The first thing I do before a long photo editing session is to fire up my podcast app. Sometimes I’ll save new episodes of my favorite shows just for editing sessions, using the shows as a little extra dose of motivation to get the job done. These are at the top of my playlist, and what I love most about them:
Akimbo by Seth Godin
What I love about it: Seth Godin is one of my all time favorite thought leaders in the arena of marketing and business. Each episode includes a short and thoughtful vignette on a topic typically relevant to anyone running a creative business followed by answers to listener questions from previous episodes. I always feel inspired and motivated after listening to an episode.
Heavyweight
Possibly my top favorite of all the podcasts on this list. Host Jonathan Goldstein tells the stories of helping people with some sort of unfinished business in their lives. His storytelling and incredible way with words take you from crying to laughing in a matter of minutes. He only publishes a dozen or so episodes a year given the high quality of research and writing that are invested in each story.
Eat, Capture, Share by Kimberly Espinel
What I love about it: Kimberly is a generous soul, covering a wide array of topics in food photography from business to creativity to personal growth. She is a very thoughtful interviewer, creating opportunities for us all to learn from her guests. I also find her voice very calming and her professionalism is inspiring.
Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
What I love about it: I have been a fan of Conan since his days on Late Night in the 90s. His long form podcast is full of laughs, but I also appreciate the perspective he and his guests share related to the creative process and making a living as a creative person. It’s off the wall and wacky and a welcome balance amid all the more serious podcasts on my lineup.
How I Built This with Guy Raz
What I love about it: Each episode Guy interviews the owner of a well know business and shares the story of what it took for them to find success. From Spanx to Tate’s Bakeshop, Tofurky to Burt’s Bees. Hearing about the trials and tribulations the leaders of some of the biggest brands today went through helps to frame my own experiences as a small business owner. It’s abundantly clear in each episode that the path to success is never straight. He also recently started publishing a show called The Great Creators which is awesome, too!
Food Blogger Pro with Bjork Ostrom
What I love about it: Even though I’m not actively maintaining a food blog, I find the insights from this podcast related to digital content creation and the food world incredibly helpful. Bjork hosts guests from across the industry, delving into relevant topics such as social media, photography, writing, and monetizing your passions as a creative entrepreneur.
This Week in Photo
What I love about it: One of the longest-running podcasts in the photography industry, if you’re new to it, Host Frederick Van Johnson has a library spanning years that you can binge. Hear from photographers across all genre share their stories and insights. Because there’s much to be learned from photographers outside the world of food.
Focus on Women
What I love about it: Traci Terrick and Shelly Waldman bring a depth of experience and perspective on the commercial and editorial photography world. They interview guests from across the industry who I always glean insights from related to marketing, working with clients, running productions and networking. They are top professionals who generously share their expertise in an easy to enjoy format.
The Get Paid Podcast
Claire Pelletreau is an accomplished online marketer and interviews owners of online businesses to get the ins and outs of what it takes to run their businesses successfully and how much they’re making. It’s eye-opening for anyone looking to build and scale an online business.
Photo Dump
Pro working photographers Ren Fuller and Jennifer Chong host a podcast by photographers for photographers. They talk about a wide range of topics in the industry and bring to light what it’s really like to work professionally as a creative person.
My Food Lens
Host Dyutima Jha explores topics of the food photography industry including lots of interviews with relevant partners. Her warm and energetic personality makes this an enjoyable show to listen to.
Have some fave podcasts to share with me and our community? We have a thread going in the community and we’d love to hear from you. Feel free to join today!
