Podcast – Chris Rainier

Canadian photographer, Chris Rainier, has had an interesting career in photography. Here he talks to Newton & Coe about working for Ansel Adams, indigenous cultures, smart phones, sustainability, language, the power of photography and much more.

Chris landed a dream job in the early 1980s at the age of 19, while still in college, when he became Ansel Adams’ assistant. Working for Ansel Adams was not only a dream but also a fantastic education in the craft of photography. He was Ansel’s last assistant and he has gone on the be a National Geographic Society explorer and photographer. We caught up with him at the Xposure Festival of Photography in Sharjah, UAE.

During his tenure with the noted photographer, he worked with Ansel Adams to help amplify the use of art photography as a social tool – helping to preserve threatened wilderness areas and National Parks. Chris went on to collaborate with UNESCO and IUCN on a global project using photography to preserve endangered wilderness areas around the world.

Chris Rainier is a documentary photographer and filmmaker who is highly respected for his documentation of endangered cultures and traditional languages around the globe. In 2002, he was awarded the Lowell Thomas Award by the Explorers Club for his efforts on cultural preservation.

He is the founder and director of The Cultural Sanctuaries Foundation – a global charitable foundation focused on preserving biodiversity and traditional culture.

Japanese Ikuza Woman

Chris has completed photographic projects for the United Nations, UNESCO, Amnesty International, Conservation International, the Smithsonian Institution, Time Magazine, the New York Times, LIFE Magazine, and the National Geographic Society. He has photographed global culture, conflict, famine and war in such places as Somalia, Sarajevo/Bosnia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Cambodia and Iraq for TIME Magazine and for NPR Radio.

Chris Rainier meets Newton & Coe to talk about his life and photography

You can see more of Chris’s photography and his books on his website chrisrainier.org

Published

By Chris Coe

Chris is a professional photographer, and the founder of Travel Photographer of the Year. He has been working as a professional photographer since 1992, shooting both editorial and advertising photography, and has published over 50 books. He lectures on and teaches photography, mentors and is a competition judge.