King Falcon — Syracuse, NY

By the time we took this shot, the rain had stopped and the streets had dried, though a north wind had picked up and the sun was still pinned behind low clouds—a typical November afternoon in Syracuse. I’d been shooting with NYC-based King Falcon indoors for nearly three hours, and the break in the weather finally gave us a chance to make the gritty street image we’d planned from the start.

I’d rolled into town the night before to see the band play at Funk’n Waffles, a downtown venue known for its waffle-based menu and adjoining music room. I’d worked with the band before, but seeing them live offered a clearer sense of how they operate. Onstage, they were relaxed with one another—quick to joke, comfortable shifting between intensity and humor without much effort.

The band was near the end of a two-month tour and had a down day in Syracuse before heading to Nashville. The plan had been to shoot outside late morning, but a cold rain forced a rethink. The obvious fallback—a hotel room—felt detached from the band’s actual rhythm.

Instead, I went back to Funk & Waffles, ordered lunch, and struck up a conversation at the counter. The person working the register turned out to be Adam Gold, the owner. By the end of the conversation, we had permission to shoot in both the bar and the performers’ green room upstairs.

The green room looked like a space that had seen a lot of use: walls painted over in bold colors, beat-up furniture, dim lighting. It was immediately clear that the rain might have been more help than hindrance. Nothing about the room felt staged.

The band settled in easily, moving between setups without much direction. Mike Rubin, Joe Conserva, and Dipayan Chakraborty spent most of the time talking and joking, drifting into moments that felt natural to where they were and how they work together.

After about ninety minutes upstairs, we moved downstairs into the bar. Lunch arrived—waffles, coffee, plates pushed together. It was still raining, so we kept working while they ate and waited it out.

There was no rush. The band wasn’t leaving for Nashville until the next morning.

Between setups, we photographed the band in the bar downstairs.