The MOOD Podcast

Nobody cares about your photography. We don’t need more of 'any old' photographers. Yet survival as culture and society with soul is completely dependent on work that matters.In this episode of Moments of Mood, I explore why indifference is the default in modern photography, what it actually means for someone to care about your work, why chasing attention is often the fastest way to lose meaning, and the deeper responsibility artists have in a world drowning in content.Listen if you're interested in:Being tired of chasing validation and wonder why no-none sees or takes notice of your workWhy nobody is waiting to care about your photography, but how you can create from a deeper place that invites care.What “caring” really means in art and visual storytellingWhy meaning matters more than visibilityHow photobooks create depth in a disposable image cultureThe 5 conditions that make people genuinely care about photographyWhy slow, intentional work outlasts viral success____________________________Message me, leave a comment and join in the conversation!Thank you for listening and for being a part of this incredible community. You can also watch this episode on my YouTube channel (link below) where I also share insights, photography tips and behind-the-scenes content on my channel as well as my social media, so make sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Threads and TikTok or check out my website for my complete portfolio of work. YouTube:www.youtube.com/@mattyj_ayLearn with mehttps://mattjacobphotography.com/voice-alchemyMy Newsletterhttps://mattjacobphotography.com/newsletterWebsite:www.mattjacobphotography.comSocials:IG | X | TikTok | Threads | YouTube | @mattyj_ay

British photographer and environmental storyteller Nick Brandt joins the show for a raw, expansive conversation on art, climate collapse, sentience, and the role of photography in an age defined by distraction and decline. Across projects such as Inherit the Dust, This Empty World, The Day May Break, and his latest chapter The Echo of Our Voices, Brandt builds constructed realities that merge portraiture, environmental narrative, and human resilience. This conversation moves through philosophy, ethics, creative fear, the collapse of attention, and the emotional cost of a lifetime spent documenting loss.We discuss:Nick's core philosophy.Why the project 'The Day May Break' exists.How historical worldviews shaped modern cruelty.Climate change as human injustice.The tension between beauty and devastation.The conceptual and emotional logic behind 'The Echo of Our Voices'.The collapsing photobook and print ecosystem.AI as an existential threat.Why Nick refuses to create purely for audiences.The impact of social media on photography as a whole.Medium format film vs digital.Advice for emerging photographers.Follow Nick and his incredible work:Website: www.nickbrandt.comInstagram: @nickbrandtphotographyThis episode is sponsored by Strata Editions - use discount code 'MOOD' for 10% discount on their store - visit strata-editions.com to shop and see their collections._____________________________________Message me, leave a comment and join in the conversation!Thank you for listening and for being a part of this incredible community. You can also watch this episode on my YouTube channel (link below) where I also share insights, photography tips and behind-the-scenes content on my channel as well as my social media, so make sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Threads and TikTok or check out my website for my complete portfolio of work. YouTube:www.youtube.com/@mattyj_ayLearn with mehttps://mattjacobphotography.com/voice-alchemyMy Newsletterhttps://mattjacobphotography.com/newsletterWebsite:www.mattjacobphotography.comSocials:IG | X | TikTok | Threads | YouTube | @mattyj_ay

Bryan Schutmaat  is a photographer, publisher, and quiet poet of the American West. Known for books such as Grays the Mountain Sends, Good Goddamn, and Sons of the Living, Bryan’s work explores the uneasy tension between land and people, myth and memory, endurance and hope. He is also co-founder of Trespasser Books, a small but powerful imprint shaping the future of modern photobooks.In This Conversation We ExploreWhy photography feels so lonely and how community changes everythingBuilding meaningful creative connections in a solitary craftThe making of Sons of the Living and the stories behind the imagesNavigating narrative, ambiguity, and emotional truth in photographyWhy photobooks still matter and how sequencing shapes meaningThe philosophy behind Trespasser and independent publishingCuriosity, discipline, and the struggle to stay creatively aliveThe American dream, the American West, and the reality between themHow to make work that does something rather than pretending it doesThe inner journey of becoming an artist with a distinct point of viewFollow Bryan and his incredible work:Website: www.bryanschutmaat.coInstagram: @bryanschutmaatThis episode is sponsored by Strata Editions - use discount code 'MOOD' for 10% discount on their store - visit strata-editions.com to shop and see their collections._______________________________________Message me, leave a comment and join in the conversation!Thank you for listening and for being a part of this incredible community. You can also watch this episode on my YouTube channel (link below) where I also share insights, photography tips and behind-the-scenes content on my channel as well as my social media, so make sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Threads and TikTok or check out my website for my complete portfolio of work. YouTube:www.youtube.com/@mattyj_ayLearn with mehttps://mattjacobphotography.com/voice-alchemyMy Newsletterhttps://mattjacobphotography.com/newsletterWebsite:www.mattjacobphotography.comSocials:IG | X | TikTok | Threads | YouTube | @mattyj_ay

