The Documentary Photographer Podcast

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 photographer too. He writes for Forbes and reached out to me via email after episode 10 of the podcast aired. In his email, he highlighted a recent Forbes article in which he discusses the work of Bernice Abbott, in particular her photographs illustrating scientific concepts through photography, and wondered whether they were documentary. A simple question. But a complicated answer. Pondering Jonathon's question made me r