I have always been fascinated with the education side of photography. I don’t have a formal photography education myself, and I am very aware of what skill sets I wish I had been exposed to earlier in my photo journey.

I have been around a lot of the continuing education side of photography, like KelbyOne, or various workshops that a lot of the top photographers do, and in fact teach workshops myself, but I do appreciate what many of the more traditional photography programs provide for the next generation of photographers.

A few years ago I even teamed up with Red River Paper to spotlight some students from the schools they supported with the EDU programs.

All of this is to say, I think some of the absolute best creatives shooting today are a great representation of where this craft I love is headed.

A case in point is Cal Baptist University, in my hometown of Riverside, CA. The photography program there is run by Christopher Kern, and he has put together such an amazing program. I have been there a few times, usually to see my buddy, and past guest, Ian Spanier do his guest workshop, but also to visit with Christopher and see what they are doing at CBU. This program has even helped another past guest, Art Streamer, with interns for some of his shoots.

A few weeks ago I saw an Instagram post from CBU, and had me thinking…. what are some of the current students in this wonderful program shooting these days? I asked Christopher for a recommendation of a student he thought might make a good guest on the show, and he suggested Josiah Grant.

Josiah is the perfect example of what I was talking about up above. An amazing photographer that just sees things differently than most anyone I know. Looking through his portfolio you are struck by his use of depth, and I don’t only mean only depth-of-field. Josiah uses light and shadow, softness and sharpness, foreground and background, subtle or bold, to define what he wants you to see. His understanding of directing the viewers eye seems to be much more experienced than his still being in college would imply.

I am so excited to learn from the student today, and the image we will be discussing has won a few awards!

From over 7,000 entries, a Jury selected just 317 images, including Josiah’s, to appear in the “2024 American Photography 40”, a book representing the best pictures from 2023. It also won an Award of Excellence in the one of the most prestigious competitions for creativity in photography, the “2024 Communication Arts Photography Annual 65”.

Join photographer Josiah Grant and me as we dive into how he creates such amazing and creative portraits, on this Behind the Shot.

Websites: josiahvisuals.com

Miguel Esparza: miguelesparzaphoto.com | @miguelesparzaphoto