Randy Cole

I came to jazz through the guitar because I wanted to become a great player. In the end, I received my music degree, and chose a career in photography. Capturing a musician in full flight is a rare and exhilarating experience, second only to that of the musician. Behind the camera, the work is momentary, and also porous. I am transparent in a way; by only subtle choices of form, texture and timing, can I fully portray what I see and feel. In this way, fine photography is a symbiosis, a quiet collaboration between photographer and subject. In the case of performing artists, I must marry their art with my own. In truth, great images only arrive after ceaseless digging; one must sink deeper and deeper into the subject at hand, delaying satisfaction, pushing beyond expectation or belief. The best image usually arrives near the end of a shoot. Only after exhaustive tinkering, perseverance is rewarded.