B&H Photography Podcast

The B&H Photography Podcast Facebook Group is live and we encourage all our listeners to join.  The Facebook Group will be your way to engage with Allan, John, and Jason of the B&H Photography Podcast and to post photos, ask questions, make suggestions, and comment on our show. It is also a way to interact with other listeners, learn more about our guests, and get feedback on your own work.  As an incentive to join, everyone who joins by March 13, 2019 will be eligible to win one of two SanDisk Extreme PRO SDXC UHS-I memory cards. We will select two winners at random from all the folks who have signed up by March 13, 2019. Good luck...and also subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcast!

The name does kinda say it all, doesn’t it? On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we speak with legendary rock ’n’ roll photographer Mick Rock. Despite his incredible body of work and numerous iconic photos, Rock’s philosophy on photography might best be summed up with a comment from this episode, “The reality is, it’s not that complicated.” For this episode we traveled to Rock’s home studio, and he graciously invited this “dodgy-looking bunch” in to talk about the beginning of his career, his working style, the bio-documentary “SHOT! The Psycho-Spiritual Mantra of Rock,” and the many photos and album covers he created for the likes of Syd Barrett, David Bowie, Lou Reed, Blondie, Queen, Rory Gallagher, Joan Jett, Madonna, and others. We also discussed his recent work with Lana Del Rey, Karen O, the GUCCI brand, and how he approaches an advertising campaign compared to a rock ’n’ roll shoot.    Our conversation casually bounced between topics, but often returned to Rock’s ability to grasp the photographic moment, whether that moment be in a studio, at a concert or, as in many of his most intriguing images, while hanging out with the musicians offstage. Rock downplays his technical skills, but we do talk a bit about gear and, when pressed on how he could create four decades of memorable music photos, he stated, “I’ve always loved my subjects.” The same can be said about us, so please tune in for this wonderful conversation...and don't forget to join the B&H Photography Podcast Facebook group.  Guest: Mick Rock Photograph © Mick Rock The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual guests and do not necessarily represent the views of B&H Photo. The salty language and "rock-n-roll content" may offend some. Listen at your own discretion.

On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we welcome representatives from SanDisk, Lexar, and B&H writer John-Paul Palescandolo to discuss memory cards, storage solutions, and best practices for capturing and storing digital images. We have also officially launched our B&H Photography Facebook Group and invite our listeners to join. Follow the link above to the group page and request to join—it’s as simple as that. We have added a small incentive: we will be giving away SanDisk 64GB Extreme PRO UHS-I SDXC Memory Cards. Everyone who joins our Facebook group by March 13 will be eligible to win, and we will draw two winners at random to receive a card, generously provided by SanDisk. We start our conversation today with Pete Isgrigg, from the Channel Marketing team at Western Digital. Western Digital is the parent company of G-Technology and SanDisk, and we speak with Isgrigg about the products they offer, as well as some basic best practices for memory card and hard drive usage.  After our conversation with Isgrigg, we welcome Andrew Nahmias, from NTI sales, representing Lexar. Nahmias provides further insight into which cards are best for your workflow and how to keep your image files safe and retrievable. We spoke with Isgrigg and Nahmias at the 2019 Depth of Field Wedding and Portrait Photography Conference, but after a short break, we’re joined in our studio by John-Paul Palescandolo to discuss other brands of memory cards sold by B&H, and to answer some general questions on the subject. Join us for this very informative episode—and don’t forget to join the B&H Photography Podcast Facebook Group. Guests: Pete Isgrigg, Andrew Nahmias, and John-Paul Palescandolo

We’re not even two months into 2019 and there have already been several announcements for new cameras, lenses, and even a new format for a major camera manufacturer.  On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast we will list the many new announcements and, along with our guests, Shawn Steiner and Andrea Ortado, offer any insights we have in terms of specs, hands-on comparisons, and general opinions. We start off with the new Canon EOS RP Mirrorless Digital Camera and mention a few of the many lenses on the road map for this new full-frame mirrorless series.  We also discuss the new Nikon lenses for their full-frame mirrorless Z-mount camera, including the NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S lens and the  NIKKOR Z 24-70mm f/2.8 S lens. From Canon and Nikon we move on to Panasonic and the huge announcement of their full-frame mirrorless cameras, the Lumix DC-S1 Mirrorless Digital Camera and the Lumix DC-S1R Mirrorless Digital Camera as well as the company’s L-Mount Alliance with Sigma and Leica, and new lenses such as the Lumix S 24-105mm f/4 Macro O.I.S. lens, the Lumix S PRO 70-200mm f/4 O.I.S. lens and the Lumix S PRO 50mm f/1.4 lens.   We also highlight the impressive new Olympus flagship camera, the OM-D E-M1X Mirrorless Digital Camera. After a break we discuss the new Sony Alpha a6400 Mirrorless Digital Camera and the reasons it will appeal to vloggers and the new FUJIFILM X-T30 Mirrorless Digital Camera.  FUJIFILM also announced a new XF 16mm f/2.8 R WR lens and the FUJIFILM GF 100-200mm f/5.6 R LM OIS WR lens for their medium format GFX cameras.  We continue with a brief chat on new point-and-shoot cameras including the Ricoh GR III Digital Camera, the Panasonic Lumix DC-FZ1000 II Digital Camera and the FUJIFILM FinePix XP140 Digital Camera. Finally, we close with a brief comment on firmware, accessories such as the Wacom Cintiq 16HD Creative Pen Display, and thoughts on the new full-frame mirrorless cameras. Join us for this very informative episode. Guests: Andrea Ortado and Shawn Steiner

