Foto Podcast

Photographer Shawn Walters spent years working professionally with digital cameras, for commercial clients and tourism boards, and even as a Sony ambassador. But despite having access to the latest technology, something was missing. He found himself drawn to slower, more deliberate ways of making photographs, eventually landing on large-format film photography.In this episode, Shawn discusses his transition from digital to film, why he fell in love with the 8×10 view camera, and the creative freedom he found in slowing down. We also explore two long-term projects he is currently developing: The American Dream, a series examining the tension between ordinary American life and the growing influence of industry and corporations, and The Locals, a portrait project documenting people and small businesses in his community.Rather than looking back on a completed body of work, this conversation offers a rare glimpse into the early stages of a photographer discovering where a project might lead. We talk about composition, color, large format workflow, portraiture, creative uncertainty, and the challenge of building meaningful work while balancing family life and raising young children.Website: lifeandmylens.comFoto: @lifeandmylens IG: @lifeandmylens If you like the Foto Podcast, please consider supporting the show by becoming a paid Foto Substack Supporter. We appreciate your financial support in making this show possible. Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Michael sits down with filmmakers Ken Hanson, Jack Davidson, and Dave Myszewski to discuss their upcoming documentary about legendary photographer Art Shay.Over a career that spanned more than seven decades, Art Shay photographed everyone from Martin Luther King Jr., Ernest Hemingway, Muhammad Ali, John F. Kennedy, and Nelson Algren to people living on the margins of American life. He covered the 1968 Democratic Convention, the aftermath of MLK’s assassination, organized crime, street life in Chicago, war, politics, and everyday people trying to survive.The conversation explores how Shay developed his eye during World War II, how he hustled his way into rooms nobody else could access, and why his work feels like a visual history of America itself. The filmmakers also discuss digging through his enormous archive, the emotional complexity of his later life, and why they believe Art Shay deserves far greater recognition in the history of photography. Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

Michael talks with photographer, author, and educator Elizabeth Messina about building a long, values-driven career in photography. They trace her path from the darkroom at San Francisco Art Institute to a 6 month-long trip in India and an early museum solo show, then into client work, books, and education. Elizabeth shares practical thoughts on trust, privacy, and respectful collaboration; working with high-profile clients, balancing film instincts with digital workflows; and why community and consistency matter more than hype.Elizabeth just launched her new course 'The Arte Of Maternity' on Feb 14th, 2026. It's available now at The Arte Dept website.Website: https://www.elizabethmessina.comThe ARTE Dept (courses): https://theartedept.comThe ARTE Society (membership): https://theartesociety.comBook — The Luminous Portrait: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/210741/the-luminous-portrait-by-elizabeth-messina-with-jacqueline-tobin/Book — The Silver Lining: https://www.amazon.com/Silver-Lining-Supportive-Insightful-Breast/dp/1476743711 Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

Michael talks with North London–based photographer Phil Sharp about transforming a studio session into a collaborative experience. Phil traces his path from assisting and high-street portrait studios to scrappy New York musician shoots, then back to London, where actor headshots became a place to make pictures that feel alive. He breaks down his sessions, featuring natural light, bold colors, and playing music, so the sitter can stop overthinking. He also explains why he works until the image is genuinely there. They dig into trust, vulnerability, and why “do nothing” can be the most human direction of all.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 philsharp-photo.com* 📸 Instagram: @philsharp* 📸 Foto: @philsharpThank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you’re in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

Michael talks with Ed Templeton about the through-line from 1990s skate culture to a lifetime of painting and photography: DIY zines, doing your own board graphics, and learning to work with chance. Ed traces his path from Orange County/Huntington Beach to turning pro by 1990, discovering photobooks (Nan Goldin, Larry Clark), and realizing he had insider access to a tour-bus world most photographers never see. They dig into failure, risk, and why he prefers to shoot candidly while walking instead of stopping to ask.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 ed-templeton.com* 📸 Instagram: @ed.templeton* 📸 Foto: @edtempletonThank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you’re in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

