B&H Photography Podcast

The dictionary defines culture as “the way of life for an entire society.” But sometimes larger forces create rifts within the whole, inevitably leading to a confrontation between factions. A prime example of this cultural struggle is playing out today within the cities and villages of Ukraine, the focus of today’s episode.

Above photograph © Maxim Dondyuk

In this sixth installment of our monthly series, Picturing World Cultures, we speak with Ukrainian photographer and visual artist Maxim Dondyuk, and his wife and artistic manager, Irina.

Our conversation stretches beyond the current conflict, to encompass other aspects of Ukrainian society. From Maxim’s early series on a country doctor’s final visits with patients (which drew inspiration from the work of W. Eugene Smith) to his in-depth coverage of Ukraine’s TB epidemic, we witness the evolution of his working methods and his dedication to long term documentary projects.

Step behind the scenes of a military camp for children run by Cossacks, and gain insight into the cultural split between pro-Russian and pro-European factions, which Maxim photographed for his book Culture of Confrontation.

As he writes in this book, “One culture tried to cling to old times, old ways of living. They were nostalgic for a past that meant a lot to them, to their parents, and grandparents. Yet there was another culture that felt completely differently. They looked ahead to forging something new, a different country.”

Join us for this frank discussion about how such conflicting forces take visual form in Maxim’s powerfully arresting images.

If you haven’t already listened,check out all the episodes of ourPicturing World Culturespodcast series here.

Guests: Maxim & Irina Dondyuk

Stay Connected:

Maxim Dondyuk Website: https://maximdondyuk.com/

Maxim Dondyuk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/maximdondyuk/

Maxim Dondyuk Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/maximdondyuk

Maxim Dondyuk Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/maximdondyuk

Maxim Dondyuk Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxim_Dondyuk

Maxim Dondyuk‘s W. Eugene Smith Grant: https://www.smithfund.org/2022-maxim-dondyuk

For anyone familiar with the photo industry, the mammoth lawsuit between The Andy Warhol Foundation and renowned music photographer Lynn Goldsmith should be no secret. This complex battle over the rights to her 1981 portrait of the artist formerly known as Prince lasted seven years and went all the way to the Supreme Court.

But do you know the circumstances behind her original portrait session with the famously reserved musician, and were you aware of all the misinformation about this case that was disseminated in both legal documents and the press?

Lynn is a longtime friend of the show, and our 2017 episode about her extensive, long-term work with the band Kiss, among other crazy stories, was a fan favorite.We invited her back to discuss this case in 2022, when the Supreme Court first agreed to hear it, but heeding the advice of her legal counsel she wisely declined our offer at that time.

In May 2023, the Supreme Court ultimately ruled in Lynn’s favor in a 7-2 decision, which has already been shown to benefit others seeking remedies for the misuse of their creative works.

Yet, while this landmark decision happened last year, the case itself was not officially resolved until very recently—Friday, March 15, 2024, to be exact—a day some might recognize as the Ides of March.

Now that the final resolution has been signed, sealed, and delivered, we felt it was a perfect opportunity for Lynn to give us a recap of this David vs Goliath battle, with all its complexities and underlying bias.

From details about the Fair Use doctrine, to the matter of copyright registration, to her thoughts about the current photographer community, to the importance of standing up for one’s rights, Lynn provides a clear and insightful assessment of one of the most traumatic and threatening experiences that any independent artist can face, as only she can.

To her very core, Lynnbelieves creativity can make anything possible, an ideology she sums up aptly at the end of our chat.

“I felt like some higher power picked me for this,” she says. “And that I had to make myself feel like a 1940s film with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, where there was going to be a happy ending, that everything would work out just fine, and that I was going to prevail.”

Guest:Lynn Goldsmith

Top shot © Lynn Goldsmith

Episode Timeline:

2:50: The backstory to Lynn Goldsmith’s 1981 photo session with Prince.

7:17:Shooting both color and black-and-white in the days of film, a separate camera for each option.

11:15:Vanity Fair’s 1984 use of Lynn’s black and white portrait for artist reference.

13:47:Lynn’s discovery of the original image use after Prince died in 2016.

19:50:The value of saving detailed records of licensing agreements for future reference.

23:14:The preemptive lawsuit the Andy Warhol Foundation filed against Lynn, and the misinformation contained in the Federal court filing.

