She got a feel for photography by cutting out images from magazines. Now Loreana Rushe, a 21-year-old Dubliner, has become NME's eyes in Ireland, writes Tony Clayton-Lea
Loreana Rushe is one of a new breed of Irish music photographers who are starting to make their presence felt here and abroad. The 21-year-old Dubliner, who has been signed up by NME, the music magazine, for its new Irish edition, was first drawn to photography as a rock-obsessed teenager. "I started buying weekly magazines like NME and Melody Maker and monthlies like Vox and Select. Flicking through them, I obviously got a feel for the photos - I'd cut out all the pictures.
"My bedroom was a collage of photos, and I'd glue pictures of bands into my homework journals. I'd be fascinated by studio shoots of bands. The first gig I went to was Smashing Pumpkins - that was a life-changing event."
Fast-forward through school and college to just over a year ago, when Rushe started getting published in the likes of Hot Press and Connected. Then a call came from the organisers of the acclaimed Hard Working Class Heroes festival, which asked her to submit images for an exhibition of music photography.
"I decided to set up a website for that, and from thereon in it took off for me. From the website, people perceived I was putting more work into what I was doing - not that I wasn't before. Perhaps it's a perception that anyone can pick up a camera and take photos of bands, that there's a hobby aspect to it. Once the website came along, however, the perception changed. It was seen that I was consciously marketing myself as a photographer."
Rushe works primarily with up-and-coming Irish bands (although she has established a good working relationship with the British band The Charlatans) and, as such, is aware that they might require help in the image department. If a band is interested in doing a photo shoot, she makes a point of listening to their music and finding out what they're into.
"I don't like to dictate to a band that they should have their photos taken in any particular location or that they should look a certain way. A lot of the time it doesn't really matter how a band looks. I don't think image is a big deal. If a band wants to look like themselves - normal, whatever - then I would advise them not to wear any clothes with logos or distracting images on them."
... Plain colours and facial expressions, then, with nothing that shouts contrivance? "Some photographers will insist on bands dressing a certain way and having a defined look about them, but that has nothing to do with the music. It is probably more to do with marketing than anything else. I find that, if bands start out with a definite image, it can work against them - which is unfair, because if a band wants to look a certain way, then why not?"
So how does she approach a shoot? "I like to make friends with the people I work with, and making a personal connection is good for the photos, anyway. They're comfortable with you and vice versa. It's about keeping them at ease, because having your photo taken can be a nerve-racking experience. It's also a natural way to build up relationships with bands. If you get along with them, word of mouth spreads."
Aside from her regular work with NME, Rushe hopes to visit Chicago next year, to work with Touch and Go, the US indie label that is the home of Quasi, Calexico and The Black Heart Procession. She'd also like to work closer to home. The Rough Trade record label, in London, would be nice, she says, smiling. "I'd also like to go to London and see if I can get work experience with NME or even some work with a London-based music photographer." Anything else? "To be paid to photograph bands, but also to have more creative and artistic control over studio shoots. Magazine work, essentially."
Loreana Rushe's website is www.myleftventricle.com