Rock Photographer Jimmy Steinfeldt Recalls Shooting Prince on the Night He Recorded "Purple Rain" (Exclusive) Angela AndaloroJanuary 1, 2026 at 12:37 AM 0 Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty (2) Prince performs Jimmy Steinfeldt has enjoyed a career photographing some of the biggest names in music during historic moments Steinfeldt tells PEOPLE about finding himself in the crowd the night that Prince recorded Purple Rain Steinfeldt is one of several photographers featured in Elton John: Icon, from ACC Art Books Jimmy Steinfeldt has gotten the opportunity to photograph many historic music...
- - Rock Photographer Jimmy Steinfeldt Recalls Shooting Prince on the Night He Recorded "Purple Rain" (Exclusive)
Angela AndaloroJanuary 1, 2026 at 12:37 AM
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Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty (2)
Prince performs -
Jimmy Steinfeldt has enjoyed a career photographing some of the biggest names in music during historic moments
Steinfeldt tells PEOPLE about finding himself in the crowd the night that Prince recorded Purple Rain
Steinfeldt is one of several photographers featured in Elton John: Icon, from ACC Art Books
Jimmy Steinfeldt has gotten the opportunity to photograph many historic musical acts.
The photographer recently spoke with PEOPLE about his participation in Elton John: Icon, from ACC Art Books. While chatting, Steinfeldt also mentioned a few other greats he got the chance to encounter.
"I photographed Prince for 14 years. And not from his very earliest, but from the beginning of Purple Rain."
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Steinfeldt was among the many in the crowded First Avenue Nightclub seeing Prince perform the night he recorded the album.
"Now, of course, I had no idea," Steinfelft says. "I don't think hardly anybody in attendance had any idea that night. This live performance we were watching in a 1,000 seat venue — although you were standing, there were no chairs at First Avenue — I don't think anybody realized that this was going to be a performance in the actual recording that would be the very recording we would see in the movie and hear on the radio and on the record, all through the decades. And I was there and photographed that."
Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Prince performing in St. Paul, Minnesota
Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Prince performing in St. Paul, Minnesota
When it came to his experiences with Elton John, Steinfeldt shared his deep admiration for the artist, who has evolved immensely throughout his decades of success.
"Not every musical artist has significant changes in their song choices and their writing and their look."
"I admire those who can say, 'Well, this is how I feel right now, and if my fan base comes with me, great. If some of them leave me because they don't understand what I'm doing, that's the way it is.' Elton John is one of the all-time greats in changing."
Jimmy Steinfeldt
Elton John
"Each of us photographers were invited to write about Elton John, our experience of photographing him. And the piece that I wrote for the new book, Elton John: Icon, appears next to probably my most famous picture that I took of him," Steinfeldt says.
"And I got to say, I give myself a pat on the back," he continues. "I thought it's funny what I wrote because it just happens to be funny experiences that go back to when I first got into his music. And I'm definitely proud of the full page story I wrote about how actually Elton John has influenced my life and career."
on People
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: December 31, 2025 at 09:36PM on Source: RED MAG
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