B&H Photography Podcast

"Live From New York, it's Saturday Night!" That single sentence has become a catchphrase for devotees of comedy and popular culture for more than 50 years—generations of fans who willingly turn their attentions from the height of weekend revelry to the televised antics of Saturday Night Live. 
As this illustrious broadcast wraps its 51st season, we're releasing an encore of our 2025 chat with SNL's photographer-in-residence Mary Ellen Matthews, while we busy ourselves backstage to bring you some exciting changes and an upcoming new look to our own show.
Week in, week out for more than two decades, Mary Ellen has conjured visual magic behind the scenes, creating inventive and irreverent portraits that air for three seconds each as so-called "bumpers" that transition to and from the show's commercial breaks. 
During our spirited chat about what is arguably the world's best photo gig, we follow Mary Ellen from a fateful 1993 phone call, inviting her to assist the show's founding photographer Edie Baskin, through her journey from mentee to team leader. Along the way, we pull back the curtain on the creation of some iconic images and learn what it takes to be "in the driver's seat [with] a whole busload of very important people to take care of."
"My job is to make this easy and fast," she notes. "And I don't want anyone to be overthinking anything because they've got enough to worry about with all the sketches and all the pre-tapes and their responsibilities to the rest of the show, which is the most important thing."
Episode Timeline: 
3:00: Living the dream as SNL's resident photographer while being creative under stressful deadline pressure.
4:44: Mary Ellen's early immersion in photography, at the side of her hobbyist father.
6:56: Arriving in NYC, early work for a record label, and the call to assist SNL's founding photographer in residence, Edie Baskin.
11:55: SNL's transition from film to digital, plus the cameras Mary Ellen shoots with today. 
15:37: Conceptualizing the weekly portrait shoots and collaborating with subjects.
20:31: Behind-the-scenes of a dicey photo shoot, plus SNL's weekly production timeline.
27:25: Episode Break
28:12: Beyond portraits, the images Mary Ellen shoots as props for SNL sketches—sometimes with a 4x5. 
33:11: The scheduling of SNL portrait shoots and getting portrait subjects to have fun.
36:34: Testing for shoots, the atmosphere on-set, and flying by the seat of your pants. 
40:06: Communicating with a celebrity's team to get everyone on the same page about shoots and concepts.
42:30: The general workflow of SNL portrait sessions: from shoot preparation to editing and post-production.
45:07: Advice for emerging photographers looking for work or applying for an internship.
 
Guest Bio: As a top entertainment portrait photographer, Mary Ellen Matthews is specialized in creating iconic images of well-known personalities—from pop stars to sports legends to rock gods. Since 1999, she has been photographer-in-residence at Saturday Night Live, where she's responsible for creating the distinctive look of the show's still images. Through her exuberant presence that puts subjects at ease, her creative and playful styling on set and intensive fine-tuning in post, Matthews produces unique and recognizable portraits under the manic deadlines of live TV. What's more, in 2010, she began directing SNL's video clips, including the show's opening title sequence.
 
Recent clients include Peacock, Hulu, Netflix, Paramount Pictures, 20th Century Studios, and Prime Video, as well as publications such as Variety, Rolling Stone, Marie Claire, and the Spanish edition of Harper's Bazaar. Most notably, in March 2025, Matthews's first book, The Art of the SNL Portrait, was released to mark the 50th anniversary of this revolution in late night TV. S

