Posted 03/30/2016
The oft-quoted line paraphrased for our headline, and notably used in reference to Oskar Schindler and Chiune Sugihara, can also be applied to industrialist and Leica camera manufacturer Ernst Leitz II, who used his influence to help many Jews and other subjugated people avoid persecution, maintain their jobs, or even escape Germany during the 1930s and 1940s. Like any story drawn from a terrible era of oppression, heroes are painted with shades of gray, and humanitarianism can be found in small gestures, but historian Frank Dabba Smith
Posted 03/23/2016
Has your wedding photography gone stale? Do your photos look just like everyone else’s? Perhaps you need to inject a little bit of you into your photography. Kristi Drago-Price knows wedding photography from all the angles—as a shooter, as an editor, and as a speaker and consultant. She joins us for a high-spirited chat, offering core ideas to improve your wedding photography. This episode is not about the latest gear or lighting techniques, but more, “how to get your game on”—how to get the most out of your style and build a client base that
Posted 03/17/2016
For many, photography is a solitary endeavor. We enjoy the time alone or the one-on-one interaction with a subject, but how do we improve our skill set and network with others when we only have our “inner Ansel” from which to bounce ideas and techniques? A photography workshop is the answer for many, and there is a wide range of choices when it comes to workshops, from weekend get-togethers on specific disciplines to intensive courses to overseas adventures. Our guests represent two well-known workshops and detail the distinctions between
Posted 03/10/2016
With the prevalence of “staff” photography jobs dwindling and the number of “photographers” increasing, finding regular freelance work and funding your own project is more complicated than ever. Yes, the tried-and-true rules of self-motivation and hustle are still the fundamentals, but today’s guests offer solutions to put photographers together with those who will support their work, regardless of the photographic discipline. Matt Craig, of blink, and Theresa Hubbard, of Fractured Atlas, discuss their organizations’ novel approaches and,
Posted 03/03/2016
We run a little long on this episode, but when you have guests of this caliber, it’s well worth the extra time. Today we welcome the legendary Associated Press Photo Editor Hal Buell and Time LightBox Photo Editor Olivier Laurent. Bringing distinctive cultural and generational perspectives to the table, our two guests discuss the idea of an iconic photograph. We start with an attempt to define an iconic photo and, along the way, we talk about the editing process, war photography, mobile technology, photo manipulation, important photos from
Posted 02/24/2016
In the past few weeks, Canon and Nikon have announced their latest flagship DSLR cameras, the Nikon D5 and the Canon EOS-1D X Mark II. Our expert guests, Levi Tenenbaum and Shawn Steiner, have had a chance to play with these new models, and join us to report on their findings. In general, we talk upgraded specs and what differentiates these cameras from
Posted 02/10/2016
If you’ve ever doubted that photography is a multi-faceted endeavor, this episode should cure you of that delusion. Here at B&H, we deal with the nuts and bolts of photography—we can talk f/stops, megapixels, composition, and classic cameras with the best of ’em, but for today’s podcast, we clean ourselves up to chat with two leading figures from the art and theoretical side of photography. Roxana Marcoci, Senior Curator in the Museum of Modern Art’s Department of Photography and the adroit, multi-talented Stephen Mayes join us to discuss
Posted 02/03/2016
Despite poking a little fun with this episode’s title, we are big fans of photography websites and camera blogs, and if you are reading this, you probably are, too. On this week’s podcast, we are fortunate to have Kevin Raber and Jason Hermann, proprietors of Luminous Landscape and SonyAlphaLab, respectively. Have you ever wondered how sites like these operate, are funded, get gear to review and deal with the, shall we say “experts,” who populate the comment sections? In this very animated, on-point conversation, Raber and Hermann talk
Posted 01/27/2016
Not one of us is perfect, and thank goodness for that. As my favorite saying goes, perfection is the opposite of good, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive to be better. Whether you are a newbie or a more experienced photographer, there is a constant need to improve your skills, and to open your mind to new approaches. With the spirit of the New Year still warming our souls, we brought in Jason Fulford, co-editor of The Photographer’s Playbook, and Todd Vorenkamp, author of
Posted 01/21/2016
Anyone, I mean, anyone can submit their photos for sale in the stock-photography market. (Are you a foaper?) But the question remains: is it worth it? No doubt, the industry has been transformed by corporate conglomeration and digital technology but, while some decry the devaluation of the image, others see huge opportunity and a bright future. Join us as industry expert Paul Melcher and former Getty executive and now independent photographer and boutique agency owner Rana Faure relate their experiences in the stock-photo business. We’ll ask
Posted 01/13/2016
Well, what does that mean? Yes, it’s owned by Facebook and yes, Taylor Swift has 62 million followers, but we asked two professional photographers with hundreds of thousands of followers and a magazine editor how they use Instagram to engage their followers, interest clients, raise revenue, and keep the creative blood flowing.
DSLR or smartphone? Hashtag or not? Strategies for gaining followers? More important than your webpage? Is it the most important brand in photography? These are some of the questions we ask in this casual conversation
Posted 01/06/2016
My apologies for the personal question, but we all suffer from Gear Acquisition Syndrome in one form or another, and it’s good to talk about it, especially if it aids in recovery. With Gabe Biderman and Todd Vorenkamp, we will discuss camera cycles from the digital and analog eras, talk new technology and try to understand why there is so much camera stuff to buy nowadays. Who is to blame for G.A.S.? The camera manufacturers, the retailers, the blogs, China!? Or could it be that imaging technology has improved so much in the past few years to
Posted 12/10/2015
Gearheads, tech geeks, fanboys, and all you gift givers—this is the podcast for you. In this episode, we sit with two of our favorite guests and, fortunately, two very knowledgeable photographers, Matt Hill of the Gradus Group, and Levi Tenenbaum, B&H’s Pro Photography Trainer. They offer their well-informed opinions on what should be considered the Cameras of the Year for 2015 and our host, Allan Weitz, adds his two cents, making for a lively conversation on new cameras of all formats. We make time for a nod to the best lenses and
Posted 12/02/2015
On the historic occasion of more than 150 heads of state gathering in one place on one day (Monday, in Paris, for COP2015) it’s fortuitous for us to be able to present an episode that recognizes photography's ongoing role in addressing our most serious concerns. We are pleased to have three photographers on the podcast, all with a wide body of work—in photojournalism, documentary, and fine art—discussing the photography they do in regard to climate change. From collaborative efforts to going it alone, international adventure to gaining the
Posted 11/11/2015
Five years ago, you could buy a quality 35mm film camera for the song playing in your head. Used medium format film cameras collected dust on store shelves. Today, if a Mamiya, Hasselblad, or Rolleiflex become available, they don’t last long before being snatched up by a zealous photographer. And those who regularly shoot digital SLRs know that buying older models does not diminish the quality of your work, and it can save you hundreds of dollars, especially if you use them as roughly as some professionals do. Whether film or digital, the used