Sean McMullen, Dave Doyle on photography

It’s not just for bands any more: The pending Che Underground Rock-‘n’-Roll Weekend will also celebrate two photographers whose work has captured San Diego music for decades.

The first night of the event — Friday, July 30, at Lestat’s Coffee House in San Diego — will feature a joint exhibit of concert photos by Dave Doyle and Sean McMullen. I caught up with each of them to learn a bit more about their respective photographic visions and how San Diego has shaped them.

Read more about the Che Underground Rock-‘n’-Roll Weekend!

Sean McMullen

How did you get into photography, and how long have you been at it?

I started at SD City College back in ’87. I wish I would have started

earlier. Man, that was a long time ago already …

What are a couple high points of your photographic history?

I was shooting a commission in the cilantro fields about an hour south of Ensenada, when I encountered a little girl sleeping in a furrow, not far from where I imagine her mother or grandmother was picking and tossing cilantro into giant woven baskets. They had put a blanket down in the furrow and she was just nestled there asleep, with the wind whistling though the field and the faint sound of a tractor in the distance.

It was startling at first, the way anything uniquely beautiful is the first time you see it. After a few seconds I knelt down quietly and snapped two frames, trying to conserve film for the remainder of the afternoon ahead, and moved on without disturbing her. To this day I still kick myself for not shooting a few more pictures, but at least I was able to capture and share the moment. Some people have expressed sadness when they see the image, but I don’t view it that way. I think it’s beautiful.

For music I would probably say shooting Gang of Four at Coachella, as I was so into them as a kid (and still am) — but even more so, just the entire collected period of shooting at the Casbah. Sometimes it feels like one big experience, and I feel lucky to be a part of it. My hope is that the work encapsulates that spirit and energy. Cue the George Winston. Just kidding.

What do you hope to convey with this showcase?

Dynamism and space.

How has the San Diego music scene informed your aesthetic choices?

It’s been a gift to grow up in my home town with such a variety of music, and I think that has lent itself to my visual personality. I crave variety.

Visit the official site of San Diego photographer Sean McMullen!

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Dave Doyle

How did you get into photography, and how long have you been at it?

I’ve made several false starts with photography in my life, but I think it finally stuck about 20 years ago when I lived in the South and had a neighbor with a background in processing and a photog son at the ATL Journal-Constitution. He was always bringing his dad rolls of film, which in turn made their way to me!

From there were plenty of subjects in the recording studio that Mark Neill and I had together. So people like William Claxton, Jim Marshall and Lee Friedlander inspired me to study musicians and well, the access was easy enough so I away I went.

What are a couple high points of your photographic history?

Highs come with the lows, and to sort through them would require thought beyond my periodicity. So for me, seeing the fruits of one’s labors in print, be it a magazine or an album cover or (soon to be) hanging on a wall in a public area brings completion. Beyond that, the approbation that an image may yield from an onlooker or better the subject. We are simple creatures, we truly seek approval for our actions. Oh OK, I did get a photo credit once in Mojo and a rejection letter from Details (the piece was canceled) …

What do you hope to convey with this showcase?

The expanse of drama that may or may not exist in music and all its realms in a subtle and oblique manner.

How has the San Diego music scene informed your aesthetic choices?

San Diego has informed me through the photogs I’ve met here. With Sean McMullen more recently, and then my earliest experience with someone of talent was Tim LaMadrid, who shot the music scene in SD back in the ’70s and ’80s.

Check out Dave Doyle’s photos of Che Games for May 2009!