Traditionally, at least in my opinion, access to information about photography has been through print media and the internet, magazines, books, and various internet forums and article sites – but still in a form where you must read the information. You have to sit in front of a computer or carry the publication around with you. There have been a few outdoor photography television shows on cable networks, adding a bit of audiovisual presentation, but the episodes I have seen have simply left the bad taste of commercialism in my mouth. These days you can add audio to the list of media to get information about photography.

Recently, ITunes 4.9 was released promoting the new, improved accessibility to Podcasts. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, Podcast, is a downloadable audio broadcast that you can store on your Ipod or MP3 player for listening at your convenience. ITunes is Apple’s software interface to their online music store and helps you organize your audio library. I am a big fan of ITunes because of the seemless integration it has with my Ipod, and how it has drastically changed the way I find out about, and shop for, music by new and existing artists. The subject matter of these broadcasts is as varied as you can imagine. You can download anything from NPR news programming, environmental news, to.. photography! Another bonus – they are free!

So what’s the big deal about adding more information to our already information-overloaded lives? Well, as opposed to getting this information while sitting in front of your computer or sitting down to read, you can now multi-task and obtain some of it through audio while you are cutting the grass, cleaning up your messy office, or even driving to your next photo shoot.

There are probably a dozen or so Podcasts that come up if you put in the search term of ‘photography.’ Two that I have become a regular listener of are Brooks Jensen’s (of Lenswork fame) entries and Franklin MacMahon’s Media Artists secrets. These are easy to digest Podcasts (3-11 minutes) that simply give you a bit more insight into the world of photography or being a professional artist. There are also Podcasts discussing digital photography, equipment, and latest tech news – with new casts destined for the future I’m sure.

With so much live broadcast audio out there that contains subject matter you are not interested in – this “new” media form is a welcome addition to our information-overloaded lives that allow you to at least accomplish something else in the process of obtaining it.