A Small Voice: Conversations with photographers and filmmakers

By Ben Smith

Fortnightly in-depth interviews featuring a diverse range of talented, innovative, world-class photographers from established, award-winning and internationally exhibited stars to young and emerging t... more

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The podcast currently has 295 episodes available.

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Number 1: 290 - Richard Sharum
Richard Sharum is an editorial and documentary photographer based in upstate New York. Mainly focusing on socio-economic or social justice dilemmas concerning the human condition, his work has been regarded as in-depth, up-close and personal. Selected exhibitions have occurred in Kyoto, Japan, Sao Paulo, Brazil, Reggio Emilia, Italy, New York City, Boston, Chicago and Dallas, and his work has been added to the permanent collection of the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art and The Wittliff Collection, as well as others. Richard's commissions include those by The Meadows Foundation, Centers for Community Cooperation, Harvard Law School, Student Conservation Association, Children's Medical Center (Oncology), Children's Cancer Fund. His publications include those by LFI (Leica International), British Journal of Photography, LensCulture, The Atlantic, Texas Monthly, Publico (Portugal), El Pais (Spain), Observer (UK), The Wall Street Journal, B+W Photo Magazine, Huck Magazine, Glasstire, PATRON, Creative Review, among others. Richard has published two photobooks, Campesina Cuba and Spina Americana, both with GOST. His third, American Homicide, will be released early in 2027, also by GOST. The last two of these titles will be joined in 2028 by American Avenue, to form a trilogy of books entitled Of Thee I Sing. He is represented by The Hulett Collection, Tulsa, Oklahoma. On episode 290, Richard discusses, among other things:His goal of reaching a wider audience among the general public.Team window vs. team mirrorHis new book American HomocideThe fascination for true crime among the publicHow murder affects all the groups involvedGetting access to the detective squad he embedded withThe portrayal of violence on screenHis obsession with timeThe need to be empathetic and openThe impact of being exposed so many murder victimsThe murder detectives he got to know and photographCorresponding with the perpetratorsPart three of his planned trilogy, American AvenueThe state of the photobook industry and the unfairness of the current systemReferenced:W Eugene SmithSebastião SalgadoJames NachtweyLarry TowellLeonard FreedSusan MeiselasGordon ParksWebsite | Instagram | Lecture at Columbia Become a A Small Voice podcast member here to access exclusive additional subscriber-only content and the full archive of 200+ previous episodes for £4 per month. Need a website? Or someone you know does? EXCLUSIVE LISTENER OFFER: 15% off when booked by Christmas 2026! Go here. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter here for everything A Small Voice related and much more besides. Follow me on Instagram here.
September 09, 20261h 23min
Number 2: 289 - Clémentine Schneidermann
Clémentine Schneidermann is a French photographer living and working between Paris and South Wales. She recently completed a practice-based PhD at the University of South Wales, Cardiff entitled Photographing Children in a Social Context: Narratives and Strategies (2021). Clémentine works on long term projects & commissions and is interested in new creative practices in social documentary photography. Her approach is collaborative and playful, with an interest in communities and childhood, as well as our relationship to identity and culture. She is a co-founder of Bleak Fabulous with Charlotte James, a photography-based creative studio working across different disciplines with an emphasis on communities and collaboration. On episode 289, Clémentine discusses, among other things: How having a camera made it acceptable to stare at people Studying in Switzerland… and then Newport, Wales Falling in love with Wales immediately Her book project, I Call Her Lisa Marie Her project Ffasiwn Collaborating with kids… and Charlotte James Getting involved with Alexander MacQueen Her forthcoming book marking ten year of Ffasiwn Bleak Fabulous - trying to create stable income Winning the Taylor Wessing Portrait Prize Work she has done in Greenland Her other collaboration: The Emmas Referenced: Mary Ellen Mark Sebastian Bruno Bruce Davidson David Barnes Ken Grant Paul Reas Lina Hashim Jacob Aue Sobol Website | Instagram Become a A Small Voice podcast member here to access exclusive additional subscriber-only content and the full archive of 200+ previous episodes for £4 per month. Need a website? Or someone you know does? EXCLUSIVE LISTENER OFFER: 15% off when booked by Christmas 2026! Go here. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter here for everything A Small Voice related and much more besides. Follow me on Instagram here.
August 26, 20261h 9min
Number 3: 291 - Iva Sidash
