Making the Album Cover: The Art and Craft of Music Photography

With 40 years behind the camera and album covers for Miles Davis, Willie Nelson, and Dee Dee Ramone to his name, Jimmy Steinfeldt presents a personal look at the Minneapolis music scene and the moments, venues, and artists that have defined it. A rich visual presentation drawn from a career that began in the era of Prince and has never stopped.

Moderated by Amelia Davis, who managed Jim Marshall's archive for 13 years and inherited his estate, this panel traces the history of music photography from the golden era of rock to today, exploring how the business has shifted and what it takes to sustain a career documenting music culture. A candid look at the realities of building a sustainable career in music photography: when to charge, when not to, how to protect your work, and how to stay in the rooms that matter.

Jimmy covers how to capture live music performance photography in real conditions, from reading a stage and working with available light to finding the decisive moment in a fast-moving, unpredictable environment. A hands-on session grounded in four decades of concert work published in Rolling Stone, SPIN, and Time.