We were lucky to catch up with Alyson Coletta recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alyson, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

I was lucky to grow up with a father that had his own business for over 20 years. From the beginning I had someone that could show me the ropes of being self-employed and making sure I was doing everything by the book. Both my parents always made sure I grew up to be self-sufficient and taught me a lot of things most parents don’t teach their kids. For perspective, I knew how to do my own taxes by the time I was 18. They sat me down and said “you’re going to learn how to do this today.” And they’ve always been like that – making sure I could do things myself – and I’m grateful for it.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

When I was 16, about to start my senior year of high school, I started my own music webzine & website with one of my friends. I used my design skills I learned in my high school’s graphic design program I was enrolled in to make the webzine and website myself. I started off by making news posts on the website and reviewing albums, but then was able to connect with publicists and managers so I could interview, review, and photograph artists at concerts.

From there, at my first concert I photographed, I met a now long-time friend who introduced me to the magazine I work for now. After spending time there, they promoted me to the head of the photography team, and now I manage about 40 photographers. Through that magazine, and developing relationships with artists’ teams, I was given my first offer to go on tour as a photographer.

From 2016-2022 I toured on and off while I finished college, and then had a break during the pandemic shutdown. I traveled all over the US, and visited Canada a couple of times. While I primarily did photography, I ended up picking up videography, running meet and greets, and managing merchandise on tour as well. From 2023 onwards, I’ve taken a break from touring and work locally doing photography for musicians and running meet and greets. Additionally, I now work in digital marketing for music & comedy tours.

What I’m most proud of throughout my career is that I managed to teach myself photography from a young age (I never went to school for it) and turn it into a successful business. I have been hired by most of my favorite bands, published in magazines both nationally and internationally, and I will forever be grateful for those opportunities.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

What helped me build my reputation within my market the most was simply just by treating musicians like regular people. I am always asking for permission, not forgiveness. I establish boundaries with the artists I work with to make sure they’re comfortable. Even if we’ve worked together a dozen times in the past, I will still ask every time before a show I’m photographing: “where can I go, where can’t I go, and what are you looking for the most content wise?” Bands sometimes have pyrotechnics, CO2 cannons, and other theatrics, so even if we’ve worked together a dozen times, I check in to make sure I won’t interfere with their performance in any capacity.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Word of mouth is undoubtedly the best way to get clients in the music industry. While it seems like a massive industry, most people know each other. And if they don’t, they know someone that knows you. Your personality is the biggest priority when people hire out for tour photographers. Yes, you need to be good at taking photos, but being a good hang is even more important because you’re going to be spending 24/7 with them. Every single gig I have gotten was because someone I knew referred me for the job. Be a good person, and good things will come your way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://alysoncoletta.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/alysoncoletta

Image Credits
Photo of me by Sean Stitt