FEATURING WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER & MENTOR DAVID DUCHEMIN

David duChemin is back for his third visit, and this time we're tackling a surprising topic: the enduring power of photography blogs. In an age of algorithms and fleeting posts, David makes a compelling case that blogs aren't dead and are thriving as vital spaces for deeper storytelling and better connection with your audience. Through a curated collection of photography blogs, we explore why long-form content and owning your platform matter more than ever, whether you're shooting for clients or purely for the love of it.

David is a photographer and author based on Vancouver Island, Canada. A former humanitarian photographer, his work shifted after a life-altering accident in Italy in 2011 left him a below-the-knee amputee. We also talk about his adventures in Kenya. Join David in this special to discover why the blog remains one of photography's most powerful tools.

Email your stories, thoughts, and pictures to the show. If you can optimize/resize photos to 2,500 pixels wide, that’s always much appreciated. If you’d like to support this show and have access to further content and the midweek Extra Mile show, we’d welcome you as an EXTRA MILER. There’s also our thriving Facebook group, a safe place to meet and talk with photographers of all interests, the Photowalk YouTube channel, plus the show is featured on Instagram, VERO and X.

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MORE ABOUT names, words, THE MUSIC and places FROM TODAY’S SHOW

Join us on the Black Isle near Inverness, for the Scotland ‘26 retreat, staying on a working soft-fruit farm with Highland views. The retreat includes small creative workshops, from photogravure printing to sound and writing sessions, plus plenty of time to walk, talk and make photographs together.

Blog posts featured within our conversation: The Power of Mood, Is It Getting Better, Real Photographers Do What, Whisky Shots, What Makes and Image Work: Part 1 and Part 2, Cringe, A Word About Art-Making, and The Adventure of Art.

David duChemin’s books featuring titles discussed on the show today.

The Maasai Mara is a protected savannah reserve in southwest Kenya, continuous with Tanzania’s Serengeti, and is best known for the annual wildebeest migration when more than a million animals move through its grasslands and river crossings; it’s also one of Africa’s most reliable places to see big cats in open country.

David duChemin publishes The Contact Sheet, a bi-weekly newsletter focused on vision over gear and photography as a creative, human practice rather than a technical pursuit.

Elliott Erwitt was born in Paris in 1928 and died in New York in November 2023, having spent the best part of a century making photographs that managed to be funny, tender and technically brilliant all at once. He joined Magnum Photos in 1953 at the invitation of Robert Capa and went on to photograph everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Nikita Khrushchev.

Sean Tucker is a British photographer and filmmaker who grew up across southern Africa before settling in North Yorkshire. He built a huge YouTube following not by talking about camera settings, but by asking why we make things at all.

Ernest Shackleton was an Anglo-Irish explorer who led three expeditions to Antarctica. His most famous voyage ended when his ship was crushed by pack ice in 1914, and what followed was one of the greatest survival stories in history. Every single one of his men made it home. He died in 1922 on South Georgia, at the start of yet another Antarctic expedition.

Regular, original blog posts improve search rankings, increase visibility, and, over time, build trust with your audience through authoritative content and meaningful engagement.

Kelvin Brown’s flickr Photowalk inspired group - join by invite by clicking on to THIS LINK.

MUSIC LINKS: Hans Johnson wrote today's playout song Awake (East Africa). Music on the show is sourced primarily from Artlist and also features in Michael Brennan’s Spotify playlist GoFoto. For Apple Music users, follow this playlist.