Ever since I started taking photography seriously, I wanted to do a real Jazzfest run.

Not just one show here and there, but the full experience — bouncing between venues, late nights, fast edits, little sleep, too much caffeine, and trying to keep up with the pace of New Orleans during one of the busiest times of the year.

This year, I finally did it.

What started with shooting Gov’t Majik on the main stage at Jazzfest somehow turned into one long blur of music, camera batteries, memory cards, and editing until 2am before doing it all over again the next day. Somewhere in the middle of all the chaos, I also shot a wedding while still balancing my regular 9–5 IT job during the week.

Exhausting honestly doesn’t fully cover it.

Most of this was done simply for the love of the music scene and documenting the energy that makes this city feel alive during Jazzfest season.

Over the course of the run, I had the chance to photograph:
• Gov’t Majik
• STS9 (both nights)
• Galactic
• The Greyboy Allstars
• Take Me to the River
• Dragon Smoke
• Lettuce
• Dumpstaphunk

Between Tipitina’s, The Joy Theater, and the Fair Grounds, every room had a completely different energy. Some nights felt chaotic and loud from the second I walked in, while others felt almost hypnotic once the lights dropped and the band locked in. Somewhere in the middle of all of it, I realized this was exactly the kind of work I’ve been wanting to make.

Below are galleries from the full run.