Celebreak

Interview with B-Boy Photographer Peter Tsai

Posted on November 1, 2008

In addition to movies and films, breaking has been spread another way—through photos. From magazines to newspaper articles, photographers have been there since the beginning, capturing b-boys in a single moment…and then eternalizing them. I recently interviewed one such photographer, Peter Tsai, who has been photographing b-boys and b-girls since 2000. 

What’s up Peter, please introduce yourself for the readers

Hey everybody my name is Peter Tsai. I’ve been photographing bboys for about 8 years and dancing for about 10. I currently live in Austin, Texas but grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, where I first got into the scene.

I love photography and capturing motion and action. You can find a lot of my work at www.petertsaiphotography.com. Hip Hop fans should pay special attention to the ‘Action’ section under the main page.  You can also check out my presentation on B-boying culture for Pecha Kucha Austin at www.supertsai.com/photo/PKN/PKN00.html

What got you interested in breaking, photography and how did you start mixing the 2?

While I was growing up, I thought dancing was cool, but I didn’t have the coordination needed for it. I had always played music, so I had rhythm, and I’ve played soccer my entire life, so I had motor skills. But I didn’t have dance training. Things fell into place when I started college in 1998. A friend of mine started dating b-boy Totem2 (who is also an amazing graffiti writer) from the Burn Unit Crew in Atlanta.  I took Totem’s class and I practiced with his crew for 4 years. After that, I moved to Austin and practiced with the b-boys at the University of Texas and got interested in seriously photographing b-boys at Bboy City events.

My love of travel is what got me to start shooting photos seriously.  In 2000, my parents bought me a film camera before I spent a semester abroad in China.  During that time, I became hooked on both travel and photography—I must have shot 20 rolls of film that summer.  I bought a digital camera soon after I got back (because film is expensive!) and I started shooting everything in sight. 

What do you try to capture when photographing b-boys and b-girls?

Photographing breaking is difficult because you are trying to capture a still frame of a dance that is incredibly quick and fluid. It’s hard to capture motion and a single instance in time that tells the story of the dance. 

There are 2 things I really want my b-boy photos to capture. One, I want to freeze the decisive moment that tells the story and two, I want to show the soul of the dance. 

To me, photographing b-boy events is about telling the story behind the event. B-boy portrait sessions are about capturing a person’s character. Also, what I capture depends on the dancer.  If the guy is a crazy powermover, you want to really capture that gravity defying moment that will make people say “wow” when they see the photo.  If the guy is a stylehead, then you want to really capture the facial expressions and body position that show the passion for the dance.

You recently worked with Marcy Garriott on her b-boy documentary “Inside the Circle“. What was it like being a part of that project?

Working with Marcy was pretty awesome.

She really poured her heart into the project, dedicating 5 years of her life to tell a single story.  It’s inspiring to be around people who are focused on something they love and who have the skill to share their world through a creative medium. I still remember the first time I watched the movie - I got chills up my back. It was that good. I felt really privileged to be involved in some way with this great movie and it was interesting to explore in depth the lives of people who you see around town all the time, but not really know personally.  I was at almost every event in the movie so I had an even more personal connection with the film.

It was also great to have my work featured on the promotional materials for the movie and on the DVD cover! 

Who have been some of your favorite dancers to work with?

Omar (Jive Turkeys / Zulu Kings) - Omar has crazy skills and I shot him right after he won Red Bull’s BC One event.  It was cool to see what life is like for a b-boy that’s on top of his game.

B-boy Zeshen (Havikoro Crew) – has mad skills at dissecting the beat and I got some awesome shots.  He was full of cool ideas for the shoot and had a good energy.

Anything else you want to add?

I see a lot of similarities between b-boying and photography. Any creative field is an expression of self. To be truly expressive in any medium, you have to first really understand who you are. Only then can you shine in your work. 

In dance, you can go through the motions and be good technically, but if you don’t really feel it in your soul, then it will show in your dance.

In photography, you can only really shoot subjects well that you have a deep understanding of or a love for… otherwise your photos show that you are an outsider looking in.

I’m really glad to have been involved in both art forms because it forces you to put yourself and your work out there. And this teaches you a lot about yourself.

You can check out more of Peter’s work at www.PeterTsaiPhotography.com

Related Posts:

• Interview with B-Boy Photographer Carlo Cruz

5 Comments »

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1. i agree, photography has been an excellent medium in conveying the dynamic nature of b-boy culture

   think what did if for me was photographer Jamel Shabazz’s “Time Before Crack” it’s hot. doesn’t only capture b-boys on the hard floors but just the entire cuture:fashion, music etc.

   and i like your pictures Peter. i also like this line

   “Any creative field is an expression of self. To be truly expressive in any medium, you have to first really understand who you are. Only then can you shine in your work”

   Comment by MB — November 1, 2008 #

2. Jamal Shabazz’s “Time Before Crack” is a great book! He also has another one, “Back in the Day”, that also captures the lifestyle.

   Comment by boon — November 2, 2008 #

3. Thanks for the comment MB! I also love Jamel Shabazz’s work.

   Comment by Peter — November 3, 2008 #

4. [...] find out more about Tsai, visit his site here, his Flickr here, and his interview with Celebreak here (R.I.P. — Celebreak, not Tsai. I’d pour out a little literally, but I don’t want [...]

   Pingback by Peter Tsai’s BBoy City 16 Flicks | More Than A Stance — June 18, 2009 #

5. [...] Interviews with B-Boy Photographers Carlo Cruz and Peter Tsai [...]

   Pingback by Shutting down Celebreak.net « Ebunoluwa.com — August 12, 2009 #

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