BBC documentaries YouTube

I don’t know about you, but I love photography documentaries.

There’s just such a wealth of knowledge you can learn from those who have come before you.

I’ve compiled this list, in no particular order, in an effort to help inspire you as a photographer, and help you to learn more about the craft.

There’s some truly fantastic artists featured in this list, and a couple not so fantastic (scroll to the bottom).

Please leave a comment letting me know your favourite documentaries, and if any of the videos have been taken back.

Edward Weston: The Photographer (1948)

A couple quotes that stood out to me:

“Look for the light that will best reveal the nature of the material you’re photographing.”

“There are no rules of composition because each picture presents it own special set of problems, you can use no shortcuts, no formulas; the answer must be worked out each time.”

W. Eugene Smith – Photography Made Difficult

About the famous WWII photographer.

Half Past Autumn: The Life and Work of Gordon Parks

Gordon Parks was a true modern renaissance man with achievements in many fields. Among his many accomplishments, he was a groundbreaking photographer who’s images had a deep impact on our culture.

Alfred Stieglitz: The Eloquent Eye (1999)

This excellent documentary is part of the PBS American Masters series.

The Colourful Mr Eggleston

Watch William Eggleston at work in his home town of Memphis.

Ansel Adams – A Documentary Film (2002)

Ansel Adams is the intimate portrait of a great artist and ardent environmentalist — for whom life and art, photography and wilderness, creativity and communication, love and expression, were inextricably connected.

National Geographic Search for the Afghan Girl Pt 1

When Steve McCurry took the picture of a young Afghan girl in a refugee camp he never knew that it was going to become the face of a nation, it has become that. From the cover of National Geographic to the hills of Afghanistan, Steve McCurry searches for the young girl that he photographed that one day.

National Geographic Live! : The Life of a Photographer

Veteran National Geographic photographer Sam Abell offers a look inside the heart and mind of a master photographer.

The Many Lives of William Klein (2012)

William Klein has lived many lives. One of the world’s most influential photographers, he pioneered the art of street photography and created some of the most iconic fashion images of the 20th century.

He also made over twenty films, including the first ever documentary about Muhammad Ali and a brilliant satire of the fashion world, Who Are You Polly Magoo?

The Real Weegee – 1 Hr Documentary

A 1993 documentary on Weegee, the famous New York photographer, who specialised in street life in the 1940s and 50s and crime scenes.

Rivers and Tides – Andy Goldsworthy Documentary (2003)

Portrait of Andy Goldsworthy, an artist whose specialty is ephemeral sculptures made from elements of nature.

Leaving Home, Coming Home: A Portrait of Robert Frank (2005)

A Portrait of Robert Frank features intimate interviews with the filmmaker and photographer.

The artist discusses his feelings about how his adopted hometown of New York City has changed over the course of his 50 years living there.

The director showcases Frank’s work, including clips of some of his films including Pull My Daisy, Me and My Brother, and the little-seen Rolling Stones documentary Cocksucker Blues.

The Lost Pictures of Eugene Smith

In 1950 the American photo-journalist W Eugene Smith came to Britain to cover the general election for Life Magazine, but his photographs were never published.

Welsh writer and broadcast Professor Dai Smith goes in search of these lost pictures and discovers how the magazine’s opposition to Attlee’s radical Labour government caused them to suppress Smith’s work.

DUFFY: The Man Who Shot the Sixties

Duffy together with David Bailey and Terence Donovan is recognized as one of the innovators of “documentary” fashion photography, a style which revolutionized fashion imagery and furthermore the fashion industry.

So influential were their images that in 1962 the Sunday Times dubbed Duffy, Bailey & Donovan the “Terrible Trio” and Norman Parkinson further added to their notoriety by naming them “The Black Trinity”.

Together they dominated the London photographic scene, constantly pushing each other to new heights. Even socially they would spend many hours together talking, living and breathing photography.

In the 1970s DUFFY suddenly disappeared from view and burned all his negatives.

Filmed on the eve of the first-ever exhibition of his work, Duffy agrees to talk about his life, his work and why he made it all go up in flames.

No Worries: Martin Parr

Magnum photographer Martin Parr was asked by FotoFreo Festival Director Bob Hewitt to photograph three Western Australian port cities, Fremantle, Broome and Port Hedland.

HENRI CARTIER-BRESSON: “Pen, Brush & Camera” (1998)

Widely acclaimed as one of history’s most influential figures in the photographic field, Henri Cartier-Bresson gives a revealing interview about his life, work, ideas and beliefs to coincide with three major London exhibitions.

Richard Avedon- Darkness and Light

This film about fashion and portrait photographer Richard Avedon.

Cindy Sherman – Nobody’s Here But Me (1994)

New York based artist, Cindy Sherman, is famous for her photographs of women in which she is not only the photographer, but also the subject.

She has contributed her own footage to the programme by recording her studio and herself at work with her Hi-8 video camera.

It reveals a range of unexpected sources from visceral horror to medical catalogues and exploitation movies, and explores her real interests and enthusiasms.

She shows an intuitive and often humorous approach to her work, and reflects on the themes of her work since the late 1970s.

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