The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 14: Christian Payne – Photography with a Conscience

This is a special episode of the podcast. So special that it's being released ahead of the usual slot and before another interview that was already in the queue.

The reason is twofold.

First the photographer interviewed is a remarkable man who went out of his way (and possibly into harm's way) to tell a remarkable story: Christian Payne.

Online, many know Christian as Documentally, a storyteller who uses multiple online platforms to tell his own story and that of his clients. He does exciting things for interesting clients. I first became aware of him when he travelled from Land's End to John o' Groats (the UK's famed tip-to-top journey) with nothing but online airtime to offer those who gave him rides, shelter and food.

That alone should give you an idea of the person he is. He does things most of us wouldn't.

One thing he did very recently was travel to Turkey and Syria. He wanted to find out first hand how the war was affecting regular Syrians – people like you and me. 

In this interview, recorded only a couple of days after he got back, you'll hear of his experiences – some of which were disturbing and harrowing.

Christian isn't a hardened news or war photographer who spends lots of time on the ground in conflict zones. That's what makes his story even more powerful. He is a regular guy whose conscience made him team up with a journalist friend (Phil Sands) to see for himself what is going on away from the news agenda of the big media outlets.

The second reason why this interview is special is that it will have a follow on. Something good will happen because of the work Christian has done. You'll hear reference to that at the end of the episode. I'm hoping you and I can help raise money for the refugees in Syria. It's early stages yet, but watch this space.

Five-year-old Sultan ©2013 Christian Payne

Links and more info

Christian's main website
Hayat for Syria (the organisation that helped Christian get into Syria)

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 13: Gina Glover – Bringing the Personal into Your Work

How do you choose the things that you want to photograph?

Our personal circumstances and interests play a big part in our choices, of course. But so does serendipity.

Gina Glover's story is a good example of this. She launched her career photographing something that was on her doorstep: a former nuclear missile launch site.

Gina's career has spanned several decades and in that time she has explored the missile site in detail – digging in and engaging with it from a number of angles and perspectives. Over time, her technique, gear and approach changed, but the topic remained the same – gradually being revealed layer by layer, deeper and deeper.

In this episode of of The Documentary Photographer podcast, we discuss her seminal Playgrounds of War, as well as practical issues such as gaining access to sensitive areas and her approach to colour.

Special thank you: this episode of the podcast owes much to the help of Richard West at Source magazine. Want to know why? Listen in.

© Gina Glover

Links and more info

Gina Glover's website
Gina Glover's blog
Source (magazine)

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 12: Dana Popa – The Role of Gender in Photography

I'm a man. You'll have gathered that. As a documentary photographer, I wonder how that colours my view of world, and whether it prevents me from access to certain subjects.

I've also been conscious that this podcast has been very male orientated. Out of 11 interviews so far, only one has been with a woman. I should apologize and make amends – starting with episode 12.

In this episode, I'm joined in conversation by Dana Popa, a Romanian photographer who is based in London. Dana has done work in very sensitive environments – among sex slaves, for instance. These environments made me wonder whether a man could have gained the access required to produce a visual story.

As always, our conversation opened my eyes and pricked through some unfounded preconceptions that I had.

To hear this episode, press the play button on the player above.

© Dana Popa

Links and more info

Dana Popa's website

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 11: Jonathon Keats – What Is A Documentary Photograph?

Just what is a documentary photograph?

Like most of you listening to this podcast, I have my own definition of what it is. Maybe unlike you, though, I've never delved much deeper than my own ideas and preconceptions. I had a sense of what worked for me and that was enough.

That's a dangerous road, don't you agree?

It's dangerous because it brings with it the risk of having a blinkered vision. Blinkered vision is something we cannot afford as documentary photographers.

In this episode of the podcast, I have the privilege of speaking with Jonathon Keats. Jonathon is a deep thinker, an artist and and philosopher, a photographer too. He writes for Forbes and reached out to me via email after episode 10 of the podcast aired.

In his email, he highlighted a recent Forbes article in which he discusses the work of Bernice Abbott, in particular her photographs illustrating scientific concepts through photography. He wondered whether they were documentary.