Photography has plenty of different specialty areas—portraits, sports, fashion, food, still life—to name just a few. In today's show we're going to investigate a specialty that involves all these subjects, while calling for a photographer who is technically precise, emotionally intuitive, and practically invisible, all at once.
It's a corner of the industry people rarely consider, but one that holds massive influence over our cultural lives. This is the domain of the Unit Set Photographer: the person responsible for the pictures that sell a film or a show before anyone else has seen a frame of it. 
During a spirited conversation with photographers Myles Aronowitz and Cara Howe, we pull back the curtain on what it really feels like to toil on set, build trust with talent, and come away with great images under conditions that are rarely in your favor. 
In addition to learning the origin stories to their intense, multifaceted careers, we distinguish between work on feature films and tv productions, reveal the secret superpowers of stealth and stillness essential for success on set, describe how to build alliances across an film entire crew, and talk about value of the global shutter to combat banding with LED lights.
Or, as Myles sums things up in a nutshell, "One of the great things about being a still photographer on set is you're basically observing everything. I think of it as a learning experience every day."
Episode Timeline:
3:26: Defining the role of a unit set photographer and how it fits into a larger film or tv production.
8:24: How Myles first got into photographing stills for movie sets in the analog days. 
11:22: Cara's career path to working on films, joining the union, and becoming a unit set photographer.
16:54: Digging deeper into the multifaced role of still photographer on movie sets.
20:50: Does your work on a film set affect how you experience the finished production?
22:28: Making distinctions between work on a feature film set vs a tv production.
35:40: The importance of relationships with other crew members, from the assistant director to the lighting crew to the sound department. 
40:35: Episode Break
41:22: The sound blimp days of working with film and DSLRs before the switch to mirrorless. 
52:37: The cameras and lenses Myles & Cara work with on set.
57:12: Booking gigs, work schedules & downtime between jobs in both feature films and tv productions.
1:00:03: Post-production and turn-around time for delivering files.
1:02:41: Pathways for joining the Cinematographers Guild—IATSE Local 600.
1:05:53: Myles's post-retirement life and the importance of personal work as part of his vision.
1:10:28: Cara's personal projects and connections to the Hudson Valley art community.
Stay Connected:
Myles Aronowitz Website: https://mylesaronowitz.com/
Myles Aronowitz YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@mylesaronowitz
Myles Aronowitz Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/mylesaronowitz?fl=pl&fe=po
Myles Aronowitz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/myles-aronowitz-0779499/
Myles Aronowitz on IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0036938/
Cara Howe Unit Stills Website: http://carahowephoto.com/
Cara Howe Personal Website: https://www.carahowecreative/
Cara Howe on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carahowephoto/
Cara Howe on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carahowe/
Cara Howe on IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1244868/

Sports photography hinges on freezing peak action—transforming a high-speed blur into a dramatic portrayal of human effort. When you combine that with the unyielding drive of elite athletes on the world stage, the pressure to nail the shot provides an incredible adrenaline rush.
In today's podcast, we discuss the unique challenges of documenting history in the making and unpacking stories from the Winter Games with renowned sports photographer Jean Fruth, recently back from her first Olympics. 
From a hectic scramble on arrival in Milan—getting to the arena and gearing up as her first game was already in progress—to the detailed planning and creative insights she brought to every second of the ensuing competition, Jean shares her front row seat at the Games. We also follow her behind the scenes and learn how she negotiated a special request for access and her diplomatic response that transformed an unqualified maybe into a yes. 
As she notes during our chat, "My Olympics was an intense women's hockey Olympics. It was—I have a chance to make something special, something different. I have two and three games per day. I'm here for almost three weeks. I have a chance to make all kinds of pictures. So, I'm not going to play it safe."
Episode Timeline:
2:24: Jean's shift from baseball to hockey to promote women's sports, plus her path to photographing hockey at her first Olympics. 
13:11: The high-pressure logistics behind Jean's arrival in Milan with her first game already in progress.  
21:52: Photographing day two and connecting with her photography heroes. 
24:30: Jean's creative approach to photographing hockey at the Games, plus the challenge of shooting through plexiglass.
28:07: Chasing the story behind Women's Olympic hockey games and the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL).
30:02: The ask to shoot behind-the-scenes and Jean's approach to dealing with a maybe. 
35:06: Episode Break
35:51: Jean talks about her gear and the tools available to photographers in the media center. 
44:21: Lugging her gear to a prime Opening Ceremonies vantage point despite wrong directions, plus the pizza delivery service that sustained her during overnight editing sessions. 
50:57: Derek and Jean talk lighting, camera settings, and using a preset to pan with action shots.
54:26: The challenges of shooting through plexiglass, plus getting creative with different elements to keep it interesting—from panning techniques to playing with colors.
1:01:24: The dream moments at the end of the competition, and how Jean hustled to capture both the view from above and a central position for the team shot with medals. 
1:04:25: Jean's biggest take away from the Olympics—the collaborative aspect of performing at the highest level. It felt good to be nervous and then overcome it.
1:07:14: Jean's parting advice—you belong here, having confidence in yourself, and being prepared to shift.
Guest Bio: Jean Fruth does more than take pictures of sports; she tells stories of vibrant personalities and local cultures.
As a Sony Artisan of Imagery, Jean has covered nearly every sport, though baseball remains her specialty. After helping to build the archive of the National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum, she co-founded the Grassroots Baseball non-profit in 2019 to celebrate the amateur game worldwide. 
Jean is also a filmmaker and the author of three books. Her latest project See Her Be Her includes a documentary film, a book, and a non-profit aimed at shining an overdue spotlight on women athletes, or "unsung sheroes," as she calls them. 
Jean's work is regularly featured in prestige media and has been exhibited in major institutions from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum to the Smithsonian to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Most recently, she was honored with the 2025 United Nations International Photographic Council Achievement Award. 
For more information on our guests and the gear they use, see:
www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/podcasts