Iva Sidash is an independent documentary photographer and visual storyteller from Ukraine. Born in 1995, she focuses on deeply personal narratives shaped by the realities of war. Since the onset of Russia’s full-scale invasion, she has documented intimate stories of fragility, resistance, and memory that unfold behind the frontlines. Her work merges artistic sensibility with documentary practice, revealing the human experience through a lens of emotion, nuance, and resilience. A graduate of the International Center of Photography in New York, Iva is a member of the Ukrainian Association of Professional Photographers and Women Photograph. She is the recipient of the 2024 Ian Parry Photojournalism Grant, a Women Photograph fellowship, and the Chris Hondros Award at the Eddie Adams Workshop. Her photographs have been published in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, INSIDER, Der Spiegel, and The Financial Times. Her exhibitions span both solo and group presentations across the United States and Europe, highlighting her growing international recognition as a compelling voice in documentary photography. On episode 291, Iva discusses, among other things:Daily normality in KyivHow a car accident led her to street photographyHow she transitioned from street photography to documenting the warThe power of trying to portray life during wartimeEthical concernsHer project What Is Unseen and what the title meansWinning the Ian Parry Grant (and being in that ‘family’)...…And the Chris Hondras awardGoing to the ICP in New YorkHer story there about injured Ukrainian soldiers undergoing rehabilitation on Staten IslandFuture plans for other projects she’s interested in, including diaristic work Become a A Small Voice podcast member here to access exclusive additional subscriber-only content and the full archive of 200+ previous episodes for £4 per month. Need a website? Or someone you know does? EXCLUSIVE LISTENER OFFER: 15% off when booked by Christmas 2026! Go here. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter here for everything A Small Voice related and much more besides. Follow me on Instagram here.
September 23, 202659min
Number 4: 288 - Aria Shahrokhshahi
Aria Shahrokhshahi (b. 1996) is a British-Iranian multi-disciplinary artist, whose practice has been shaped by a deep fascination with the intricate dynamics of diverse communities and the complexities of the human condition. With a focus on social structures and the human experience, Shahrokhshahi's work serves as a critical exploration of the relationships and power dynamics that inform everyday life. Aria’s debut photobook, Wet Ground, featuring images from Ukraine shot over a period of several years both before and after the Russian invasion in Feburary 2022, was published in April 2026 by Loose Joints. He is currently putting the finishing touches to a feature documentary film entitled While We Heal, which also focusses on the war in Ukraine and explores the themes of healing, loss, and resilience. On episode 288, Aria discusses, among other things: Formative experiences (11 different schools!) growing up in Nottingham How walking around the city with a camera was the start of his photography journey Negative feedback Facebook group / YouTube channel Early education at the Photo Parlour lab (later named Sequence) from Dan Wheelan Using large format and why the decision to shoot B&W came out of the cost of film Falling in love with Ukraine It not being enough to just take pictures Why ‘Ukraine, I guess?’ was an informal category of picture during editing Having nothing to say about war but being interested in what happens around it The way in which war rearranges the social hierarchy Poem by Charlotte Shevchenko-Knight How the title ‘Wet Ground’, and the book itself, came about The importance of collaboration The feature length doc he is making in Ukraine The importance of having a commercial practice Referenced: Lee Friedlander Laytoya Ruby Frazer Don McCullin Tim Hetherington (Which Way Is The Front Line From Here) Shelby Lee Adams Minor White Alec Soth Gregory Halpern Nigel Shafran Alessandra Sanguinetti Myriam Boulos Sohrab Hura Lightwork Website | Instagram Become a A Small Voice podcast member here to access exclusive additional subscriber-only content and the full archive of 200+ previous episodes for £4 per month. Need a website? Or someone you know does? EXCLUSIVE LISTENER OFFER: 15% off when booked by Christmas 2026! Go here. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter here for everything A Small Voice related and much more besides. Follow me on Instagram here.
August 12, 20261h 13min
Number 5: 287 - Lorenzo Meloni
Lorenzo Meloni is an Italian photographer. He has documented some of the defining conflicts of the 21st century across the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. For more than a decade, he has worked in territories marked by wars, revolutions and profound political and social transformations, developing a visual practice that views conflict not merely as an event, but as a historical, material and cultural process. In recent years, his work has expanded beyond the battlefield. Revelation, an ongoing project, explores how science and technology are changing our relationship to the material world. In 2022, he published the monograph We Don’t Say Goodbye, a fragmented narrative on the rise, dominance and fall of the Islamic State as a territorial entity. TIME named it one of the 20 Best Photobooks of 2022. On episode 287, Lorenzo discusses, among other things: How he has changed his way of working 'Starting as a revolutionary and becoming a deserter' How his photography journey began in Yemen How the power of photography is metaphorical not descriptive His interest in borders and history His book, We Don’t Say Goodbye. The theme of repetition. And why the cover is orange The caliphate and Islamic State His now project, Revelation Focussing on one thing at a time Dealing with the instability of a freelance life and keeping some freedom Become a A Small Voice podcast member here to access exclusive additional subscriber-only content and the full archive of 200+ previous episodes for £4 per month. Need a website? Or someone you know does? EXCLUSIVE LISTENER OFFER: 15% off when booked by Christmas 2026! Go here. Subscribe to my weekly newsletter here for everything A Small Voice related and much more besides. Follow me on Instagram here.
July 29, 20261h 8min