Photography Podcasts You Need to be Listening to Now

As much as some photographers might want to, you can't have a camera in your hands 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There are other things that have to be done, places to go, errands to run, meetings to attend. But I'm pretty sure that any time you're not actively engaged in photography you're probably thinking about photography. Or reading about photography. Or discussing photography with someone. And if you’re anything like me when I can’t do any of the above, you’ll happily listen to others talk about photography. No, there’s no need to loiter around your local camera shop all day and eavesdrop on other people’s conversations; all you need is your favorite portable audio device and a nice selection of photography podcasts to pass the time.

Photography podcasts are educational, inspirational, and entertaining, often all at once.

There are also hundreds too choose from, covering topics from how to start a photography business to gear reviews to profiles of great photographers past and present. So many options…so little time.

Photo by Patrick Breitenbach

To help simplify things, I’d like to share a few of my favorite photography podcasts for readers to explore. They are presented in no particular order.

This Week in Photo

This weekly podcast anchored by Frederick Van Johnson and Alex Lindsay is one of the most popular shows around. There’s really nothing you won’t hear on TWiP: guest interviews, gear reviews, shooting tips for all styles of photography, new camera technology news, photography in current events, and so much more. Considering the  staggering amount of content available via TWiP, you will be happy to know that they’ve made accessing all that information easy and customizable; as an alternative to subscribing to the main feed, you can subscribe to topic-specific shows under the TWiP umbrella — All About the Gear, Street Focus, Your Itinerary, and many more. There’s something here for everyone.

Photography Tips from the Top Floor

Photographer and photography instructor Chris Marquardt’s show is currently the longest-running podcast of its kind. The tone of the show is conversational, relaxed, and often humorous. Chris answers listeners’ questions, covers current photography-related events, and provides lessons and tips that are simultaneously relevant to seasoned pros and explained in such a way that even beginners can understand.

Thoughts on Photography

Brian McGuckin spends the bulk of his time talking not about new gear or post processing tips; instead, he is focused on thoughts and stories that revolve around what it means to be a photographer and what photography means to society. Brian conducts interviews with photographers of diverse creative and professional backgrounds (professional sports photographers, infrared photographers, street photographers, just to name a few) and allows them to share their experiences with listeners. If you are in search of some food for thought, some philosophical inspiration, or encouragement, give Brian McGuckin’s insightful podcast a listen.

Photo by Mingo Hagen

Photofocus

The Photofocus podcast now publishes four shows per month: 7th – The Q&A Podcast, hosted by Rich Harrington and Scott Bourne; 14th – The Inspiration Show, hosted by Marco Larousse and Scott Bourne; 21st – The InFocus Interview Show, hosted by Pamela Ann Berry; 28th – The Mirrorless Show, hosted by Marco Larousse and Scott Bourne. The show titles are all rather self-explanatory. All the hosts know their stuff and photographers of all levels will find something of value here.

Master Your Lens

Celebrity fashion and beauty photographer Matthew Jordan Smith provides weekly inspiration, motivational stories acquired from 27 years’ worth of experience, step-by-step tutorials, and tips covering everything from lighting choices to finding your lens’ “sweet spot.” Matthew’s goal is simply to help his listeners become better photographers.

Photography Roundtable Podcast

David Johnson describes his podcast as “The photography information I wish I had when I started.” He has, thus, designed his podcast to be as helpful as possible to those just trying to find their way in photography, though the advice, ideas, and news that David shares will also be of interest to veteran photographers as well. You will be pleasantly surprised by the amount of useful information the host manages to share in 30 minutes or less.

Photo by Bent Kure

The Art of Photography

If you check out Ted Forbes’ podcast, the first thing you will realize is that, unlike the others here, The Art of Photography is a video podcast. Ted manages to put together inspiring, educational, visually captivating shows with impressive frequency and consistency (new episodes are added roughly three times per week). So, what topics are covered? You name it, and you can probably find Ted discussing it — composition, philosophy, digital photography, film photography, darkroom techniques, video editing and color grading, and much more. He also documents his travels and frequently does book reviews — some of my favorite episodes. The Art of Photography embodies everything the creative photographer could ask for.

Honorable Mentions

• On Taking Pictures
• LensWork – Photography and the Creative Process
• Candid
• The Digital Story Photography Podcast
• Improve Photography

Tell us what your favorite podcasts are!