Kent Andreasen, a Cape Town-based photographer and filmmaker, joins me to talk about his new photobook Memory Bank (published by Witty Books), which tells the story over a decade shaped by doubt, discipline, and a complicated relationship with memory. Our chat together moves from South Africa’s creative landscape to therapy, trauma, and to this book that feels like a fever dream stitched into sequence.We discussed:The real story behind the attack that inspired Memory BankHow trauma transforms into artThe tension between truth and memory in photographySouth Africa’s complex creative landscapeFinding authenticity in commercial workHow AI is challenging what it means to “see”Why photography is still a tool for healingOrder Memory Bank at the Witty Books website here: https://witty-books.com/Memory-Bank-Kent-AndreasenFollow Kent and his work:Website: www.kentandreasen.comInstagram: @kentandreasenThis episode is sponsored by Strata Editions - use discount code MOOD for 10% discount on their store - visit strata-editions.com to shop and see their collections.______________________________Message me, leave a comment and join in the conversation!Thank you for listening and for being a part of this incredible community. You can also watch this episode on my YouTube channel (link below) where I also share insights, photography tips and behind-the-scenes content on my channel as well as my social media, so make sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Threads and TikTok or check out my website for my complete portfolio of work. YouTube:www.youtube.com/@mattyj_ayLearn with mehttps://mattjacobphotography.com/voice-alchemyMy Newsletterhttps://mattjacobphotography.com/newsletterWebsite:www.mattjacobphotography.comSocials:IG | X | TikTok | Threads | YouTube | @mattyj_ay

”What if the stories that shape us are the ones we can't remember?"Marshall To, a photographer whose photobook 'Blank Notes' explores ancestry, memory, and identity through a deeply personal lens, grew up in rural Canada, the son of Chinese immigrants and a Taoist family who ran a small restaurant. His family believed the physical and spiritual worlds overlapped - that we live among spirits of our ancestors, those waiting for rebirth, and those still wandering, restless and vengeful.In Taoist tradition, during the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month, the Gates of Hell open - releasing the 'Hungry Ghosts' back into our world to seek food and remembrance. Families burn paper offerings, pray for protection, and leave food for the dead. It’s both a celebration and a warning: walk gently, because the ghosts are hungry.In his debut monograph, Blank Notes, published by Charcoal Press, Marshall explores the space where the natural and supernatural meet - where photography becomes ritual, and images serve as offerings to both the living and the dead. His work blurs culture, memory, and the unseen, inviting us to question how the spiritual and the physical intertwine in our everyday lives.What we discussed:The origin story behind Blank NotesGrief, Taoist ritual, and ancestral storytellingMaking art from illness, memory, and dual identityThe power of “noticing” in photography and cookingCreative process behind sequencing a photobookHow to honour invisible subjects through visual storytellingWhy Marshall believes creativity is compulsion, not choiceThe intersection of food, art, and healingPre-orders and signings with Charcoal Press at Paris dates: I arrive in Paris November 10th and I'm there until the 17thFollow Marhsall and his work:Website: www.marshalljamesto.comInstagram: @marshalljamesto___________________________________________This episode is sponsored by Strata Editions - use discount code MOOD for 10% discount on their store - visit strata-editions.com to shop and see their collections.______________________Message me, leave a comment and join in the conversation!Thank you for listening and for being a part of this incredible community. You can also watch this episode on my YouTube channel (link below) where I also share insights, photography tips and behind-the-scenes content on my channel as well as my social media, so make sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Threads and TikTok or check out my website for my complete portfolio of work. YouTube:www.youtube.com/@mattyj_ayLearn with mehttps://mattjacobphotography.com/voice-alchemyMy Newsletterhttps://mattjacobphotography.com/newsletterWebsite:www.mattjacobphotography.comSocials:IG | X | TikTok | Threads | YouTube | @mattyj_ay