefit evening? See Galas.
What it costs
Concerts from $600 plus tax.
That covers up to two hours from the start of the concert, highlights the next morning and 30 to 50 retouched photos.
A longer evening, a rehearsal, a reception after the concert or a whole season: tell me what you have in mind and I'll send you a quote.
Questions people ask
What do you need from us?
The date, the venue and the program.
How do we receive the photos?
In a private online gallery. You can download the photos and share the link with your team and your musicians.
Can we use the photos for our brochure, our website, the press and our grant reports?
Yes. You can use them for your press release, your website, your social media, your brochure and your grant reports, with the credit Photo: Tam Photography (tamphotography.ca). You can also pass them to the media and to your soloists.
We have several concerts this season. Can you cover all of them?
Yes. Send me the dates and I'll quote the season as a whole.
Do you also photograph galas and receptions?
Yes. The Galas page has the details.
Have a concert coming up?
Tell me the date, the venue and the program. I reply by email within one business day with my availability.
