National Geographic’s new documentary series, Photographer, lives up to its name. The six, hour-long episodes focus less on beautiful photographs and more on their creation. The series is very much about the person behind the images: the photographer.
At first, this caught me a bit off guard despite the show’s name. I knew who many of the featured photographers were and was already familiar with their work, so I wanted to see that work and how it was made. The show offers plenty of the latter, and that’s where it demonstrates its appeal; the story of the people behind my favorite photographs matters most.
The Focus is Almost Entirely on the Artists Behind the Art
There aren’t any brilliant Paul Nicklen or Cristina Mittermeier nature images without the moments away from the camera that impacted them the most — the events in life that made them who they are as people and photographers. There wouldn’t be the same emotionally captivating Campbell Addy portraits without Addy’s culturally diverse upbringing. Dan Winters’ portraits wouldn’t be as powerful if not for who Winters is as a person and the way he approaches his craft.
For the featured photographers — Nicklen, Mittermeier, Addy, Winters, Muhammed Muheisen, Anand Varma, and Krystle Wright — their lives, from childhood to the present day, have an indelible effect on their work. While many people are often exposed to these photographers through individual photographs, viewed almost in a vacuum, everything outside the frame touches what is contained within it.
These emotionally affecting stories are Photographer‘s greatest strength. Great visuals, an arresting score, and well-executed documentary-style cinematography punctuate the most powerful clips.
Despite the diverse range of genres each photographer specializes in, a through-line connects them all. Whether in a studio, science lab, the ocean, or a warzone, each professional is driven by a passion to create. As different as each person is and as varied as their workflow, there is a universal desire, or maybe even need, to create impactful photographs that can change the world.
‘ Photographer’ Could Benefit From More Actual Photography
However, and perhaps unsurprisingly, given that Photographer is a television show, there is not nearly enough screen time for the still images the talented artists have dedicated their lives to making.
I appreciate that it could be jarring to the average television viewer to see a still frame on the screen. However, as a passionate photographer myself, there’s also something frustrating about the general lack of time the show gives to still photography. The featured photographers are especially compelling as documentary subjects because they all expertly craft compelling narratives into individual moments. I want these moments to have a leading role.
Yet a lot of the airtime in Photographer is video clips of the subjects that the photographers turn into still frames rather than the images themselves. When the images do appear, as beautiful as they are, they’re gone in a split second. I found myself pausing Photographer so I could properly appreciate the photography on display, and I shouldn’t have to pause a show to enjoy it.
So much of the attention is given to the makers of images and how they make photos that there’s not a lot of space left for what is actually being created.
Photographer does a fantastic job at showing the process behind the photos and how each of the showcased photographers works. The show respects the person behind the photo and how they create images, but I do wish it spent more time on the actual results. After all, the photographer at the heart of Photographer is a photographer because of their photos.
Should You Watch ‘Photographer’?
Yes. For photography enthusiasts, Photographer is worth checking out, even if it is imperfect. It honors the humanity inherent to photography, even if it doesn’t celebrate the resulting photographs as much as I’d like.
Photographer is a six-part documentary series airing now on Disney+, Hulu, and National Geographic. All episodes are streaming on Disney+ now and run for about an hour each. The first two episodes have aired on National Geographic, with the remaining four slated to air in pairs on March 25 and April 1.
Image and caption credits: National Geographic’s “The Photographer.”