Simon Pokorny

About Simon Pokorny

Simon Pokorny is a concert and music photographer from Berlin. For more than two decades, he has documented bands, concerts, festivals and tours with his camera. His images are defined by bold colours, close proximity and honest moments... right in front of the stage, at the heart of a live show’s energy.

His passion for photography began in childhood. His grandfather taught him how to use analogue Praktica and Voigtländer cameras, as well as how to develop photographs in the darkroom. A defining moment came after a Freundeskreis concert, when his first self-shot music photographs slowly appeared on the photographic paper. He also discovered his enthusiasm for computers and digital image editing at an early age. In 2001, he bought his first high-end digital camera, and in 2003 he photographed larger rock bands for the first time with Boysetsfire and The Used.

The real starting point of his career as a concert photographer came in 2006. Together with friends, Simon travelled to Dublin to see the then largely unknown band Enter Shikari perform live. After the concert, he formed a personal connection with the band, leading to further shows, tours, festivals and many shared experiences.

Over the years, Simon has photographed numerous international and German artists, including Enter Shikari, Alexisonfire, Boysetsfire, Parkway Drive, Silverstein, Chiodos, The Last Mile, Green Day, Slayer, Korn, Die Toten Hosen and many more. His work has appeared in music magazines and media outlets such as FUZE, Uncle Sally*s, Alternative Press and VISIONS, as well as for bands, promoters, labels, clubs, PR agencies and press agencies. Today, he mainly works directly with artists and promoters, as well as regularly on assignment for the Berlin photo agency PIC ONE.

Simon’s photography is deliberately colourful, direct and approachable. He does not just want to document what a concert looked like, but to make you feel what happens between the band and the audience. His images are intended to convey energy, closeness and connection. His experience with the artists helps: anyone who knows a band and its songs can often sense in advance when a jump, a look into the camera or a move into the crowd is about to happen.

Working together as equals is especially important to Simon. Brief personal encounters before a show help him get to know the people behind the music and portray them as honestly as possible. Discretion, respect and professional conduct are second nature to him, whether backstage, on tour or in the photo pit.

Simon is a trained bookbinder and qualified media designer specialising in non-print media design. He primarily works with cameras from the Canon EOS and Canon EOS R systems, as well as Fujifilm X cameras and fast lenses.

Raised in the Rhine-Main region, he initially photographed mainly in Mainz, Wiesbaden, Frankfurt and Darmstadt. Later, his assignments took him across Germany and to many other countries. Simon has lived in Berlin since around 2010, where he can now be found especially often at concerts.

His goal is to create images in which bands recognise themselves: honest, vibrant, colourful and full of energy.