A simple question.

But a complicated answer.

Pondering Jonathon's question made me realize that while I have my own definition of documentary photography, it wasn't perhaps deep or nuanced enough. It was time to explore the concept in a conversation. And who better to discuss this with than Jonathon himself?

To listen to this episode of the podcast, just click the play button at the top of this blog post.

In the podcast, Jonathon and I reference a number of photographs. A few of them are shown below.

This photography, while captivating, doesn't give you all the information © 2010 Roger Overall

This version of the photograph gives more context © 2010 Roger Overall

Daguerre's photograph of Boulevard du Temple, Paris, taken in the spring of 1838. It shows the first known photograph of a human being (bottom left, having his shoes polished)

Links and more info

In the podcast, we touch upon a number of big names in the history of photography, as well as upon Jonathon's writing. You can find out more at the links below. Also included is a link to Mark Cotton's About Me page. If you've listened to the podcast, you'll know why.

Jonathon Keats on Wikipedia
Jonathon's Forbes article about Joel Sternfeld and the pumpkin field photographJonathon's Forbes article on Berenice Abbott
Modernism Gallery, San Francisco
Berenice Abbott
Man Ray
Eugene Atget
Eadweard Muybridge
Joel Sternfeld
Mark Cotton (@mcfontaine)
The Documentary Photographer episode 10: Dave Walsh Interview

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 10: Dave Walsh – TheDialogue Between Photographer and Viewer

Have you ever thought about the relationship between the photographer, their work and the viewer? It's a key consideration for any documentary photographer. How much should we reveal? How much should we explain? What role should we allow the viewer in the interpretation of the photograph?

These are questions Dave Walsh has considered. The answers have guided his vision and his photographic voice.

Dave is a man with a complex outlook of the world. He is able to articulate environmental issues in a nuanced way that reflects the complexities of the challenges that the planet faces. "There are things to lament. There are things to celebrate," he says. He emphasizes the need to empower people so that they can take ownership of the planet and contribute to its continued health - something he hopes his photography helps to achieve.

During our conversation, Dave gives great insight about getting access to remote regions as well as actively designing your life to achieve your ambitions.

To listen to the episode, hit the play button at the top of this post.

Iceberg under cloud, Kangerdlussuaq Fjord, East Greenland © 2009 David Walsh

Links and more info

Dave Walsh's Website
Forbes article about Joel Sternfeld and that photograph

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 9: David Creedon -Research, Depth and Understanding

In this episode of The Documentary Photographer podcast, we are joined by David Creedon.

David has been dubbed "Cork's Vermeer" and his work is characterised by a similar use of available light to the Dutch Master painters. In the interview, he talks about photographing abandoned houses in Ireland and inside people's homes in Cuba.

One thing that struck me during our conversation was David's deep historical understanding of the stories he photographs. He doesn't always acquire this in-depth insight before he starts taking pictures. For instance, it wasn't until after returning from Cuba and learning more about US foreign policy that he felt comfortable showing the photographs that he took.

Maria and Raul © 2011 David Creedon

To listen to the episode, hit the play button at the top of this post.

Links and more info

David's Website
The Cuban Food Blog

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry

The Documentary Photographer Podcast – Episode 8: Joeri van der Kloet –Documentary Weddings

In episode eight of The Documentary Photographer podcast we welcome Joeri van der Kloet, a Dutch wedding photojournalist.

Wedding photography is one of the hardest disciplines within professional photography. Documentary wedding photography is harder again. You have to take ingredients that aren't of your choosing (light, situations, people) and produce striking and beautiful storytelling photographs. That's very hard to do well.

During our conversation, Joeri discusses how he views weddings and photography. He explains how he works on the day itself to get the best photographs possible and tells us what he looks for in a documentary wedding picture. He also talks about switching from a Canon DSLR to a Leica digital rangefinder.

© Joeri van der Kloet/Luta.nl

To listen to the episode, hit the play button at the top of this post.

Links and more info

Joeri's Website
Steve Huff's Blog

Subscribe

You can subscribe to The Documentary Photographer podcast by clicking on any of these links:

iTunes
Zune
Blackberry