Above Photograph © Donald Pettit, NASA
At its best, photography draws from both science and art, to give resulting images a dual purpose—aesthetic innovation and scientific merit. And when that photography happens from the windows of the International Space Station, capturing star trails, city lights, and our blue planet against the void of space, it becomes something truly transcendent. 
In today's show, we're privileged to chat with NASA Astronaut Donald Pettit, a scientist, inventor, and photographer who has spent nearly two years living, working, and making pictures in orbit.
Some fun take aways from our chat include: 
How photographing in a microgravity environment can turn a traditional group portrait      into bodies scattering like bowling pins when the photographer tries to join the shot.
The vast perspective when viewing out a window of the ISS—on the order of half a continent—rather than a 50-to-100-kilometer horizon on earth.
The stratospheric volume of imagery captured during a mission, and the discerning Lightroom workflow Don uses to retrieve individual photos from his archive at home. 
The importance of a humble synch cord to connect two cameras and render the "many decades of brightness" on an EV scale as a single HDR image to illustrate the rapid transition from day to night that occurs in orbit. 
And, finally, how Don has taken the concept of synchronized imagery to a cosmic level by pairing the same phenomena he captures from orbit with a complementary view recorded from earth, in collaboration with astrophotographer Babak Tafreshi.
As Don explains towards the end of our chat, "I'm a big proponent of the concept of a frontier. My frontier happens to be space, but there are frontiers all around us."
He then shares this parting advice: "So just explore the frontiers that present themselves to you, the frontiers that you're motivated to go to. And just open your eyes and collect data, and then record or write about it, because you could make an observation and if you don't somehow share that with others through publications or imagery, it's almost as if it's never been done."
Guest: NASA Astronaut Donald Pettit
Episode Timeline:
2:06: Donald Pettit's introduction to photography, plus connections between his love of science and his creative vision.
5:51: Don's first space flight in 2002 - 2003, using both film and digital cameras, plus the learning curve on the ground to prepare for photographing in space. 
10:36: The success rate when shooting with film and challenges to photographing in orbit.
13:42: From photographing with a barn-door tracker to Don's recent use of an orbital sidereal tracker.
19:07: Advances in digital camera technology, Don's relationship with NASA photo trainers, and challenges to capturing group shots in microgravity.
23:43: Don's most memorable photos from space, the advantages of pro-level camera technology, plus his personal everyday camera—the Nikon Z9.
29:38: Episode Break
30:33: The benefits to fast glass for nighttime images, plus Don's reluctant transition to mirrorless technology. 
33:57: Capturing the colors of city lights, plus the spread of cosmic fireflies—commonly known as Starlink satellites
37:54: Changes on Earth that affect a view from space, plus the extra gear list for Don's next flight.
42:10: The volume of images captured during a mission, Don's Lightroom workflow at home, plus taking notes on the ISS for future reference on Earth. 
49:32: Don's Antarctic expedition to hunt for meteorites, and the creative potential of a frontier environment.
53:17: Don's project From Above and Below with astrophotographer Babak Tafreshi, plus the unicorns in space he hopes to capture on future missions.
57:52: Parting advice about chasing your dreams—Explore the frontiers that present themselves, open your eyes, record your observations, and share them with others.
Guest Bio: 
Donald Pettit is NASA astronaut and a veteran of four spaceflights, logging more than 590 days in space, primarily on the International Space Station. Currently NASA's oldest active astronaut, Don's missions have focused on scientific research into topics that include microgravity, 3D printing, water purification, and plant growth. He's also known for his remarkable in-space inventions, stunning astrophotography, and engaging educational content that makes space science engaging and fun. 
A native of Silverton, Oregon, Pettit was selected as an astronaut candidate in 1996. He holds a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Oregon State University and a doctorate in the same field from the University of Arizona. Prior to joining NASA, Pettit worked as a staff scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. 
Stay Connected:
Donald Pettit on the NASA Website: https://www.nasa.gov/people/donald-r-pettit/
Donald Pettit Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/astro_pettit/
Donald Pettit on X: https://x.com/astro_Pettit
Donald Pettit's Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Pettit#

