The recent passing of Bill Eppridge reminded me of the photograph that he took of a dying Robert Kennedy and of my reaction to it – it is a beautiful photograph. I wonder whether the beauty of the photograph detracts from the story. Is it above all a thing of aesthetic delight and a storytelling image a distant second? I don't intend any disrespect by saying this. It's just that I wonder at the relationship between beauty and storytelling. Does beauty detract or obscure the story the photographer intends to tell? Or perhaps it enhances it somehow? In this episode of The Documentary Photographe ..read more

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 ..read more

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 exploring it from a number of angles. Over time, her technique, gear and approach changed, but the topic remained the same – gradually being reveale ..read more

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 ..read more

Just what is a documentary photograph? Like most of you listening to this podcast, I have my own definition of what it is, but 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 ph ..read more

Have you ever thought about the relationship between the photographer, their work and the viewer? It's a key consideration for documentary photographers. How much should we reveal? How much should we explain? What role should we allow the viewer in the interpretation of the viewer? These are questions David Walsh has considered. The answers have guided his vision and his photographic voice ..read more

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 ..read more

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

Simon Norfolk has been photographing man's preoccupation with war for over a decade. In this episode of The Documentary Photographer podcast he talks about his work, the underlying thinking behind it, how he gains access to sensitive and dangerous areas, his experiences and the need for photographers to infuse their work with a purpose above just producing a photograph. PLEASE NOTE: There are two instances of language some listeners may find upsetting ..read more

Irish wedding photographer Darren Purcell tells how he was approached by a charity to photograph in Haiti in the aftermath of the devastating 2010 earthquake. We discuss dealing with subjects who have gone through such a trauma, as well as the logistics involved in photographing amidst the ruins of disaster. And Darren talks candidly about what it meant for him personally and for his wedding business ..read more