390 episodes

Join us each week for a conversation with insightful and entertaining guests. From gear and technique to history, science and art, we discuss the topics most important to the contemporary photographer.

B&H Photography Podcast B&H Photo & Video

    • Arts
    • 4.9 • 2K Ratings

Join us each week for a conversation with insightful and entertaining guests. From gear and technique to history, science and art, we discuss the topics most important to the contemporary photographer.

    Still Photography & the WWE, with Brad Smith & Rich Freeda

    Still Photography & the WWE, with Brad Smith & Rich Freeda

    Cozy up to a ringside seat for a behind-the-scenes tour of the wildest shows in sports entertainment, during our insightful chat about the still photos produced for World Wrestling Entertainment, (otherwise known as WWE).
    In 2023 alone, the WWE photo team traveled the globe, covering close to 170 live events, and producing 2.6 million stills to serve the organization’s various platforms.
    You might—incorrectly—assume that WWE’s still images are generated from video screengrabs. Well, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
     In this week’s podcast, we get the full scoop about stills from WWE’s Vice President of photography, Brad Smith, and Senior Director of photography, Rich Freeda.
    Among the many details we unpack: The learning curve required for shooting a WWE event, the importance of showing all aspects of the spectacle in pictures, and the delicate dance between still photographers and TV camerapeople, who are tethered together and both wearing headphones while capturing a show.
     In addition to live event coverage, the photo team creates high-level studio portraits of WWE Superstars, which necessitates complex studio set ups at each venue. Given the relentless schedule of three live shows weekly, two of which are traveling, studio gear is circling the country all year long. As Rich Freeda puts it, “We could be a Consumer Reports testing lab.”
    And when it comes to the type of photographers best suited to covering WWE shows, Brad Smith sums things up nicely. “[At first,] I instinctively thought, if we’re going to hire new people, they have to be sports photographers. And now I don’t think that at all. I’ll tell you who I’d rather have. I’d rather have a photographer who’s a tour photographer for Bon Jovi than somebody who’s the Yankee’s photographer, because they understand that event is the important thing.”
    Psych yourself up for WrestleMania 40 with our WWE episode from the B&H Photography Podcast!
    Guests: Brad Smith and Rich Freeda
    Above photograph © Rich Freeda/WWE
    For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
    https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/still-photography-the-wwe-with-brad-smith-rich-freeda
    Stay Connected:
    WWE Still Photography Page: https://www.wwe.com/photos
    Brad Smith Website: https://www.bradsmithcreative.com/
    Brad Smith on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradpix/
    Brad Smith on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Brad-Smith-Creative/
    Brad Smith on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nybradsmith
    Rich Freeda Website: https://www.richardfreeda.com/collections
    Rich Freeda on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/richfreedaphoto/
    Rich Freeda on Twitter: https://twitter.com/richfreedaphoto
    Rich Freeda WWE Profile: https://www.wwe.com/videos/the-photography-of-wrestlemania-with-rich-freeda-making-wwe

    • 1 hr 5 min
    Ecliptic Visions—with Rebecca Boyle, Gabriel Biderman, Atlas Obscura & B&H

    Ecliptic Visions—with Rebecca Boyle, Gabriel Biderman, Atlas Obscura & B&H

    Where will you be on April 8, 2024? If you don’t already know, you’d better figure it out fast, particularly if you’ve got an interest in observing—and ideally photographing—the awe-inspiring phenomenon of a total solar eclipse.
     
    To get you up to speed on essential eclipse details, tune in to our chat with science writer Rebecca Boyle and Gabriel Biderman from B&H’s Road Marketing team. Boyle shares tidbits about Earth’s silvery sister gleaned from research for her book Our Moon, while Gabe discusses preparations (and practice!) for your eclipse photo session, plus strategies for juggling multiple set-ups.
     
    To celebrate the total eclipse back in 2017, B&H teamed up with Atlas Obscura for a two-day festival in Eastern Oregon’s Snake River Valley. This year, the party’s expanding from two to four days! We end the episode with details about the 2024 Ecliptic Festival, held alongside the Valley of Vapors music festival in Hot Springs, Arkansas, smack in the Eclipse’s umbra.
     
