On Taking Pictures

This week, we begin with a talk about the idea of obsolescence, from the perspective of tools and hardware that for seemingly arbitrary reasons are no longer able to be used. Also, a discussion around being on (or off) a roll creatively and how sometimes you can’t see the crest from the dip. Plus, does Instagram have a secret hashtag #blacklist? Ty Cole is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, a brief discussion around depression after the tragic loss of Chris Cornell leads us into a discussion of Basquiat and the recent sale that put him at the top of the heap of American artists (at least in terms of dollars paid for a single piece). Also, do your tools or creative spaces imbue you with superpowers? Should we expect them to? Plus, Greg Heisler of light and color. Photojournalist Stanley Greene is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, a discussion around music producers leads to wondering if the same producer-artist relationship to be productive for photographers. Would bringing in an outside - yet trusted - set of eyes help newer, better work emerge? Also, where does criticism come into play? Do you post wanting unsolicited feedback or do you look for honest critique from only a select few. Plus, a couple listener emails on whether writing about photography (or art) helps or is even necessary and help in choosing full frame or crop sensor. Chema Madoz is our photographer of the week.

This week, we discuss the value of surrounding yourself with different types of creative people and how happy accidents can end up sending you in a new direction. Also, stop trying to be different — find your tennis ball and just get to work. Plus, a terrific story about a group of young people embracing documentary photography. Norman Parkinson is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, how do you know when you’ve found your voice and aren’t simply emulating someone else? Also, have cameras become less like creative tools and more like computers that take pictures? Plus, a major museum clashes with Instagram over what is and isn’t art. Louise Lawler is our Photographer of the Week.

Welcome to OTP year six! This week, are better and better cameras taking the craft out of photography, or does not having to worry about the technical free us to concentrate on the artistic? Is there more long term value in keeping your kit simple? Also, a listener question has us discussing how to figure out what comes next after a large or long-term project. Plus, sometimes we lose sight of our own creative worth and need to recalibrate. Diane Tuft is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we’re doing our best to answer your photo questions, which range from the technical to the obscure, from dream camera setup to whether or not you need an agent (spoiler: it depends). This episode marks the end of five years of OTP and we couldn’t be more grateful. Thank you for continuing to take an hour and a half or so out of your week to join us. We love doing the show and are looking forward to year six. Claire Rosen is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, tutorials, gear reviews, benchmarks and ratings. If everyone is an Expert, who do you trust? Ultimately, you need to use the tools and advice that works for you, regardless of what They say. Also, we geek out a little over video cards and the importance of being able to upgrade your rig. Plus, our Photographer of the Week, Joel-Peter Witkin, inspires a discussion that wonderfully illustrates the power of a photograph.

This week, what’s the most iconic nude photo you’ve ever seen? Now, think about what makes it iconic. The human form is a blank canvas, but depending on how it’s lit, posed or seen by the artist, the resulting representation can be either beautiful or disturbing, art or porn. What’s takes it one way or the other? Also, we talk about when “official” portraits are just bad portraits. Plus, would you pay to use social media if it meant keeping your private information private? Suzanne Moxhay is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, a followup to our depression discussion from a couple episodes ago and a letter from a listener. Despite how it sometimes feels, you’re not alone. It’s dark sometimes - really dark - but it’s not empty. We, along with countless listeners, have been there. Call us, email us, post in the group or talk to a family member or a friend. Make things. Share work. Every day, every picture is a chance to change course, either a little or a lot. Also, an offline phone call inspired a discussion around conventional wisdom pertaining to gear and equipment. Nick Veasey is our photographer of the week.

This week, prompted by a listener email, we talk about taking “those” photos that have been taken a million times before and why you should or shouldn't take your version. Also, a discussion around being open to the process and giving yourself permission to play, regardless of whether or not all the pieces are in place. Paul Outerbridge is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we discuss the paralyzing power of depression via a story of a Chinese photographer called Ren Hang, who recently took his own life. Also, a quick roundup of some of our current favorite photo apps. Plus, we tease a couple articles to discuss next week around the creative process of artists like Beck, Tom Waits and Kendrick Lamar as well as the value of immersion via Chrissie Hynde. Laurent Nivalle is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we’re starting out with a discussion around craft, inspired in part by the terrific Netflix series, Abstract. Also, we talk about two extremes of making work - at one end, we cite John Free and his 10 year photo essay project talking to people in the train yards in Los Angeles. On the other end, is the recent pop-up display of images and contact sheets from Robert Frank’s The Americans which, at the request of the photographer, were taken down and destroyed. Is one of these things a more valid expression of art than the other, or are they each a potentially necessary part of the creative process? Plus, with our five year anniversary coming up, we’re asking if you have any ideas on how you’d like to see us mark the occasion. If so, email us at podcast@ontakingpictures.com. Aaron Siskind is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we respond to a couple listener emails — one involves questions around valuing work and the other is a followup to last week’s discussion around barriers. Also, what do you expect when you post your work online? Are you looking for constructive criticism, likes or is it just a vehicle for sharing what you make? Magnum photographer Eli Reed is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, an email from a listener sparks a discussion about shipping - specifically around our own expectations over what comes next. This leads us into a broader discussion around self image, privilege and fears - both real and imagined. Also, is an MFA in photography a good idea? Plus, we got lots of terrific phone calls from you and want more. Keep them coming! Herbert Randall is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we’re talking about film gear and answering some listener questions about our favorite film cameras. Also, a discussion around the challenges of becoming derivative of your own work, especially when you’ve done it for decades. We use Billy Joel and Mark Seliger as examples. Plus, despite low earnings, camera makers are still developing some pretty incredible tech. Lorna Simpson is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, have the tools taken the mystery out of photography? When you no longer think about technical requirements to make photographs, have we gone too far or is that the point? Also, a couple terrific submissions from listeners — including one that has us marvelling at photos from an earlier time in America. Plus, is there value in keeping meticulous records of your life? We’re celebrating Black History Month by spotlighting African American Photographers of the Week, beginning with Addison Scurlock.

This week, we discuss the seemingly innate skills and abilities of our fathers and grandfathers and how somewhere along the way, that “folk wisdom” was either lost or perhaps no longer needed. Were the skills handed down to them, or simply a byproduct of the time and place in which they lived? Have we evolved? Also, we mention a few terrific documentaries about art and design that are currently available for streaming. Chuck Stewart is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, a discussion around the historic worldwide Women’s March on Washington has us wondering “are we so used to things ‘being Photoshopped’ that we ignore actual photographic evidence?” Also, Jeffery gets a faux secret service detail. Plus, getting “the shot” in three minutes — what do you do if you didn’t get it? Has Fuji gotten the feel right with the new X100F and XT-20? Rusty Fox is our Photographer of the Week.

This week, we discuss the connection between purpose and happiness. Are they connected? Does one precede the other? What happens to our work when we no longer feel any purpose in engaging in it? Does it merely become practice? If so, to what end? Also, a reflection on the life of Gene Cernan and men like him, who dared to leave their home behind “just to see if they could do it.” Luigi Ghirri is our Photographer of the week.