32:15:Lynn discusses the Fair Use doctrine and the matter of copyright registration in relation to her case.

36:43: Episode Break

38:04:Meeting with the Andy Warhol Foundation and the deal on offer to resolve the lawsuit.

44:40: Lynn’s thoughts about the current photographer community and the importance of standing up for your rights.

48:09: The multiple rounds of the Prince portrait lawsuit, from the first Federal case to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals to the Supreme Court.

56:29: Uneven reporting about the lawsuit in the press, with the photo press being fearful to write anything, and the art press releasing misinformation without fact checks.

1:00:27: Behind the scenes at the Supreme Court hearing, the effects of the 7 – 2 decision, as well as Justice Kagan’s written opinion.

1:08:48: Lynn’s thoughts about generative AI.

Guest Bio: Lynn Goldsmith is a multi-awarded portrait photographer whose work has appeared on and in between the covers of top magazines worldwide. Her subjects have varied from entertainment to sports, film directors to authors, and from top celebrities to the ordinary man on the street. Her forty years of photography are both an investigation into the nature of the human spirit, as well as the natural wonders of our planet.

As the author of 12 major photo books, Lynn’s images are also featured in numerous museum collections, yet her professional achievements are in no way limited to the world of photography. She is the youngest member ever accepted into the Director's Guild of America (DGA), where she achieved several firsts—from the first rock show on network television to the first music documentary released as a theatrical short, and more. In the mid-seventies, Lynn stopped directing to concentrate fully on photography.

By the early 80s, she departed from both photography and film, to become the first ‘optic-music’ artist. Using thea.k.a.Will Powers, she produced the album "Dancing for Mental Health" on Island Records. Her debut album won critical acclaim and her single, Kissing with Confidence, reached #3 on the British charts.

The wide range of Lynn's talents, skills and achievements are products of a belief she holds constant: Creativity is based on breaking limiting thought patterns, thus making anything possible.

Stay Connected:

Lynn Goldsmith’s Website: https://lynngoldsmith.com/menu.html

Rock and Roll Photo Gallery Website: https://rockandrollphotogallery.com/

Lynn Goldsmith’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynngoldsmith/

Lynn Goldsmith’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/goldsmithphoto

Lynn Goldsmith’s Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/lynngoldsmithartist/

Lynn Goldsmith’s YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@lynn-goldsmith/

Lynn Goldsmith’s GoFundMe Campaign

Lynn Goldsmith’sWikipedia:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Goldsmith

Pelican 1510TP Carry-On Case: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1241003-REG/pelican_015100_0050_110_1510tp_carry_on_case_with.html

Professional tree planting is back breaking piecework—a combination of high intensity sport and industrial labor that requires both technical finesse and remarkable physical and mental endurance. Using techniques more often associated with high-performance athletes, experienced planters (commonly known as high-ballers) leap up and down through uneven and debris-strewn terrain, armed only with a shovel and 30-kg bags of seedlings on their backs.

In recent years, tree planting has become a rite of passage among young Canadians not afraid of hard work and dirt under their fingernails. As seasonal work, it attracts many students from Canada’s southern cities. Due to the brutal physical demands, most are under 30 years old. Out on the cut block inclement weather is common, and the swarms of biting insects are legendary.

Working in—rather than on—the land for months on end, and sharing an isolated camp site creates a solid bond among planters. This has molded into a subculture of sorts, which is the subject of today’s show.

My guest for this episode isCanadian photographer and filmmaker Rita Leistner.Rita documents communities living in extreme conditions, typically investing months or years in a project. After spending a decade as a tree planter during her youth, Rita returned to the forest in 2016 to document a new generation. In 2021, she released her results as an Art Trifecta, featuring large fine art photographs, a 256-page photo book, and the documentary feature film “Forest for the Trees.”

Equally in her element in forests and war zones, Rita’s photographs and her writings about photography, art, and war have been published, exhibited, and collected worldwide. She is represented by the Stephen Bulger Gallery for art, and by Green Planet Films for film.

Guest: Rita Leistner

Above photograph © Rita Leistner

For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/picturing-world-cultures-rita-leistner-canada

And if you haven’t already listened, check out all episodes from our Picturing World Cultures podcast series here.https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/promotion/picturing-world-cultures

Episode Timeline:

2:02: The backstory to Canadian tree planting as a business

5:21: Rita’s interest in photography and her early days as a tree planter.

