Contributor Spotlight: Laura E. Partain

Almost unknowingly I hold my breath until the engineer gives us a green light to talk and move about. Is this mic gonna pick up the firing of a shutter, the ‘ca-clop’ of a Hasselblad mirror, or the advancement to the next frame? Navigating streams of cables, instruments, and persons at their most determined, passionate, joyful, and at times deeply vulnerable states. There’s just as much recording made in the visual sense. Documents encapsulating the creation of something that started as passing thoughts or moments of inspiration, by-products of dedicated hours practicing and working hard at a craft, but more likely—a combination of the two. I’m entrusted to hold this camera and document the visible; frames decidedly made in rhythm with a process reliant on concentration and silence. I’m grateful for the friends who trust me so, and to this day I can say few things are as lovely as listening to a record and recalling the moments those tracks were given permanence. That I got to be in the room and photograph a record come to life.

—Laura

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