    Immerse yourself in this rare astronomical occurrence while rubbing shoulders with celebrated scientists, legendary musicians, artists and photographers galore, plus benefit from dedicated space—and tools—for star gazing and tracking the path to totality and back. The sky’s the limit!
     
    Guests: Rebecca Boyle & Gabriel Biderman
    Top shot © Gabriel Biderman
     
    For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
    https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/ecliptic-visions-with-rebecca-boyle-gabriel-biderman-atlas-obscura-bh
     
    Stay Connected:
    Atlas Obscura Ecliptic Festival: https://ecliptic.atlasobscura.com/
    Atlas Obscura Website: https://www.atlasobscura.com/
    Rebecca Boyle Website: https://rebeccaboyle.com/
    Rebecca Boyle Our Moon book: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611468/our-moon-by-rebecca-boyle/
    Rebecca Boyle’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/by.rebecca.boyle/
    Rebecca Boyle’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/rboyle31
    Rebecca Boyle’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rboyle31/
    Gabriel Biderman’s Website: https://www.ruinism.com/
    National Parks at Night Website: https://www.nationalparksatnight.com/
    National Parks at Night’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nationalparksatnight/
    National Parks at Night’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/natlpksatnight
    National Parks at Night’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nationalparksatnight
    National Parks at Night’s YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NationalParksatNight

    • 1 hr 13 min
    Picturing World Cultures: Daniel Rosca - Romania

    Picturing World Cultures: Daniel Rosca - Romania

    There are many different ways to look at culture, and today we take a geographic approach, to distinguish people who live in rural mountain and hilly settings from those of the wider plains and urban areas.
     
    Our focus is the country of Romania, where we’ll explore the rustic landscape of small farms, hand tilled fields, and local communities that still identify with the working methods and traditions of the past. Along the way, we’ll follow the cyclical work of farmers and shepherds, gain insight into the Orthodox faith, explore vibrant holiday celebrations, and reveal unique rituals with pagan roots.
     
    In this fourth installment of our monthly series, Picturing World Cultures, we speak with Daniel Rosca, a Romanian photographer and travel guide specialized in photographic, cultural, and genealogical tours.
    As a child, Daniel experienced the age-old traditions of rural Romania first-hand during time spent on his grandparent’s farm. Following university studies, he spent four years abroad, working in youth development, consulting, and corporate social responsibility. After living in Brussels, Warsaw, Istanbul, and Cairo, and travelling to another 40 countries on four continents, Daniel decided travel should become his full-time job.
    He chose to return to his homeland in 2011, where he founded Romania Photo Tours and True Romania Tours, to help curious travelers immerse themselves in—and capture images of—old-world Romanian culture.
    In summary, to quote the motto of his photo tour site: Veni, Vidi, Click!
    If you haven’t already listened, prior episodes of our podcast series Picturing World Cultures can be accessed at the links below:
    Wayne Quilliam discussing Australia’s indigenous communities
    Kiana Hayeri reflecting on her work in Iran and Afghanistan
    Joshua Irwandi sheds light on his documentation of Indonesia’s Asmat region
    Guest: Daniel Rosca
    Episode Timeline:
     
    2:07: The blend of various cultures and influences that make up Romanian culture, geographic distinctions between regions based on mountains, hills, and plains, Romania’s historic regions, plus the country’s widespread agricultural focus.
     
    9:41: Common misconceptions about Romania: dispelling inaccuracies about Dracula and Romania’s communist past, plus Romania’s current strengths in tech, IT, and engineering.
     
    12:34: Special considerations, both general and cultural, when photographing people in different regions, making pictures of the Roma, military, or police, plus Romania’s strict policies that prohibit driving after even a sip of alcohol.   
     
    17:44: Romanian agricultural traditions of scything, haymaking, horse carts, blacksmiths, shepherding, plus the art of traditional egg painting.
     
    23:24: Forging a human connection with local villagers and craftspeople, etiquette and logistics when making pictures, plus the issue of obtaining model releases for portraits.
     
