Picturing Surprise: Jeff Dunn plays a jazz photography solo at Argus Museum

by Christopher Porter
Fri, 06/06/2025 - 10:00am
MUSIC VISUAL ART PREVIEW INTERVIEW

Linda Hale - Detroit Jazz Workshop (Summer Jazz Week) - Cliff Bell's - 7-16-2018. I took this picture while shooting for the Detroit Jazz Workshop—a week-long summer program run by veteran Detroit musician, composer, and educator Scott Gwinnell. It's one of the highlights of the season. At the end of the workshop, students perform for friends and family at a local jazz club, showcasing their progress from the week. In 2018, that venue was Cliff Bell's. The lighting at Cliff Bell's can sometimes be challenging, but it's also given me the setting for some of my most dramatic photos—especially in black and white. This photo of vocalist Linda Hale is one of my very favorites because it captures a moment. A moment of thought—maybe emotion.

Jeff Dunn at the Argus Museum next to his photo of Linda Hale. Photo by Christopher Porter.

Jeff Dunn didn't mean to become a go-to photographer for the Southeast Michigan jazz scene. He was just a guy who started taking his camera to jam sessions around 2014 after being a fan of the "sound of surprise" since the early 1970s.

"The first time I went to [Detroit's] Baker's Keyboard Lounge in 1973, I was hooked," Dunn told Pulp in a 2018 interview. "I've been addicted to live jazz performances ever since."

Now he's the house photographer for the Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation, a regular presence at concerts from the Motor City to Tree Town, and the focus of a new exhibit at Argus Museum in Ann Arbor.

Jeff Dunn - Jazz Photography runs June 2-27, offering 38 shots by the St. Clair Shores resident and retired Wayne State computer programmer/web developer.

The exhibit is tucked into a narrow hallway with a slight zig-zag, but there's enough room to step back from each photo and imagine the 71-year-old Dunn's placement for each shot. The description plates for each image feature enthusiastic prose from the photographer about his subjects, revealing Dunn's fan-first appreciation of jazz.

Marion Hayden is one of the best bassists in the world—and she’s right here in Detroit. She was awarded the prestigious Kresge Eminent Artist Prize for 2025. If Marion’s on the gig, you know it’s going to be a great night. In this set, Marion performed with the wonderful Jeff Haas Quintet at Ann Arbor’s Blue LLama Jazz Club—one of my favorite places on Earth.

Marion Hayden with Jeff Haas Quintet at Blue Llama Jazz Club, November 30, 2024. 16 x 20 in. Photo by Jeff Dunn.

Like his fellow Southeast Michigan jazz photographer Chuck Andersen, who Dunn cites as an influence and friend, they're at all these shows because they want to contribute to the scene's legacy.

"We go out and we really want to document the scene," Dunn said as he was hanging photos for the exhibit. "We want to contribute to the scene—and just have fun with it. And we're not worried about where it takes us."

One place that Dunn's photography takes him frequently is Ann Arbor's Blue LLama Jazz Club, which is well-represented in the exhibition.

"Blue LLama for sure—absolutely—and probably now the Gretchen Valade Center in Detroit," Dunn said, are among his favorite venues to shoot musicians.

But it's another well-known Detroit hangout that presents some difficulties for photographers.

"Cliff Bell's is a really interesting place. It's really challenging lighting," Dunn said. "[The lights] are circular and very close to the stage, so everything is super-saturated. But I know the sound and lighting person; they can see that I'm shooting that night and they'll be cool and dial back some of the intensity."

An easy tweak to deal with tricky lighting is stripping color from the photo in post-production to create elegant black-and-white images that bring to mind classic jazz photographers such as Francis Wolff, Carol Friedman, and Herman Leonard, and there are several Dunn shots on display that evoke those greats.

It's a lofty group to be compared to, especially for a modern jazz photographer from Michigan when most of the industry is based in New York City. But Dunn has carved out his spot as an important documentarian of the Midwest scene—so much so that in 2025 he was nominated for the Jazz Journalists Association's Lona Foote-Bob Parent Award for Career Achievement in Photography.

"I didn't win, but that's OK, Dunn said. "It was cool. I was so surprised."

That's what it's all about.

Eric Nachtrab is an Ann Arbor–based bassist and one of my favorite players on the scene. I especially enjoy his compositions, which are often featured in one of my favorite bands—The Signal Quartet. I love taking photos at The Blue LLama for many reasons. One of them is the vibrant colors, which blend beautifully. On most nights, the lighting is just perfect. For this image, I experimented by converting it to black and white—and it changed everything. This has become one of my favorite photos.

Eric Nachtrab's Signal Quartet at Blue Llama, November 15, 2022. 16 x 20 in. Photo by Jeff Dunn.

April 9–11, 2024 was one of the busiest times I’ve ever had in my role as the year-round photographer for the Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation. Rehearsals, the Press Preview event, clinics, and more—it was non-stop. It all wrapped up at the Blue Llama in Ann Arbor with the One World Jazz Orchestra, led by Danilo Pérez. And what a sensational night it was. The One World Jazz Orchestra was made up of jazz students from Berklee College of Music (Boston) and Wayne State University (Detroit). Berklee pianist Anastassiya Petrova is the subject of this photo. What a wonderful pianist—and person. I love shooting from this angle when photographing pianists at the Blue Llama. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. I think this one worked!

Anastassiya Petrova with Danilo Perez and the One-World Jazz Orchestra at Blue Llama, April 11, 2024. 11 x 14 in. Photo courtesy of the Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation, in collaboration with photographer Jeff Dunn.

I took this picture while shooting for the Detroit Jazz Workshop—a week-long summer program run by veteran Detroit musician, composer, and educator Scott Gwinnell. It's one of the highlights of the season. At the end of the workshop, students perform for friends and family at a local jazz club, showcasing their progress from the week. In 2018, that venue was Cliff Bell's. The lighting at Cliff Bell's can sometimes be challenging, but it's also given me the setting for some of my most dramatic photos—especially in black and white. This photo of vocalist Linda Hale is one of my very favorites because it captures a moment. A moment of thought—maybe emotion.

Linda Hale at Detroit Jazz Workshop (Summer Jazz Week) at Cliff Bell's, July 6, 2018. 11 x 14 in. Photo by Jeff Dunn.

When Detroit-born pianist Rod Williams returns to visit, it’s a must-see gig for me. And it’s often at a really cool performance space called Trinosophes in Detroit—a wonderfully supportive venue for the arts. This photo features Rafael Leafar on tenor (I think) saxophone. Rafael was off to the side and out of the main stage lighting, so I decided to go with the flow and capture a silhouette image.

Rafael Leafar at Trinosophes, Detroit, September 15, 2023, with Rod Williams. 11 x 14 in. Photo by Jeff Dunn.

Christopher Porter is a library technician and the editor of Pulp. 

"Jeff Dunn - Jazz Photography" runs June 2-27 at the Argus Museum, 525 W William St, Ann Arbor. The museum is open 8 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday. Admission is free.

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