Show Notes
Episode 11 - This week Zach & Courtney discuss photographing road trips, including Zach’s photos on the road and in the Florida Keys, plus Joel Sternfeld’s project from the 1970s and 80s, American Prospects.
“Photography is nothing–it's life that interests me.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson
Index 0:00 - Intro - Missing a great moment because he ran out of film 0:45 - We loved road trips growing up 3:18 - Road trips were more fun/dangerous in the 80s & 90s 4:43 - Zach’s photos from rest stops and gas stations on the way to Florida 📷 9:22 - A road trip through the Florida Keys 📷 17:16 - Joel Sternfeld’s American Prospects feels like a road trip across the United States. 17:38 - McLean, Virginia, December 1978. 📷 18:01 - Joel Sternfeld’s idea behind American Prospects 20:17 - After a Flash Flood. Rancho Mirage, California. 1979. 📷 20:42 - The Space Shuttle Columbia Lands at Kelly Air Force Base. San Antonio, Texas. March 1979.📷 21:21 - Exhausted Renegade Elephant. Woodland, Washington. June 1979.📷 23:33 - Glen Canyon Dam. Page, Arizona. 1983.📷 24:19 - Wet ’n’ Wild Aquatic Theme Park. Orlando, Florida. 1980.📷 25:05 - Buckingham, Pennsylvania. August 1978.📷 25:43 - Bikini Contest. Fort Lauderdale, Florida. March 1983.📷 27:22 - Near Akron, Ohio. May 1983.📷 28:26 - Portage Glacier, Alaska. August 1984.📷 29:15 - Lake Oswego, Oregon. June 1979.📷 30:38 - Canyon Country, California. June 1983.📷 31:52 - Courtney says this series is a great introduction to the vastness of the United States. 33:32 - This project helped Zach to realize that there’s wild stuff happening everywhere all the time if you’re looking for it. 35:01 - West Aztec Avenue. Gallup, New Mexico. September 1982.📷 35:25 - Great Salt Lake, Utah. August 1979.📷
For links to all the sources for this episode, check out our resources page here...https://blog.zachdobson.com/2025/09/photography-is-nothing-ep11/
Find Zach Website: https://zachdobson.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zachdobsonphoto/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@zachdobsonphoto Threads: https://www.threads.com/@zachdobsonphoto
Find Courtney Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/courtneymccracken_/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@happy_life_lessons Threads: https://www.threads.com/@courtneymccracken_
About the Podcast Photography is Nothing with Zach Dobson and Courtney McCracken is a weekly conversation about photography and all its impact. Each week Zach and Courtney discuss their latest adventures, life lessons, and anything else that sounds interesting.
Photography is Nothing invites you into the conversations they were already having as a married couple running a photography and media company in the current world.
Fair Use Statement This document contains copyrighted material, the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. I have determined this to be "fair use" of the copyrighted material as referenced and provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use any copyrighted material from this document for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain express permission from the copyright owner.
More from Photography is Nothing
In Episode 54 of Photography is Nothing, Zach Dobson and Courtney McCracken explore the remarkable photography of Adger Cowans, a pioneering photographer whose work spans street photography, documentary photography, portraiture, jazz, fine art, and more than 30 motion picture sets.
Zach & Courtney take the family to New York City for the first time. Over the past few years, Zach has been working regularly in New York, but the rest of the family (Courtney included) had yet to visit the city.
In this interview with Australian photographic artist Tajette O’Halloran, we talk about the inspiration behind her projects like In Australia, The Quarry, and Regional Rituals. She talks about her difficult upbringing in the Northern Rivers area, and how that put her on a path to tell the stories of adolescence.
Tajette O’Halloran is a photographic artist based in Lismore, New South Wales, Australia. Her work ranges from documentary to portraiture to conceptual. The common thread is examining adolescence and identity; both her own and others’.
In this 50TH episode, Zach & Courtney talk about what they’ve learned so far from running a photography business, starting a podcast, raising 5 kids, homeschooling, and just being generally busy making things for 20 years.