Host: Derek Fahsbender
Senior Creative Producer: Jill Waterman
Senior Technical Producer: Mike Weinstein
Executive Producer: Richard Stevens

One of the most polarizing questions in the mind of any photographer is "Should—or shouldn't I—get an agent?" 
The role of an agent in a photographer's career is often misunderstood, leading hungry creatives to think that securing representation is their number one key to success. In truth, the relationship between a photographer and agent is far more nuanced than simply booking more assignments.
In today's podcast, we take a deep dive into this complex alliance in a discussion with two generations of top agents, whose combined careers span from the film-era to the latest in media buys. 
Listen in for a behind-the-scenes look at the many details involved, from the four P's Jennifer (JP) Perlmutter looks for in a photographer's work to Michael Ash's skill in editing a portfolio to allow a photographer's individual vision and passion to shine.
Our experts also shed light on critical topics such as branding, while making distinctions between a physical and emotional brand. Get fresh insights about standing out in an oversaturated marketplace and the matter of seeing ahead of the curve on trends.
As JP notes, "You don't have to hop on the current trend. You don't need to create the new trend. You need to create what's true to you, what's true to your vision, and then know that there are enough people out there—that there is your niche. There are the people who are going to love what you're doing."

Guests:
Jennifer Perlmutter & Michael Ash
Episode Timeline:
3:16: Is there a difference between the terms agent and rep?
4:11: Michael Ash on his start as an agent in late 1970's New York.
7:46: Jennifer Perlmutter talks about her beginnings at the dawn of social media.
12:25: Having a good eye for talent, plus the qualifications and skillsets needed to be a rep. 
16:54: Producing as part of an agent's role, plus a peek inside relationships between photographers and a rep.
20:16: Navigating connections between clients, photographers, and reps—plus contracts.
27:34: An agent's role in protecting a photographer's interests, plus their skill in editing and curating the work.
35:46: JP describes the Four P's—what she looks for in a photographer's work.
43:14: Episode Break
44:36: To brand or not to brand, plus distinctions between physical and emotional branding. 
47:28: How do you stand out in an oversaturated marketplace and hone a unique vision?
53:29: The current trend for nostalgia and harkening back to the analog world. 
57:56: Michael and JP discuss today's advertising marketplace and usage rates. 
1:01:08: The matter of taste vs analytics in today's commercial marketplace.
1:04:21: How do you see ahead of the curve or know which trends are worth jumping on? Where do we go from here?
1:11:14: Apostrophe's mentorship program, advice for young creatives, and some thoughts on AI.
Guest Bios:
Michael Ash is a photographers' agent and creative consultant who began representing photographers in 1979, after failing to get drafted into Major League Baseball. Born in Brownsville, Brooklyn, and raised on the streets of New York, Michael founded and led a successful agency in New York City from 1979 to 2016, focused on guiding the careers of more than 40 photographers from around the globe. He introduced this international talent to the world of commercial photography through representation, creative direction, and mentorship. Michael is an expert in contract negotiation, editorial curation, and client development. Most importantly, he has a lifelong dedication to nurturing artistic vision and unique creativity.
Jennifer "JP" Perlmutter is currently a senior photo and motion rep at Apostrophe, with nearly two decades of experience representing and producing for photographers and directors across commercial and editorial realms.
A 2006 graduate of Emerson College, where she studied advertising and visual arts, JP fell in love with photography early on and built a career at the intersection of creativity and commerce. She's known for her collaborative approach, sharp production insight, and deep commitment to artist development, especially when it comes to mentoring emerging talent.
Possessing a robust skill set that includes artist representation, marketing strategy, photography, print production, social media and more, JP has built meaningful connections between artists, agencies, and brands, helping creatives collaborate authentically and thrive. She's passionate about championing visual storytellers and creating space for new voices in an ever-evolving industry.
Stay Connected:
Michael Ash on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaelash_original/ 
Michael Ash on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelash2/ 
Jennifer Perlmutter on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jnperl/ 
Jennifer Perlmutter on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jperlmutter/ 
Apostrophe Reps Website: https://apostrophe.is/ 
Apostrophe Reps on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/apostrophereps/ 
Credits:
Host: Derek Fahsbender
Senior Creative Producer: Jill Waterman
Senior Technical Producer: Mike Weinstein
Executive Producer: Dana Glidden