The wedding-photography business is very competitive, so, to have a distinct client base and a way to stand out from the crowd is crucial—almost necessary. On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we discuss niche wedding photography with three photographers who have forged a career path by photographing the weddings of a specific niche demographic. To be clear, each of these photographers shoot weddings for all ilks, but they have been able to distinguish themselves by embracing a specific market.    We discuss how each of them discovered their photographic specialty, the importance of understanding traditions while balancing demands of new generations, specific tips for photographing within their areas of expertise, and how incorporating and embracing their own life stories helped find their career path. In the first half of the show, we are joined by Charmi Peña and Petronella Lugemwa, with whom we spoke at the 2019 Depth of Field Wedding and Portrait Conference.  Peña is a Nikon Ambassador and a wedding and portrait photographer who specializes in photographing Indian weddings. Lugemwa runs a New York-based, international wedding photography studio whose embrace of “multi-cultural weddings” echoes her personal celebration of her cultural identity. After a break, we speak with portrait and wedding photographer Steven Rosen, who is featured in our “What is Photography?” series. His impeccable portraiture informs his wedding work, and our conversation concentrates on Rosen’s work photographing same-sex weddings. Join us for this compelling episode, which blends personal motivations with practical tips.  For links to the gear discussed on this episode click here. Guests: Charmi Peña, Petronella Lugemwa, Steven Rosen Photograph © Charmi Peña

At the B&H Depth of Field Wedding and Portrait Conference, being held this week in New York, we were fortunate to sit down with a straight-up legend—Albert Watson. It would be hard to overstate his accomplishments as a photographer, and his ability to master a range of photographic genres—from fashion and advertising to still life, fine art, and reportage—is uncanny. He has shot more than 100 Vogue covers, 40 covers for Rolling Stone, created iconic images of Steve Jobs, Mick Jagger, Alfred Hitchcock, David Bowie, a nude Kate Moss on her 19th birthday, and a properly clothed Queen Elizabeth, who later bestowed upon Watson an Order of the British Empire (OBE) for “services to photography.” On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we present our conversation with Watson, which also serves as an intro to future episodes, which will present a sampling of conversations we held with other wonderful wedding and portrait photographers at the Depth of Field Conference. Join us for this inspiring conversation and subscribe on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Overcast and Stitcher for all upcoming episodes. Guest: Albert Watson   Host: Allan Weitz Senior Creative Producer: John Harris Producer: Jason Tables

In terms of its sheer reach and influence on photographers, there is no magazine that compares to LIFE. From the 1930s into the 1970s, it was the weekly go-to for news, lifestyle, entertainment and, of course, world class photography. With the likes of Margaret Bourke-White, W. Eugene Smith, Robert Capa, Gordon Parks, Dorothea Lange, and Alfred Eisenstadt under contract, and a commitment to the photo essay, LIFE was a groundbreaking publication that has yet to be equaled. At its most popular, it sold 13.5 million copies per week. With America’s attention switching to television by the early 1960s and, eventually, away from print media in general, LIFE slowly became a remnant of another era, but its influence on photography is still immense. On today’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we discuss the magazine, and particularly its print and online reincarnations in the 2000s. Joining us for this conversation is the former editor-in-chief of LIFE, Bill Shapiro. Shapiro, a long-time editor at Time Inc., brought LIFE out of mothballs, in 2004, and launched LIFE.com in 2009. We examine these two iterations of the famed journal. Underscoring this conversation is the larger issue of the consumer switch from print journalism to digital journalism as the primary source of news and photography. Shapiro walks us through the decisions that were made to keep LIFE viable as the eventual changes in the industry took hold, and how he infused creativity into the print magazine and the website, while maintaining its long tradition of great photography. We also talk with Shapiro about his work as an author and, particularly, the book he co-authored, What We Keep, and how that book was influenced by the work he did at LIFE magazine. Join us for this look back at the final years of one the most important publications in American photography history.  Guest: Bill Shapiro Photo: Courtesy Bill Shapiro

