Interviews

Tarantula Migration images by Devon Matthews and Kristi Odom

Photographers Celebrate One of Nature’s Most Misunderstood Creatures

Every fall, as the days get shorter and colder, a groundswell of tarantulas takes over the landscape of La Junta, Colorado, and the surrounding southeastern Colorado region. Conservation and wildlife photographers Devon Matthews and Kristi Odom were on site this year to document the incredible annual event.

PetaPixel favorite stories 2023

Our Favorite PetaPixel Stories of 2023

This year has been a fascinating one in the world of photography, and like every year, it was full of incredible highs, devastating lows, and everything in between.

James Webb Space Telescope interview with Joe DePasquale and Alyssa Pagan

How Editors Blend Art and Science to Bring NASA’s Space Photos to Life

Since it began its full scientific operations at the second Lagrange point (L2), about one million miles (1.5 million kilometers) from Earth last year, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has enchanted people around the world. Webb's photos have inspired many people to learn more about space and look at the night sky with unprecedented wonder and curiosity.

Brian Skerry

The Return of the Great White Shark Through the Lens of a Photographer

Although sharks are under significant threat worldwide, great white sharks are appearing in greater numbers around Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a popular tourist destination. In the new television special, "Return of the White Shark," National Geographic takes a closer look at the shark population around Cape Cod.

Albert Watson: Legendary Photographer of Fashion and Celebrity

Albert Watson is a fashion, celebrity, and art photographer with over 100 Vogue covers and iconic images of celebrities and champions of business captured for over five decades. His subjects have included Mick Jagger, Steve Jobs, Jack Nicholson, Kate Moss, Christy Turlington, David Bowie, Tupac Shakur, and Andy Warhol.

Exposed: Aline Smithson, the Ambidextrous Photographer

When I first discovered the rather active analog photographer, journalist, and educator Aline Smithson, I felt that I have been standing in place with one hand tied behind my back. I spend my photographer energy thinking about the project that’s directly in front of me. One project at a time.

How Photographer Drew Gurian Photographed Yo-Yo Ma for Masterclass

New York City-based portrait photographer Drew Gurian followed a textbook path to learning the ropes. While in college, he interned for Joe McNally and Danny Clinch – two photographers known in part for their incredible photos of creatives like dancers, musicians, and the like. After college, Drew spent five years traversing the globe as McNally’s first assistant before peeling off to carve his own path.

Exposed: Yunghi Kim on the Power of Women Photojournalists

It is difficult to quickly sum up the ongoing career of photojournalist Yunghi Kim. Yunghi simply has too much personal energy, global photojournalism chops, and a record of giving back to the photographic community. In particular, Yunghi is known for her support of women photojournalists.

Exposed: Photographer John Tully and Thoughts of Bruce Springsteen

It is rare to have a photographer conjure up the memory of a particular song. However, I immediately thought of Bruce Springsteen’s Darkness on the Edge of Town when I saw New Hampshire photojournalist John Tully’s recent work.

Exposed: An Interview with Superstar Wedding Photographer John Dolan

I am fascinated by the art of wedding photography and have seen it morph from very formal and super staged -- as in very often: “OK, grandma stand over there” -- to having a photographer take a more casual or natural approach. John Dolan’s style approaches wedding photography from the perspective of an involved documentarian interested in the emotional experience.

Photographer Allison Stewart Explores the Construction of American Identity

I was blown away when I first saw Allison Stewart’s series, Bug Out Bag: The Commodification of American Fear. The work zeroed in on the mindset, ubiquitous paranoia, or to borrow from Hunter S, Thompson, our collective “fear and loathing” of America today. Her photographs of ‘preppers’ and how they plan for the worst just seem so America 2021.

An Interview with Photographer Conor McDonnell, A Nikon Ambassador at 26

Conor McDonnell is a UK-based photographer who became a Nikon ambassador earlier this month at the age of 26. In 2014, at the age of 22, McDonnell was asked to photograph the wedding of Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, and one of his photos from the wedding shattered Instagram's then-record for most likes. We spoke to McDonnell to learn more about his life and career journey.

An Interview with Photographer Richard McLaren

What do President Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Tina Turner, Halle Berry, Gwyneth Paltrow, Pierce Brosnan, Jon Bon Jovi, Marc Anthony, Mariah Carey, Eva Mendes, Orlando Bloom, Patrick Swayze and Heath Ledger have in common? The magical lens of Richard McLaren has captured them all. And this is only a small sampling of famous people who McLaren has photographed in his four decades in the industry.

An Interview with Photographer Joe McNally

Joe McNally is a photographer and a storyteller. The word photography comes from Greek and means to write with light. That, in a nutshell, is what McNally does: he a writes with light, whether it be daylight or Speedlight. And for a student who started out as a writing major and ended up being a photographer, that is just the perfect result.

How Photographer Bill Frakes Used 41 DSLRs to Shoot the Kentucky Derby

Native Nebraskan Bill Frakes has had a long career in which he has photographed in 138 countries and all US states. He has captured everything from Pulitzer Prize-winning images of Hurricane Andrew for the Miami Herald, where he was a staffer, to commercial work for Apple, Nike, Coca-Cola, Mars and Reebok.

An Interview with Photographer Jeremy Cowart

Jeremy Cowart has done it all: celebrity photographer, app creator, photo teacher, photo book author, lecturer, humanitarian and in the future maybe a hotel owner, where he envisions “changing the world in your sleep.”

An Interview with Edward Burtynsky

Edward Burtynsky is a legendary Canadian fine art photographer who specializes in chronicling the extraction and destruction of the earth and it’s minerals, mines and more. His images bring a painterly beauty to the banal.

Another Big Camera Store Fails: Why Are So Many Closing?

40 years ago, Bob Khoury and Warren Steinberg started selling used photo equipment out of a showcase in an Atlanta, Georgia, flea market. Soon they moved to a brick and mortar store which, to incorporate their earlier experience, they called Showcase. The store grew to be the largest in Atlanta and sold photo and video equipment to amateurs and professionals alike and last year they celebrated their 40th anniversary.

An Interview with Photographer Mark Seliger

Mark Seliger is one of the best-known editorial portrait photographers in the U.S., and his career spans over twenty years. He succeeded Annie Leibovitz as the designated “chief photographer” for Rolling Stone Magazine and has photographed over 125 Rolling Stone covers.

Jarob Ortiz, the Next ‘Ansel Adams’ of the National Park Service

In December 2015, the Internet was abuzz with a National Park Service (NPS) job listing that was considered the search for "the next Ansel Adams": a position for a black-and-white large format photographer with a salary up to $100,000 per year.

How One Photographer is Shedding Light on the Refugee Crisis

There’s a staggering fact on photographer Malin Fezehai’s website: “The number of people forced to flee their homes across the world has exceeded 50 million for the first time since the second World War.”

Untold Stories About Ansel Adams’ Portraits and Workshops

Jeanne Adams is the daughter-in-law of the late and great landscape photographer Ansel Adams, and she served as the head of the Ansel Adams Gallery for 25 years. In the 10-minute interview above, Jeanne talks to Marc Silber of Advancing Your Photography about Ansel's workshops, teaching styles, and lesser-known portraits.

The Photographer Shooting Contrasty Closeups of Presidential Candidates

In the span of just a few short years, Seattle-based photographer Nate Gowdy went from shooting weddings, headshots, and commercial images to shooting striking photos of politicians campaigning to become the leader of the United States. His work has since been widely published, including an appearance on the cover of TIME. We spoke to Gowdy about his life and journey in photography.