Having Sax

This shot isn’t about music. It’s about friction — brass on fingers, sweat on grip, breath on reed. I didn’t wait for the solo. I framed the pause before it, when everything is coiled. The hand is relaxed, but not idle. It knows exactly where it is.

I shot tight with a fast prime, 85mm wide open, to isolate the curve of the bell and the roughness of the horn’s surface — pitted and worn, not polished. This instrument has stories. It’s been around. The monochrome helps strip it down to form and texture. You feel the decades in that metal.

The grain is intentional. So is the low-key lighting. The microphone lurking above reminds us this is live, raw. You can almost hear the click of the keys, the shift of feet on the floor. No audience in view — this is jazz from the inside.

Technically, I held back on the highlights to keep the patina intact. Shadows were allowed to fall off, pushing the right side into mystery. It’s not pristine. But neither is jazz.