On this episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we welcome neuropsychiatrist Anthony Feinstein, and the Director of Editorial Content at Adobe, Santiago Lyon, to discuss Feinstein’s latest book Shooting War. “What makes a person choose a profession in which they know that scores of their colleagues, some of them friends, will be killed each year, while hundreds of other colleagues will be arrested and some will go missing, never to be found? Why choose a profession that entails running toward grave danger while those around you flee from it? If you can answer these questions, you begin to gain insight into the complex world of frontline journalists.” The above paragraph begins the profile of Santiago Lyon in Shooting War, and provides an apt summary for our own episode. We discuss the motivations that drive photographers to cover war, as well as the consequences to their physical, psychological, and emotional health they face. Feinstein brings his years of clinical work studying the effects of war on journalists and Lyon adds insight from his personal experiences as a conflict photographer and editor. Of course, we also discuss the research that went into the making of the book, and Feinstein relates the experiences of several of the photographers mentioned in his book. Anthony Feinstein is professor of Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He has authored a series of seminal studies exploring the psychological effects of conflict on journalists, including Journalists Under Fire and Battle Scarred, and is a Guggenheim fellow. The 2012 documentary, Under Fire, is based on his research and won a Peabody Award. Prior to his position at Adobe, Lyon was Director of Photography at The Associate Press and a respected photojournalist who covered conflicts in Latin America, the Balkans, Afghanistan, and Somalia. As an editor at AP, he led teams that earned Pulitzer Prizes on three different occasions. He is one of eighteen photographers profiled in Shooting War. Join us for this powerful episode. Guests: Anthony Feinstein and Santiago Lyon Photograph © Tim Hetherington/MAGNUM

This week we recognize the 10th anniversary of the “Miracle on the Hudson.” On January 15, 2009, with both engines crippled, US Airways Flight 1549 made an emergency landing in the icy waters of the Hudson River, with 155 people onboard. All passengers and crew survived. On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we welcome photographer Stephen Mallon, who documented the recovery of the airplane from the river, and Denise Lockie, who was a passenger on Flight 1549. Stephen Mallon is that rare photographer who successfully blends editorial, documentary, commercial, and fine art photography, often in the same image. He is recognized for documenting large-scale industrial and marine projects, including the “The Reefing of USS Radford,” “Next Stop Atlantic,” and, of course, “Brace for Impact: The Salvage of Flight 1549.” His clients include the New York Times Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Publicis, Sudler & Hennessey, and MAYTAG; and his series, “American Reclamation” is currently exhibiting at the Front Room Gallery, in New York. Mallon discusses his career trajectory, his medium format and full-frame gear choices, and how he straddles the line between his documentary subjects and a fine art photographer’s vision. Of course, we also talk about the series he produced on the recovery of Flight 1549 and how he approached such a historical subject. In the second half of the episode, we are also very fortunate to be joined by Denise Lockie, who survived the crash landing and a protracted stay in the icy waters. Lockie tells of her experience that day, her recovery process, and about looking back on such a life-changing event after ten years. We also discuss with Lockie her feelings about the images Mallon has made and the other iconic images from that fateful day. Guests: Stephen Mallon and Denise Lockie Photograph © Stephen Mallon

On this week’s episode of the B&H Photography Podcast, we welcome two artists whose work blurs the lines between street photography, documentary, installation and digital art, while cultivating a contemporary interpretation of the art and craft of collage. Both artists utilize photography-based processes and take urban architecture and street scenes as their subject, but from there, the work goes in very different directions. Jennifer Williams creates large, often site-specific collages that inspect but distort the architectural scenes she documents. As she has stated, “The rectilinear shape that is the traditional photograph never fulfilled my desire to show everything in a space,” and that will be immediately clear upon seeing her work. Layering images of buildings upon one another, she creates angular and abstract collages while still providing a path for the viewer to connect the image she creates with the neighborhood or street that she photographed. Williams speaks about her process, including the original imaging, her adjustments in post-process, and her large-scale installations, often made on Photo Tex media. We also touch on previous explorations of the city as diverse as Edward Ruscha, Danny Lyon and and Jane Jacobs. Tommy Mintz wrote a software program that creates “automated digital collages” and he has experimented over the years with how he (and the program) composes the street scenes he photographs. The tools he uses for image capture and computation have evolved and become more powerful, but unlike the painstaking control Williams exercises over her collages, the key element in Mintz’s process is the random arrangement and layering of images that the software creates. This is not to say that his images are out of his control—after all, he wrote the program. He selects the scenes to photograph and he does adjust the final product in Photoshop, but the software-generated placement of images creates layers, unexpected shadows, multiple exposures and even seeming glitches that add up to an intriguing and whimsical take on street photography. Join us as we learn about the conceptualizations and processes of these two visual artists and hear how they integrate the Nodal Ninja, Epson 24" printers, and the Sigma dp2 Quattro Digital Camera into their workflow. Guests: Jennifer Williams and Tommy Mintz Image © Tommy Mintz