# Martin Parr - Photography is Nothing with Zach Dobson & Courtney McCracken

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/photography-is-nothing-7391177/martin-parr-photography-is-nothing-with-zach-dobson-courtney-mccracken
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/photography-is-nothing-7391177/martin-parr-photography-is-nothing-with-zach-dobson-courtney-mccracken.md
Podcast: [Photography is Nothing](https://stenobird.com/podcast/photography-is-nothing-7391177)
Published: 2026-01-21T06:16:16+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/photography-is-nothing/episodes/Martin-Parr---Photography-is-Nothing-with-Zach-Dobson--Courtney-McCracken-e3dvbhj
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/fd036364/podcast/play/114322419/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-0-21%2F416534696-44100-2-09f38c431c7dd.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/photography-is-nothing-7391177/episodes/martin-parr-photography-is-nothing-with-zach-dobson-courtney-mccracken
Duration seconds: 3108

## Resource

Episode 21 - This week we talk about the late great Martin Parr. Starting in the black & white documentary tradition in the 1970s, Parr’s work took a bold turn to color accentuated by flash in 1982. While still documentary in nature, in that he didn’t stage or pose scenes, Parr acknowledged that his photos were more of a personal interpretation of reality than a strict document of fact. He said… “I want to try and leave a set of images that sort of tell us about the times we live in and my relationship to it. My pictures are fictional in the sense that i'm often using flash so it's not something you would see with the human eye. I’m trying to ally it to my … feelings but it is still based on the reality that's out there so it's not lies, it's just an interpretation. So it's my personal interpretation of what i see in front of me, which is somewhat exaggerated.” Zach & Courtney go through some of Parr’s most famous, and lesser known, works to talk about his influence on the photography world and on them personally. They also talk about the Martin Parr Foundation and its mission to give back to the photographic community at large. “Photography is nothing–it's life that interests me.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson Index 0:00 - “A dedicated enemy to everything I believe in.” 0:35 - An introduction to photographer Martin Parr. 4:50 - I really love your early work. 9:36 - Prestwich Mental Hospital. 1972. 11:28 - The Non-Conformists. 1975-79. 19:47 - Why Martin Parr switched to color photography. 1982. 20:40 - The Last Resort. 1983-85. 27:27 - The Cost of Living. 1989-92. 29:47 - Photojournalist Philip Jones Griffiths doesn’t want Parr in Magnum Photos. 36:23 - Tourists at the Leaning Tower of Pisa. 1990. 38:26 - Documenting leisure pursuits of the Western World. 40:05 - To…

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