Mark del Costello became a photographer almost by accident. In 1968 he saw a guy taking photographs at the feet of Janis Joplin at the Electric Factory. She poured a good portion of her Southern Comfort on both is head and camera. He was instantly interested. Afterwards the besotted photographer showed him his camera, a Nikon Nikkormat. DelCostello wanted that camera and to take photos like he did.
After returning from the Army, where he learned about photography and film development, he became a photography lab instructor. In his spare time, he shot photos at The Spectrum and other concert venues. He showed his photos of Grateful Dead and Pink Floyd to some folks at Electric Factory. They liked them so much that he began taking photos for them on a more regular basis. He hasn’t stopped shooting bands since.
In the summer of 1979 Martin Scorsese hired Mark as his photographer and then as his personal assistant. Over the next four years, he shot thousands of photographs of and for him - almost all of them Polaroids. There were no pretensions, just capturing the moment.
During his time in California, DelCostello worked for the Nederlander Organization as a concert producer. Producing concerts gave him additional access to shooting bands on stage.
www.delcostello.net