Veteran photojournalist David Swanson has experienced the highs and lows of conflict photography throughout his 40-year career. From being shot in the arm while embedded with U.S. Marines in Iraq in 2004 to winning the Pulitzer Prize for his coverage of school violence in Philadelphia, Swanson has witnessed and documented some of the most significant events of our time. Now, the accomplished photographer is sharing the untold stories behind his iconic images through a new podcast series called "Just the Photographer: Stories the Photos Can't Tell," which premiered on August 1.
The podcast features Swanson's candid accounts of conflict, risk, empathy, and the challenges of documenting difficult stories, beginning with his coverage of the civil war in Bosnia. The Los Angeles-based independent photographer explains that he was motivated to create the podcast for several reasons: to inform young photographers about what they're getting into, to explain the vital role photographers play in witnessing and documenting human events rather than being seen as "enemies of the state," his recent 60th birthday milestone, and to earn respect for the profession.
The title "Just the Photographer" comes from a question that news photographers frequently encounter when arriving at assignments, where they're asked whether they're "the writer, or just the photographer?" This dismissive attitude toward photographers is something Swanson hopes to address through his storytelling.
Swanson's impressive credentials speak to his dedication to the craft. In 2004, he won a World Press Photo Golden Eye Award for his powerful photographs from Ramadi, Iraq, where he was embedded with the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, Echo Company. The unit sustained heavy casualties, including 10 deaths in a single day, and during this dangerous assignment, Swanson himself was shot in the arm. The previous year, he had been embedded with the 10th Mountain Division in Afghanistan, further demonstrating his commitment to frontline journalism.
For more than three decades, Swanson worked as a photojournalist at The Philadelphia Inquirer before relocating to Los Angeles in 2019. During his tenure at the newspaper, he covered numerous major stories that shaped American headlines. His assignments included documenting trapped miners in Pennsylvania, the devastating earthquake in Haiti in 2010, and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005. He also covered the high-profile Jerry Sandusky trial and was struck in the head with a brick during student protests that erupted after Penn State Football Coach Joe Paterno was fired in 2011.
In 2012, Swanson achieved one of journalism's highest honors when a team at The Philadelphia Inquirer, including Swanson, won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for their comprehensive coverage of pervasive violence in the city's schools. This recognition highlighted the importance of visual storytelling in exposing critical social issues.
Swanson's journey into news photography began during his high school years when he sold pictures of a fire to the York Dispatch in Pennsylvania. This early entrepreneurial spirit led him to pursue formal education in the field, and he earned a photojournalism degree from Ohio University's School of Visual Communication in 1988.
Currently, Swanson's work from California appears in publications worldwide, with fire photography becoming one of his specialties. His expertise in capturing wildfires has been featured by PetaPixel multiple times, including reports on January 8, 2025, and September 23, 2024. His widely published photographs of the Gifford Fire in southern California appeared in The New York Times and other major outlets on August 5.
Today, top news organizations regularly assign Swanson to photograph a diverse range of subjects, from California wildfires and celebrity red carpet events to civil unrest prompted by deportation issues. His portfolio spans the spectrum from the glamour of Hollywood to the harsh realities of conflict zones and natural disasters.
While Swanson's photographs of fire, conflict, and Hollywood glitz may be worth a thousand words each, he believes they don't tell the complete story. Through his podcast series, he aims to add his voice to explain the visual images, sharing not just the Who, What, Where, and How of each story, but most importantly, the Why. This comprehensive approach to storytelling represents a new chapter in Swanson's distinguished career, allowing audiences to understand the human experience behind some of the most powerful images of our time.
