Podcast: The Thread - Tim Rasmussen and the Eddie Adams Workshop

11/03/2016

The B&H Photography Podcast was very fortunate to be invited to the 29th Eddie Adams Workshop this year. The annual workshop, officially sponsored by Nikon, with support from B&H, is a unique and inspiring event, bringing together 100 young photographers with some of the world’s most recognized photojournalists and editors, including thirteen Pulitzer Prize winners, for four intense days of photographic presentation and collaboration.

Tim Rasmussen, Director of Digital and Print Photography at ESPN, joined us for a chat in our improvised studio in the fabled barn on the Eddie Adams farm. Prior to ESPN, Rasmussen was the Assistant Managing Editor of Photography and Multimedia at the Denver Post and under his lead, their photo department earned three Pulitzer Prizes. Tim is also a member of the Board of Directors at the Eddie Adams Workshop and, in addition to having been a team leader, producer and editor at the workshop, he was a student in its very first year—1988.

Our conversation with Rasmussen revolves around the workshop—how he came to attend the first-ever workshop, why it has become a breeding ground and “sanctuary” for two generations of talented photojournalists and, of course, around Eddie Adams himself. We also talk with Rasmussen about his own career, transition from photographer to editor, and how he ended up at ESPN. Within this relaxed conversation there is much to learn—about the threads of life and the nature of commitment, about the practice of photojournalism and, particularly for young photographers, about what an editor looks for when hiring a photographer.

Photograph above © Tim Rasmussen

Guest: Tim Rasmussen