Michael talks with editor and writer Bill Shapiro about leading LIFE magazine, launching LIFE.com, and what the internet has done to curation, attention, and trust in images. They cover the craft of photo essays, the changing business models behind visual journalism, how archives and sequencing shape meaning, the risks and realities of AI imagery, and Bill’s ongoing work championing photographers and helping them make books.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 Blue Photo Collective: BluePhoto.co* 📸 Instagram: @billshapiro* 📸 Foto: @billshapiro* 🌐 Article by Bill on Alex Harris - Alex Harris Returns to New Mexico* 🌐 Article by Bill on Richard Sharum - To Live and Die in DallasThank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you’re in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.coBelow are some projects for which Bill served as an editor. Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

Photographer Jon Moore joins Michael to talk about his move from Tennessee to Portland, working across the rural Northwest, and creating images that document human-affected landscapes.We cover his early film studies at Watkins College, work as a studio manager and camera operator, and his weekend photo trips through Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and beyond. Jon shares stories from photographing ghost towns, tavern regulars, and roadside characters, plus lessons from Stephen Shore and Alec Soth.He discusses his deliberate, tripod-based approach, the Pentax 6×7 he was gifted, and why subject, light, and composition matter more than gear. Jon also previews his upcoming book, A Storm that Needed a Mountain, with its hand-embroidered cover and imagery of changing landscapes in Goldendale, Washington.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 Website: jonrmoore.com* 📸 Instagram: @doomstache * 📸 Foto: @doomstache Thank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you're in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Michael talks with photographer, educator, and editor Alex Harris, whose work explores memory, place, and the evolving nature of storytelling. Alex was a founding member of the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. He’s also the author of 20 books, including River of Traps (a Pulitzer Prize finalist), The Idea of Cuba, and Our Strange New Land — a project exploring Southern independent film sets, recently exhibited at the High Museum of Art.Alex shares how his early work in New Mexico shaped the way he sees, how teaching has influenced his practice, and why he’s drawn to projects that unfold slowly over time. They talk about the space between truth and fiction, the role of editing, and how personal storytelling has changed his relationship to photography.If you’re interested in long-form projects, quiet observation, and images that live beyond the moment, this is a thoughtful, reflective episode with one of the most respected voices in American documentary photography.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 Website: alex-harris.com* 📸 Instagram: @ourstrangenewlandThank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you're in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Michael talks with photographer Brian Finke about developing a personal style and sticking to it. Brian is known for his bold, colorful work and for delving deep into specific worlds — from flight attendants and bodybuilders to law enforcement and drag races on the US-Mexico border.They discuss how he finds his projects, what drives his curiosity, and how he balances personal work with editorial and commercial assignments. Brian shares how he builds trust with people while keeping full creative control, and why it’s important for him to follow his instincts, even when things get weird.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 Website: brianfinke.com* 📸 Instagram: @brianfinke Thank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you're in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we publicly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is available on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe

In this episode, Michael talks with Nina Berman, a documentary photographer, filmmaker, and professor whose work interrogates the relationship between power, militarization, and the American experience. Over a career spanning three decades, Nina has consistently focused her lens on systems of violence and their aftermath, from war zones to police training grounds to the staged patriotism of political spectacle.A Guggenheim Fellow, two-time World Press Photo winner, and professor at Columbia Journalism School, Nina is also the author of three major books: Purple Hearts – Back from Iraq, Homeland, and An Autobiography of Miss Wish. Her photographs have been exhibited in venues such as the Whitney Museum, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.In this conversation, she discusses how her work has evolved from portraits of wounded veterans to broader investigations into how militarized thinking permeates everyday American life. She reflects on the ethics of long-term documentary work, the emotional cost of sustained witnessing, and why photography remains a vital civic act.This is a powerful episode with one of the most uncompromising voices in American documentary photography — a conversation about courage, clarity, and using your camera to look directly at the systems that define our time.🔗 RESOURCES & LINKS* 🌐 Website: ninaberman.com* 📸 Instagram: nina_bermanThank you to our sponsor State Film Lab! If you're in the US, consider State Film Lab for your film processing and scanning needs.Reminder: We’d love for you to join us on Foto as we pubiclly build a new photo-sharing app for the world. Foto is on Apple and Android. Direct links are on our website fotoapp.co Get full access to Foto at fotoapp.substack.com/subscribe