Sometimes, you just want to look for real photography on the web. But the problem is that it’s often not really available and hidden by various algorithms. And at other times, all the lists are copying one another. Look for any list of the best photography blogs on the web, and they’ll all be focused on gear-centric websites. However, photography is about a lot more than just gear. So we’re rounding up the best photography blogs for real photographers who don’t want to focus primarily on gear. Instead, they care about photography, art, and the creative mind.
How We’re Defining the Best Photography Blogs
We’re defining the best photography blogs for photographers using a few parameters:
- They’ve been around for several years: This means that they’ve received quite a following over the years and have been steadily reporting on photography as an art.
- Leadership: The best photography blogs on this list have worked with galleries, museums, and photographers in a credible way, involving what we can deduce to be permissions from the original photographers and subsidiaries.
- Accreditation: The blogs have to be worthy of being used as a resource in schools. We’re defining this through their coverage in helping readers to understand the work they’re presenting. Some of these publications also follow various journalistic ethics standards.
- Art-first in Photography: These photography blogs have a focus on art, in some way or another, first before anything else. Specifically, within their arts coverage, they focus on photography first. Creative Boom, My Modern Met, and others are fantastic places for art — but they don’t seem to prioritize photography as much.
- Originality: Each publication needs to have an original voice and won’t necessarily try to cover what every other photography blog covers. Journalism suffers when there is a lack of originality. In the gear world around photography, many have accused various other publications of near plagiarism.
Aperture
Aperture is a non-profit that regularly runs contests, awards, image sales, and so much more. They’re a publication that also coordinates with galleries to tell various stories. Their magazine is beautiful, and the work that they do puts photographers and their artwork at the fore.
Blind
Blind Magazine has been around for several years. And there was a point in my early career where I truly wanted Phoblographer’s art team to produce work akin to theirs. They stand out a lot with the design of their desktop website and interactivity of their articles to draw people further into the work of the photographers they present.
The British Journal of Photography
After the weird drama around NFTs and ownership, the British Journal of Photography is still persevering to deliver authentic and real stories. Part of what makes them so special is that they’re the oldest photography publication having been around since 1854.
Photograph Mag
Photograph has to be absolutely one of the most pioneering websites in photography around. Their email newsletter rounds up various galleries and exhibits featuring photography around the world. Because of this, they’re the single best place to understand where many of the best photo exhibits are currently being held.
Lensculture
Lensculture is mostly known for its awards and excellent selections based off of these awards. But beyond this, the articles are consistently a fascinating read and flip-through of their images.
Feature Shoot
I mean, how do you not include Feature Shoot on this list? They’ve been a super influential place to showcase photojournalism and some fine art photographers. Part of their effectiveness is their ethics on pushing progressive policies in the photography world that make photographers innovate and create images we haven’t really seen before. If you think that nothing is original these days, then you should check out Feature Shoot.
Magnum Photos Magazine
Magnum Photos is one of the most well-known photo agencies pushing fine art documentary stories and producing photographers with images we don’t see in the mainstream media. Their magazine sometimes dives into their archives and highlights mentally stimulating things.
A Photo Editor
This website has helped many photographers push their careers ahead over the years. But more importantly, they’re actively speaking with several photographers on their Instagram about transparency in how other photographers get paid, make their money, etc. It’s all fantastic reads and great information that so many other photographers can learn from.
Ignant
Ignant is an arts magazine, but they have a heavy emphasis on photography. They talk with some big photographers and have a unique spin on various photojournalistic stories with a fine art look. Combine that with their minimal advertising, and you’ve got a beautiful thing.
Urth
Urth is primarily a manufacturer of things like bags, filters, and other accessories. But their photography magazine is something special to behold. It regularly features work that you don’t find anywhere else.
The Phoblographer
We’re putting ourselves on this list for several reasons. First off, the Phoblographer works to help people understand how to connect their technical and artistic brains. We do this through interviews and advocacy within the photography world. We’re one of the only photo-speciality publications that puts a massive emphasis on diversity hiring and coverage. We regularly feature POCs, women, and LGBTQAI photographers. We’re also very big on naming our sources and have connections with several museums and galleries throughout the world.
There was a time where gear wasn’t our main focus. And we’re actively revisiting this with new ideas and vision while keeping our original goals in mind.