12:43: Comparisons and contrasts between Rita’s early tree planting experiences and what she found when returning to the forest to document this subject.

18:21: A typical day in the life of a tree planter and the actual planting process

26:31: How Rita landed on her distinctive photographic style of capturing fast moving planters with a PhaseOne camera and Profoto lighting.

32:40: Rita talks about how the young planters responded to her sudden presence in the camp.

36:17: Rita’s lighting set up with Profoto B1 lights and coordinating with an assistant to carry all the gear.

41:56: Episode Break

43:10: Rita talks about power consumption, batteries, generators, workflow, and more when working in remote locations.

45:03: Inclement weather, dirt, and bugs when shooting both stills and video footage out in the wilderness.

48:41: The lighting details behind Rita’s enchanted forest nighttime images and timelapse footage.

53:38: How the work of tree planters is perceived by both the logging industry and environmentalists, and the effects this has on the planters themselves.

1:03:47: How Rita’s Tree Planter project has affected her sense of Canadian identity.

1:06:04: Rita Leistner answers our PWC Visual Questionnaire.

Guest Bio: Rita Leistner is a Canadian photographer and filmmaker who creates portraits of communities living in extreme conditions, typically investing months or years in a project. After spending a decade of her formative years as a tree planter in the Canadian wilderness, she returned to this theme to document a new generation of planters from 2016 to 2019. In 2021, she released the project as an Art Trifecta, featuring fine art photographs, a 256-page monograph, and the 91-minute documentary film Forest for the Trees.

Additionally, Rita has been captured by insurgents, assaulted, and shot at, and she has run into gunfire to get a photograph.She has published four books of photography includingUnembedded: Four Independent Photojournalists on the War in Iraq (2005), widely considered one of the most influential anti-war books to come out of the Iraq conflict.Rita’s photographs and her writings about photography, art, and war have been published and exhibited worldwide, and are in major corporate and museum collections. From 2010 to 2016 she served as Associate Professor in the History of Photojournalism and Documentary Photography at the University of Toronto. She is represented by the Stephen Bulger Gallery for art, and by Green Planet Films for film.

Stay Connected:

Rita Leistner Website: http://ritaleistner.com/

Forest for the Trees Website: https://www.forestforthetreesdocumentary.com/

Rita Leistner Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ritaleistner/

Rita Leistner Twitter: https://twitter.com/ritaleistner/

Stephen Bulger Gallery Website: https://www.bulgergallery.com/artists/45-rita-leistner/overview/

Green Planet Films Website: https://greenplanetfilms.org/products/forest-for-the-trees?_pos=1&_sid=90a01a45d&_ss=r

Canadian photographer Lorraine Gilbert: https://www.lorrainegilbert.com/

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

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

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 guidespecialized 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 Dracula lure, distinguishing true cultural history from the literary myth, useful resources for more background about Romania, plus details about Daniel’s genealogical tours.

57:22: Daniel Rosca answers our Picturing World Cultures Visual Questionnaire.

Guest Bio: Daniel Rosca is a Romanian photographer and tour guidespecializing in photographic, cultural, and genealogical tours. As a child, he spent a lot of time at his grandparent’s subsistencefarm and experienced many of the traditions of rural Romania. After university and four years abroad, he realized how interesting rural Romania and itstraditions are and decided to return to his native country to help curious travelers discover them as well.

Before setting down roots in travel, Daniel worked in youth development, consulting, as well as in corporate social responsibility for Microsoft. After living and working in Brussels, Warsaw, Istanbul, and Cairo, and travelling to another 40 countries on four continents, he decided travel should become his full-time job, in the country where he feels most connected. He founded Romania Photo Tours and True Romania Tours in 2011. In summary, to quote the motto of his photo tour site: Veni, Vidi, Click! Where click is not only about clicking the shutter, but also about clicking with the culture.

Stay Connected:

Romania Photo Tours Website: https://romania-photo-tours.com/

True Romania Tours Website: https://true-romania.tours/

Romania Photo Tours Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/romaniaphototours/

Romania Photo Tours Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/touroperatorRomaniaPhotoTours

True Romania Tours Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TrueRomaniaTours/

Romania Photo Tours X: https://twitter.com/photo_romania

True Romania Tours X: https://twitter.com/TRomaniaTours

True Romania Tours Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/trueromaniatours/

Romanian photographer Sorin Onisor: https://www.instagram.com/sorin_onisor/

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 science reporter covering the Los Alamos National Laboratory. His first, and biggest, scoop was about radioactive kitty litter discovered at the town dump.

