A Few Good Photo Podcasts

A Few Good Podcasts

A lot of people ask me for photography podcast recommendations, and I know why: Because there are a ton of shows out there, because many are quite bad, because others fold after a dozen episodes. Here’s the list I usually give folks … along with a few caveats.

Caveat 1: There are no gear-oriented shows on this list because I do not listen to gear-oriented shows because I do not believe that the right camera will make you a good photographer.

Caveat 2: I do not listen to shows that preach the “rules” of photography because, you know, screw the rules. The thing about photography podcasts is that even the best of the bunch can be less than polished, but on the flip side, even the unpolished podcast regularly land some of the biggest names in the business.

Here, a few that I listen to regularly. 

Right Eye Dominant: About five years old with nearly 100 episodes under its belt, Right Eye Dominant—and its host, photographer Nick Tauro—focuses on the creative process in interviews with the likes of Alec Soth, Mitch Epstein, Susan Meiselas, and Frank Ockenfels 3. Tauro also dedicates episodes to past masters like Robert Frank and William Klein.  If you’re looking for an episode to start with, choose the Joel Meyerowitz interview; it’s beautiful and brilliant and enlightening about the creative process. I listened twice.

A Small Voice: As the name suggests, this is indeed a quiet, low-key podcast hosted by Ben Smith who is a photographer but also a Squarespace educator, web designer, and developer. Ben has interviewed some great photographers over the years (Stacy Kranitz, Eugene Richards, Dina Litovsky), but more often, he’s speaking (quietly) to a photographer I haven’t heard of. Sometimes the episodes are a little low-energy and not provocative enough for my crass American taste, but I know plenty of folks who listen religiously.

A Photographic Life Grant Scott—who now teaches photography at Oxford Brookes University but used to be a director of photography and a creative director at various Conde Nast magazines in London, as well as a working photographer—hosts this opinionated weekly podcast that I make a point never to miss. (And full disclosure: I appear on the show once a month in what is often a lively back-and-forth that focuses on a single topic—from street photography to the business of photo books to how to pivot in your career and on and on—and then often spins off to places unpredicted.) Two episodes a month are typically 20-minute monologues/rants that cover whatever photography topic is on Grant’s (ever-curious) mind, the third episode is a conversation with Fiona Hayes, a former magazine art director, and the fourth is a convo with yours truly. I like talking to Grant because he’s smart and experienced and articulate, but also because there are cultural differences between the way photography is considered and practiced in England versus the United States, and I find those endlessly fascinating. We argue about stuff but always in a respectful way, which I also like.

10 FPS: Billing itself as “A photojournalism podcast for everyone,” 10 FPS is usually a three-way conversation between hosts J.M. (Joe) Giordano (a photojournalist whose work has appeared everywhere), co-host Molly Roberts (a longtime photographer, photo editor, and educator), and folks like Ron Haviv, Rosalind Fox Solomon, Donna Ferrato, and Richard Sharum (whose work can see on BluePhoto). They get into some pretty interesting issues and don’t shy away from hard questions. Smart stuff. I was on the podcast not long ago talking about the work of the great Jim Marshall.

Foto: This is the new kid in town. Started at the tail-end of 2022 ahead of their recently launched Foto app (a photo-sharing and portfolio platform that is, blessedly, ad-free), the podcast has, of this writing, dropped nearly 30 episodes. I’ve liked the conversation between Foto founder Michael Howard and his photographer guests quite a bit. They’ve featured @Nick_Gervin (who published a great book called Portlanders a year or so ago), Rashod Taylor (@Rashodtaylorphoto), Nancy Borowick (@Nancyborowick), Justin Hamel (@jmhamel), and, yes, me. The interviews are smart without the time-wasting chummy chatter that drives me ‘round the bend.

B&H Photography Podcast: Sometimes, the hosts focus on gear which, as previously stated, is not my thing. But often they have strong guests and get into fascinating topics (“The Alchemy of Urban Street Portraits” with the great Jamel Shabazz, for instance, dropped in late May). Host Allan Weitz has plenty of old-school know-how and is always well-prepared with interesting questions. I’ve appeared on the podcast a few times and the interviews have always been engaging.

If I’ve missed a podcast that you love, drop a line at Info@bluephoto.co. I want to know what I’m missing!