    30:14: Daniel’s go-to photo gear: Nikon Z6 mirrorless and a 24-70 mm f/2.8 lens, the benefits to carrying a flash, plus recommendations for packing and benefits to traveling light
     
    34:08: Episode Break
     
    35:10: Romanian Orthodox churches, regional differences in appearance, rules of etiquette and respectful behavior when photographing, plus the many denominations of Orthodoxy, and details about holiday schedules.
     
    44:42: Meaning of the word Orthodox, distinctions between Orthodox and Catholic faiths, plus Romania’s Lutheran heritage, and fortified churches of Transylvania.
     
    47:11: Romanian bear dance festivals of Moldova over New Year’s, the festival’s pagan roots, tips for getting good pictures by interacting and considering the background first, plus other year end celebrations
     
    54:20: Romanian Easter traditions, a candle lit in Jerusalem on Easter morning and flown to all Romanian Orthodox churches, breaking the Lenten fast, plus Romania’s little-known focus on vegan foods.
     
    1:00:58: Romania’s D

    • 1 hr 16 min
    Photography in the Age of AI, with Stephen Shankland

    Photography in the Age of AI, with Stephen Shankland

    How much can you edit a photo before it stops becoming true? That’s the question CNET tech reporter Stephen Shankland recently asked in the opening lines of his story, How Close is that Photo to the Truth: What to Know in the Age of AI.
     
    The article, which examines digital photography and advanced smartphone image processing in the era of AI, reaches beyond the polarizing visual minefield of generative AI by delving into aspects of this technologythat’s been quietly pre-baked into most every camera on the market these days.
     
    The sophisticated processing under the hood of your digital camera is our jumping off point for a wide-ranging discussion with Shankland that touches on many aspects of the digital workflow, before scaling the slippery slopes of generative AI.
     
    A few of the many points we cover include: Comparing the three primary generative AI platforms and discussing their differences, an assessment of AI manipulations and deepfakes, the ways in which a proliferation of camera phones can serve as a buttress against fakery, and the factor of a social contract in weighing the veracity of an image.
     
    Today’s AI landscape seems to be morphing by the minute, a reality that’s reflected here with bonus content! Barely a week after our original discussion, Open AI’s new text to video application, Sora, was released to a tidal wave of interest, so we got Shankland back on mic. Stay to the end to hear our first impressions of this new technology and listen closely to discover how an AI bot got the last word in our chat.
     
    Guest: Stephen Shankland
    Top shot © Allan Weitz, https://www.allanweitzdesign.com
     
    Episode Timeline:
     
    2:22: How much can a photo be edited before it stops “becoming” true? Plus, the digital processing that goes on under the hood of your digital camera.
     
    7:06: The sophisticated processing in your camera phone and how the resulting images compare to pictures made with a 35mm digital camera.
     
    13:02: How much digital editing is too much and what’s the least amount of image adjustments possible before a photograph stops “being true.”
     
    18:22: The matter of generative AI manipulations and deepfakes, the democratization of altering images, and how the proliferation of camera phones can serve as a buttress against fakery.
     
    23:24: Comparing the three big generative AI platforms Stephen has worked with—Open AI’s Dall-E, Google’s ImageFX, and Adobe’s Firefly—and discussing how they differ, plus Allan’s impressions about working with Adobe Firefly, and how much of an AI-generated image is truly one’s own.
     
    31:58: Prompt engineering, the bias of training data, the role of having fun when assessing the creative aspects of generative AI, and the factor of a social contract into reading the veracity of an image.
     
    40:22: Episode Break
     
    41:30: The potential for career opportunities in prompt engineering, new educational programs to arise from these new technologies, plus reasons why illustration is the creative area most threatened by AI.
     
    48:27: The democratization of creative tasks due to computer technology, and the value of having a unique style or vision to creative success, plus the advantages of AI for stylistic
     
    52:08: Ethical considerations, intellectual property rights, and copyright concerns in relation to AI generation.
     
    57:03: In-camera authentication, content credentialing, and following the provenance of an image to be assured of its trustworthiness, plus whether this technology will ever show up in camera phones.
     
    1:04:24: Episode bonus: Stephen’s first impressions of Open AI’s new text to video application, Sora.
     
