Prime Lenses

It’s Christmas Eve so what better time than now to send over a lovely midweek episode. This week I sat down with Martin Ellard, a photographer form South Wales who is a listener to the show and was kind enough to send me a couple of zines he made of work. They’re fascinating and I couldn’t pass up the chance to talk to him about them. So here’s me chatting with Martin. More about this show:A camera is just a tool but spend enough time with photographers and you’ll see them go misty eyed when they talk about their first camera or a small fast prime that they had in their youth. Prime Lenses is a series of interviews with photographers talking about their photography by way of three lenses that mean a lot to them. These can be interchangeable, attached to a camera, integrated into a gadget, I’m interested in the sometimes complex relationship we have with the tools we choose, why they can mean so much and how they make us feel.

Mark Eden is a commercial and travel photographer working in Australia and around the world. In a rare turn of events he reached out to me, we chatted and I suggested we get together and talk on the show. Mark likes to travel light, go off the beaten track and connect with his subjects so he felt like a good fit for the podcast. I hope you enjoy this chat with Mark. More about this show:A camera is just a tool but spend enough time with photographers and you’ll see them go misty eyed when they talk about their first camera or a small fast prime that they had in their youth. Prime Lenses is a series of interviews with photographers talking about their photography by way of three lenses that mean a lot to them. These can be interchangeable, attached to a camera, integrated into a gadget, I’m interested in the sometimes complex relationship we have with the tools we choose, why they can mean so much and how they make us feel.

Martin Parr was a decades long constant in photography who was known for his super saturated, contrasty images, both literally and metaphorically. Awarded a CBE in 2021, which for non-UK listeners is rather a big deal, and the subject of a beautiful documentary in 2024, I wanted to remember Martin who for me is up there with other British cultural icons like Vivienne Westwood, David Bowie and Alexander McQueen. When we think of British cultural exports it’s safe to say Martin’s work will be remembered along with Paul Smith, Monty Python, Doctor Who, The Beatles and the Mini Cooper. More about this show:A camera is just a tool but spend enough time with photographers and you’ll see them go misty eyed when they talk about their first camera or a small fast prime that they had in their youth. Prime Lenses is a series of interviews with photographers talking about their photography by way of three lenses that mean a lot to them. These can be interchangeable, attached to a camera, integrated into a gadget, I’m interested in the sometimes complex relationship we have with the tools we choose, why they can mean so much and how they make us feel.

Judah Passow is a photojournalist from the US who has worked and lived in the UK since the 70s. He has seen the newspaper business he came up in change significantly and we discuss the fact that he has had to self fund his most recent project because it’s nigh on impossible to find funding for projects any other way these days. His images shot over 25 years of conflict between Israel and Palestine are arresting and unfortunately as relevant today as when he first went out there around 40 years ago.More about this show:A camera is just a tool but spend enough time with photographers and you’ll see them go misty eyed when they talk about their first camera or a small fast prime that they had in their youth. Prime Lenses is a series of interviews with photographers talking about their photography by way of three lenses that mean a lot to them. These can be interchangeable, attached to a camera, integrated into a gadget, I’m interested in the sometimes complex relationship we have with the tools we choose, why they can mean so much and how they make us feel.

Kevin Fickling is an American photographer, producer and craftsman. He wears many hats and our chat covers how he got into stills photography by way of video, some lenses he’s shared with the world that are now being used in big name productions and we even treat ourselves to the shutter sound of one of his favourite cameras. It’s a treat to sit down with someone who has such interesting creative ideas and is working with clients to bring unusual ways of seeing to life. He’s helping them to take creative risks and I think that it’s paying off in his imagery. This is a lovely chat and hopefully the first of many.More about this show:A camera is just a tool but spend enough time with photographers and you’ll see them go misty eyed when they talk about their first camera or a small fast prime that they had in their youth. Prime Lenses is a series of interviews with photographers talking about their photography by way of three lenses that mean a lot to them. These can be interchangeable, attached to a camera, integrated into a gadget, I’m interested in the sometimes complex relationship we have with the tools we choose, why they can mean so much and how they make us feel.