Welcome to this edition of [book spotlight]. Today, we uncover the layers of 'A Lifetime in Photography,' by Stephen Shames (published by Kehrer Verlag). We'd love to read your comments below about these insights and ideas behind the artist's work.

Great documentary photography starts where tourism ends.

Most people with a camera stay on the surface, capturing what they see but never stepping inside the story. Stephen Shames believes that if you want to document reality, you have to stop looking at the world like a visitor. His work—spanning nearly 60 years—proves that the best photographs come from understanding, not just observing. This is about going beyond quick snapshots and learning to see like an insider.

Too many photographers take pictures from a distance, assuming they understand what they’re looking at. Shames learned early that real storytelling starts with listening, learning, and breaking out of your own perspective. That’s why his images—whether of the Black Panthers, child poverty, or everyday life—hold so much power. He doesn’t just take photos, he gets close enough to capture what’s real.

You can’t tell the truth if you don’t know it.

The Book

Stephen Shames: A Lifetime in Photography is a powerful visual retrospective spanning nearly 60 years of documentary work. Through 136 carefully selected photographs, Shames presents a raw and unfiltered look at social issues, activism, and everyday life. From his early images of the Black Panther Party to his documentation of child poverty, his work captures both struggle and resilience with an insider’s perspective.

Designed by Caleb Cain Marcus and published by Kehrer Verlag, this collection moves beyond a traditional career retrospective. Instead of following a linear narrative, the book unfolds like a visual collage—reflecting the way memory, experience, and history intertwine. Shames’ images reveal the deeper emotional truths beneath the surface. (Kehrer Verlag, Amazon)

Overview of the project: What inspired you to compile A Lifetime in Photography, and how did you approach curating nearly 60 years of work into a single volume?

Growing old is what inspired me. At this point I have less in front of me than behind me. I figured it was time to compile my lifetime of nearly 60 years in photography. I scanned most of my good photos. They are on my computer so it was not hard to curate this book. I made a selection of 400 to 500 photos. Then the designer Caleb Cain Marcus and I narrowed it down to the 136 photos that are in the book.

As you revisited nearly 60 years of work, were there any images that struck you in a new way or revealed something you hadn’t noticed before?

I did not see anything new in the photographs since I have looked at them continually over the years and have put them on social media, in books (including self-published books) and on my website. What was new was seeing them together in one essay. What struck me is the continuity of the themes I have pursued over my career and how the photos fit together, That surprised me.

The role of photography in social justice: Throughout your career, you have used photography as a tool for advocacy, from documenting the Black Panthers to exposing child poverty. How do you see the relationship between photography and activism?

Photography is a great tool for advocacy. Visual images are powerful. We are moved by what we see so the relationship is there. However, photos alone do not always move people to action, so it is necessary to work with organizations that have a justice social plan. (I learned this from Ken Light.) I collaborate with people who are doing the work. For example, my book Outside the Dream: Child Poverty in America was co-authored by The Children's Defense Fund.

You’ve photographed so many moments of both injustice and resilience. Do you think the role of documentary photography in advocacy has changed over the years, especially with the rise of social media?

Photographs used to be accepted as "true". Today with the rise in false narratives on social media and the decline of print media, as well as, the advent of AI produced images, I am not sure we believe photographs any more.

Capturing moments of struggle and hope: Your work often juxtaposes hardship with resilience, particularly in images of children. How do you approach photographing difficult subjects while maintaining their dignity?

The people I photograph have dignity. They are heroes. I just let their resilience come out in the photos.

Your evolution as a photographer: Looking back on your body of work, how has your perspective as a photographer evolved, both in terms of technique and the themes you choose to explore?

We all gain a degree of wisdom (hopefully) as we grow older. Young people often see things as black and white / good vs. evil. As we mature we see the world in more nuanced way, with more shades of gray. The themes I photograph - children and families, with a focus on poor children - has not changed at all. I hope I see things in more depth and understand a bit more.

The emotional impact of documentary photography: You’ve said that you don’t just think your pictures—you feel them. How do you channel emotion into your work, and how do you want your audience to engage emotionally with your images?

I channel emotion into my photographs by getting close to the people I photograph. I try to not only see things but to feel them and to get that into the photos. This does not just happen. It requires preparation and planning before you even start the story. I do extensive research before starting a story. I not only read news accounts and research what else has been done; but I also try to get inside the mind-set by reading fiction written by people in the community and listening to their music. I go in with an attitude to learn from them so I can photograph from the "inside" as a traveler rather than photographing as a tourist.

This distinction—traveler vs. tourist—is the most important one. The world is made up of many different cultures. Even if you stay inside your own country, there are many distinct cultures. These cultures include different nationalities, ethnic communities, sexual orientations, genders, religions. There are unique social and political beliefs. All of us live in a cultural bubble. We often take our culture's values as universal and "the best". We look at the world through that lens. To get the best photos a photographer has to step out of his or her cultural bubble and delve into the one he or she is going to document. If you do this (whether visiting another country or photographing another culture, you are travelers. If you remain a tourist (by staying within your bubble) you will miss getting a deeper understanding and this will weaken your photographs.

My stories are made as much by the people I photograph as by me. All an artist or photo-journalist can do is to be as honest as possible. People know who they are. As long as they feel you are not looking down on them they can accept your documentation of their lives. If, when I am done, the people I photographed see my work as "true" then I feel I have succeeded.

Was there a particular moment in your career when you truly felt like you had stepped out of your own cultural bubble and saw the world differently?