     
    Guest Bio: Stephen Shankland has covered technology, computing, and digital imaging as a principal writer and reporter for CNET since 1998. He’s also a professional photographer who’s particularly intrigued by new trends in AI. Stephen stumbled into journalism as a fledgling scien

    • 1 hr 29 min
    B&H Podcast: Chat with Inventor of the CMOS Chip, Professor Eric Fossum

    B&H Podcast: Chat with Inventor of the CMOS Chip, Professor Eric Fossum

    How did a space-age invention become ubiquitous in today’s digital imaging landscape? Learn all about it here in our latest podcast, featuring pioneers of photography and digital imaging.
     
    In 1993, noted physicist and engineer Eric Fossum led the invention of the CMOS active-pixel image sensor as part of his work for NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Then, as part of JPL’s mandate to seek commercial and consumer applications for emerging technologies, he was active in the transfer of the CMOS sensor’s “camera-on-a-chip” technology to industry.
     
    In our informative conversation with Professor Fossum, he makes distinctions between solid state CCDs and his more efficient CMOS sensor that would come to dominate the marketplace. To transform high-level science into layman’s terms, he uses the analogy of a bucket brigade collecting rain on a football field.
     
    In a similar down-to-earth fashion, we touch on metaphysical issues like wave particle duality, and how this is demonstrated every time light enters a camera and you take a picture with your phone.
     
    Join us to marvel at the wonders of science amid fun food references—from the way deep space radiation degrades CCD chips so they start to act like Swiss cheese, to the synergies between high-level scientific measurements and delicatessen lunch meats, both marks of a creative scientist and visionary educator.
    Guest: Eric Fossum
    Above photograph © John Sherman Photography, https://jshermanphoto.com/
     
    Episode Timeline:
     
    2:31: Eric Fossum’s beginnings in hands-on science explorations, computer programming, and his love for launching model rockets, plus the role photography has played in his life.
     
    9:26: Fossum’s early research in CCD sensor technologies, his interest in trying to marry cameras to artificial intelligence, and his invitation to join NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1990.
     
    14:00: The differences between CCD and CMOS sensors, and a description of how they work using the analogy of a bucket brigade to collect rain on a football field.
     
    23:35: A history of active pixel sensor devices, an explanation about two kinds of image noise, the metaphysics of photons, plus how the wave particle duality from quantum mechanics is demonstrated every time you take a picture with your phone.
     
    33:10: Fossum’s role in the transfer of CMOS sensor technology to US industry, co-founding his company Photobit, and negotiations for licensing the technology with CalTech.
     
    43:23: Episode Break
     
    44:36: The sale of Photobit to Micron, Fossum’s move to New Hampshire, consulting work on 3-D imaging sensors for Samsung TVs, and the beginnings of his teaching career at Dartmouth.
     
    50:00: A book chapter on the future of image sensors, and the evolution of this idea to a university project, which led to Fossum co-founding the start-up company, Gigajot, with his PhD students.
     
    52:30: Explaining the difference between the operation of CMOS and Quanta image sensors.
     
    54:03: The resulting applications of CMOS image sensor technology, and the positive use of CMOS image sensors for social justice purposes.
     
    57:22: Fossum’s thoughts about STEM education, and connections between academia and applications in the wider world.
     
    1:01:32: Parting thoughts about AI and the ability to authenticate images at the source, plus Fossum’s newest award: The Trinity College President’s Medal for Science & Innovation.
     
    Guest Bio:
     
    Eric Fossum, a Queen Elizabeth Prize Laureate and recipient of a 2021 Emmy Award, is one of the world's experts in solid-state image sensors. He developed the CMOS active pixel image sensor while working at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Today, this “camera-on-a-chip” technology is used in almost all cell-phone cameras, webcams, many digital-still cameras and in medical imaging, among other applications.
     
