1. Sarah Northrop Sartakespics.com.

2. Athena Delene Delene.co.

3.Destiny Brock Facebook.com/DBrockPhotography

Sarah Northrop heard her first music show from under a pair of protective headphones at the Sunset Strip’s House of Blues when she was three years old. Her mother worked in the L.A. music industry, resulting in her attendance at that particular show, and her father harbors a passion for photography, leading her to the point-and-shoot camera she picked up in middle school. 

Northrop, now 23, is a Eugene-based music photographer who freelances at festivals all over the West and Southwest. She shares her photography under the social media handle @sartakespics, which she created at 15, and has utilized as her brand more recently. 

When shooting a festival, Northrop works hard to capture all aspects: the crowd, the decorations, the stage visuals and the performers. 

“When it comes to music, because it’s consumed and loved by so many people from so many walks of life, every little detail that goes into the production of a show means something to someone,” Northrop says. “You don’t know what someone in that crowd’s background is and one tiny aspect of the entire three-day weekend could be someone’s highlight. And I want to capture that.” 

Northrop says she knows “in her heart” that music photography is her calling and hopes to soon be able to transform her freelance work into a full-time career. 

“I’m waiting for the moment where I can find the right opportunity,” she says, “and just blast off.”