There were many moments starting when I was a child and teenager. My mother was way ahead of her times, a sort-of-bohemian in the suburbs during the 1950s. My dad gave me the Autobiography of Lincoln Steffens. Steffens, became my hero. Like my father, who came from a poor family to become an establishment figure, and Lincoln Steffens, I saw myself as an outsider inside. When I was in high school, the Civil Rights Movement was in the news. Our school made a study trip south. When I started university at Berkeley Bobby Seale became my mentor. He and the Black Panthers took me inside the black community. That changed my life. The Panthers taught me how to be a traveler in diverse communities.

Balancing storytelling and objectivity: As a documentary photographer, how do you navigate the balance between capturing objective truth and telling a compelling story?

I disagree with the premise of this question. There is no balancing act. I do not see a conflict between telling a compelling story and capturing truth. Truth is reality - what is out there in the world. The job of the photographer is to try to understand the reality he or she is documenting and then figure out the best way to tell the story. There is no balancing act or compromise. The story has to be based on reality ("the truth"). Otherwise, it is fiction—not photo-journalism or documentary photography.

Telling the story in a way that engages the reader is our job. A great photographer brings the reader into the story. A good photographer can make the most mundane story interesting by creating photos that not only document but also reveal the emotional truth beneath the facts - the objective truth - of the story. Great photos and excellent sequencing make a compelling story.

Technical choices in your career: Your work spans different eras of photography, from film to digital. How have advancements in technology influenced your approach to documentary photography?

Technology has not influenced my approach much. Digital has allowed me to see and photograph in color and has made editing and distributing my photos easier but it has not changed my approach. New photo technology is just a different tool. To me the content of the photo is the heart and soul. Whether taken on film, or a computerized camera, or a glass plate makes no difference. The finished photograph is what matters.

Curating a non-linear retrospective: Unlike many career retrospectives, this book is structured more like a collage than a linear narrative. What was the reasoning behind this approach, and how do you think it shapes the reader’s experience?

We are emotional creatures so I wanted this book to be emotional, like a dream. William Shakespeare wrote, "We are such stuff as dreams are made on". Dreams have been featured in my work and even the titles of some of my projects. (Outside the Dream; Pursuing the Dream).

Although we often see our life spans and time as linear, our lives are more like a collage, like how we see things in in or dreams. Our recollections of events are more like dream collages, they do not follow rationally, step by step from one thing to the next. Our thoughts jump forward and backward between the past, present, and future all the time. I wanted the book structured that way. I wanted the photos to flow from one to the other in a dream-like, non-rational sequence. The idea is to provoke the reader to feel the photos, to get people out of the uber-intellectual naval gazing approach to looking at art.

Advice for documentary photographers: For emerging photographers interested in long-term documentary work, what lessons from A Lifetime in Photography would you share to guide their creative and ethical approach?

Research before you start. Be open and willing to learn from those you document. Collaborate with the people you are documenting - be a traveler in their lives not a tourist.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these insights and the ideas behind the artist’s work. Don't forget to subscribe to receive news about latest posts and giveaway winners.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on these insights and the ideas behind the artist’s work.

Don't forget to subscribe to receive news about latest posts and giveaway winners.

To discover more about this intriguing body of work and how you can acquire your own copy, you can find and purchase the book here. (Kehrer Verlag, Amazon)

Stephen Shames

Stephen Shames is an American documentary photographer known for his powerful images of social issues, activism, and marginalized communities. Over a career spanning nearly 60 years, he has used photography as a tool for advocacy, focusing on topics such as child poverty, racism, and political movements.

Shames first gained recognition for his work documenting the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s, offering an insider’s perspective on one of the most influential political movements in American history. His long-term projects have also tackled the realities of poverty in America, juvenile justice, and the lives of street children across the world. His images balance harsh realities with a deep sense of dignity and resilience.

His work has been widely exhibited and is included in the permanent collections of institutions such as the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, and the George Eastman Museum. He has published multiple books, including Power to the People: The World of the Black Panthers, Outside the Dream: Child Poverty in America, and A Lifetime in Photography.

Beyond photography, Shames has collaborated with advocacy organizations such as the Children’s Defense Fund to ensure his work drives real change. In 2010, he was named a Purpose Prize Fellow for his work supporting AIDS orphans and former child soldiers in Africa.

His approach to photography is rooted in deep engagement with the people and communities he documents, rejecting the detached perspective of a tourist in favor of an insider’s understanding. (Website, Instagram)

About Kehrer Verlag

Kehrer Verlag, founded in 1995 by Klaus Kehrer, is a distinguished independent publisher located in Heidelberg, Germany. Specializing in photography, fine art, and cultural books, Kehrer Verlag has become renowned for its high-quality publications and collaborations with international artists, authors, museums, and cultural institutions. The publishing house releases around eighty new titles each year, which include both regular photobooks and special collector’s editions. The catalog features works by acclaimed photographers such as Helen Levitt, Saul Leiter, Sarah Moon, Ralph Gibson, Dotan Saguy and many emerging talents. Over the years, Kehrer Verlag has established itself as a key player in the international book market, frequently participating in major book and photography fairs worldwide.

Kehrer Verlag’s dedication to excellence is evident in the meticulous production process managed by Kehrer Design, their in-house design team. This team works closely with artists to develop unique layouts, cover designs, and selects appropriate materials to ensure the highest quality in every publication. Their commitment to design and technical precision has earned them numerous international awards, including the Deutsche Fotobuchpreis and the Paris Photo Aperture Foundation Photo Book Award. (Website, Instagram)

Published by Kehrer Verlag

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