    A serial entrepreneur, with a career that has spanned aca

    • 1 hr 7 min
    Picturing World Cultures: Joshua Irwandi - Indonesia

    Picturing World Cultures: Joshua Irwandi - Indonesia

    While Joshua Irwandi was born and raised in Indonesia, the early pictures he made during his first visit to the region of Asmat, in the province of West Papua, were less than satisfying to him. Yet his fascination with the people and the place stuck, inspiring him to embark on the long-term project Not a Blank Canvas.
    In this third installment of our monthly series, Picturing World Cultures, we speak with Irwandi about his experiences documenting the people and landscape of Asmat, which offers a window into long-held traditions and the sweeping changes he’s observed there over the past 10 years.
    Listen in as Irwandi describes how tapping into the region’s rich history through museum collections holding Asmat art proved an important part of his background research. We also discuss the connections he forged with the local Catholic church, and how the many years an American missionary spent learning about and embracing local ways led to a blending of Catholic celebrations and iconography with traditional Asmat feasts.
    Contrary to western holidays, Asmat feasts are celebrated for months on end, and Joshua sheds light on their mystical origins through dreams, and the performative rituals that he was privileged to witness and photograph. 
    In equal measure, he touches on the changing roles of a people who are essentially subsistence hunter gatherers within contemporary society, and the recent effects of transmigration and gentrification on the region’s native inhabitants, which also forms a part of his documentation.
    Self-described as a naturally shy person, Irwandi’s approach to making pictures for this project is to play the long game, while planning for longer visits that allow him to be a “constant observer,” as he describes it.  
    “I don’t pretend I have all the knowledge,” he says. “But I guess it’s easier to come and connect with the locals when you walk in like a new blank piece of book, wanting to learn, rather than assume that you know about them already.”
    If you haven’t already heard them, prior episodes of our podcast series Picturing World Cultures can be accessed at the links below: 
    Wayne Quilliam discussing Australia’s indigenous communities: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/picturing-world-cultures-wayne-quilliam-australiatasmania 
    Kiana Hayeri reflecting on her work in Iran and Afghanistan: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/picturing-world-cultures-kiana-hayeri-iran-afghanistan
    Guest: Joshua Irwandi
    Above photograph © Joshua Irwandi
    For more information on our guest and the gear he uses, see:
    https://blogd7.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/picturing-world-cultures-joshua-irwandi-indonesia
    Stay Connected:
    Joshua Irwandi Website: https://www.joshuairwandi.com/
    Joshua Irwandi Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joshirwandi/
    Joshua Irwandi Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joshua.irwandi/
    Joshua Irwandi X: https://twitter.com/joshirwandi/
    Asmat Museum of Culture and Progress: https://asmatmuseum.org/en/
    Joshua Irwandi National Geographic Explorers Page: https://explorer-directory.nationalgeographic.org/joshua-irwandi
    Joshua Irwandi’s story for The Globe and Mail: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/world/article-how-to-move-a-capital-city-an-exclusive-look-at-indonesias-plan-to/
    Pulitzer Prize page for Irwandi’s Photo The Human Cost of COVID-19: 
    https://www.pulitzer.org/finalists/joshua-irwandi-freelance-photographer-national-geographic

    • 1 hr 1 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
2K Ratings

2K Ratings

Jgwright99 ,

This is The Best Photography Podcast

If you are interested in the people and philosophy of the greats, this is the place to be. No Nikon vs Cannon vs Sony clickbait here. Allen and Jill do a great job bringing recent news, delving deep into historical greats and interviewing the people who made (and make) an impact. Want to hear how the CMOS chip was invented from the guy that invented it? The story of Lee Miller, the first female combat photographer, as told by her son? Jill’s new series “Picturing World Cultures” is outstanding. Worth every minute you spend here.

Robegul ,

The best photography podcast I have found!

What a fantastic show. The hosts are the most professional - and funny. No matter the subject, or who they are interviewing, it is always entertaining and informative. Learn something new with every show. Excellent!

paulfmcd ,

Two thumbs way up 10 stars

If your serious about photography this is the podcast you want to listen to. Well produced entertaining and relevant. Allen and John are professional and these are just great interviews. I always enjoy talking gear... but seek out “Conversations from Eddie Adams workshop “, “Lost rolls America”, “Black white and Blue underwater photography “, “Jay Maisel” I could go on and on that will get you started....Paul
I would like to hear and interview with Abelardo Morell

Update 7/17/2022 RE: John Harris sadly leaving B

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