Stay Connected:

Stephen Shankland’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stshank/

Stephen Shankland’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/stshank/

Stephen Shankland’s Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/people/Stephen-Shankland/

Stephen Shankland’s Flickr:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/shankrad/

Stephen Shankland’s MuckRack:

https://muckrack.com/stshank

Stephen Shankland’s CNET profile:

https://www.cnet.com/profiles/shankland/

Stephen Shankland’s CNET article on AI: https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/features/how-close-is-that-photo-to-the-truth-what-to-know-in-the-age-of-ai/

Open AI’s Chat GPT: https://chat.openai.com/

Open AI’s Dall-E: https://openai.com/dall-e-2

Open AI’s Sora: https://openai.com/sora

Panasonic Lumix Cameras: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/buy/panasonic-lumix-mirrorless-cameras/ci/39961

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 academic and government research, and entrepreneurial leadership, Fossum is currently the John H. Krehbiel Sr. Professor for Emerging Technologies at Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering, where he teaches, performs image sensor research, and directs the School’s Ph.D. Innovation Program. He also serves as Dartmouth’s Vice Provost for Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer.

Stay Connected:

Eric Fossum Website: https://ericfossum.com/

Eric Fossum Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Fossum

Eric Fossum at the National Inventor’s Hall of Fame: https://www.invent.org/inductees/eric-r-fossum

Eric Fossum at Dartmouth Engineering: https://engineering.dartmouth.edu/community/faculty/eric-fossum

Eric Fossum bio from the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering: https://qeprize.org/winners/eric-fossum

Eric Fossum’s 2021 Emmy Award in Tech and Engineering https://www.nhbr.com/dartmouth-professor-wins-emmy-award-for-image-sensor-technology/

Logitech: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/browse/Logitech/ci/13968/N/4232861614

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

Press photographers have faced tough workplace challenges for quite some time. Yet, according to recent headlines, their job is about to get even tougher, due to current plans by many law enforcement agencies—particularly the NYPD—to encrypt radio calls, making live transmissions of breaking news inaccessible to common citizens and members of the press.

Besides being a devastating blow to meddling old biddies and law enforcement buffs, this change has huge implications for photojournalists and news outlets, who depend on such communications as part of their workflow.

Joining us to shed light on this matter, as well as to provide a general update on newspaper photojournalism today, are two generations of accredited newspaper photographers, Todd Maisel and Lloyd Mitchell. As a current board member and past vice president of the New York Press Photographers Association, Maisel has worked tirelessly to investigate and mediate the NYPD’s encryption plans.

Among the many topics raised in our discussion are a shift in press accreditation from the NYPD to the Mayor’s Office of Media & Entertainment, competing interests within news organizations that prevent broadcasters from taking law enforcement to task, distinctions between police and fire departments when it comes to radio encryption, details about radio encryption rollouts in other US cities, and much more.

Towards the end of our chat, Todd Maisel offers a compelling insight into his mission as a photojournalist, which speaks to the high stakes involving the matter at hand. “What I’m doing as a journalist is a sacred obligation. It’s a God-given right to do it, and to continue to do it, and to do a great job at it. And so, I made a promise to protect it, to protect freedom of the press.”

Guests: Todd Maisel and Lloyd Mitchell

Above photograph © Todd Maisel

For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
https://blogd7.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/holding-to-truth-radio-encryption-the-press-with-todd-maisel-lloyd-mitchell

Stay Connected:
Todd Maisel Website: https://www.toddmaiselvisualjournalism.com/
Todd Maisel on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toddmaisel/
Todd Maisel on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/
Todd Maisel on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ToddMaisel

Lloyd Mitchell Website: https://lloydmitchell43.photoshelter.com/
Lloyd Mitchell on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lloydmitchellphotography/
https://www.instagram.com/urbanfirefightingportfolio/
Lloyd Mitchell on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/randymitchellwritesandphotographs/
Lloyd Mitchell on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lloydphoto
NYPPA Website: https:// www.nyppa.org
Todd Maisel on the Deadline for Newspaper Photojournalism Episode: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts/photography/podcast-a-deadline-for-newspaper-photojournalism