Big Photo Hunt: A Photography Podcast

Meet the 22-Year-Old Photographer with a White House Press Pass

• Ken Deckinger

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Jonah Elkowitz is just 22 but his camera has already taken him inside the White House, Congress, and some of the most sought after media environments in Washington D.C. In this episode, we dive into his journey from a high-school class to capturing presidents, world leaders and major political events for outlets like Politico, Forbes, and the New York Post.

We talk about how Jonah went from student photo assignments to earning a coveted White House hard pass, what it’s really like shooting at the State of the Union and the lessons he’s learned about ambition, persistence and finding your voice as a young photojournalist.

If you’ve ever wondered how to break into political photography, or you just love hearing how determination turns into access, this episode will inspire you to grab your camera and get a little patriotic while you're at it.

Show Notes:

Instagram: @jonah.elkowitz

Website: jonahelkowitz.com

Thank you for your support. I started posting on my new YouTube channel and the 1st video got 9,000+ views in its first ten days. So thank you! See you there for Big Photo Hunt learnings, photography tips & tricks and more guest interviews.

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Speaker 1 (00:00.63)
You have photographed in both of the recent White House administrations. You were there for both Biden and Trump. You've got photos at the State of the Union with Biden. I've got another here. It looks like in Congress, like in Congress. There's a photo here. It looks like Hakeem Jeffries, Mike Johnson. You've got Jerome Powell. It looks like you were there for the Mark Zuckerberg congressional hearings.

the Big Tech hearing early last year.

We've got photos of Schumer, Matt Gaetz. It looks like you were at CPAC, Laura Trump. I mean, everything.

Speaker 1 (00:37.452)
Welcome to the Big Photo Hunt podcast, a show where we talk with aspiring and professional photographers to help us all grow and improve our photography together. I'm your host, Ken Deckinger. If you're one of our community members and you'd like to be a guest on the show, please visit bigphotohunt.com for more information.

Speaker 1 (01:10.264)
Today, I don't wanna start with a big introduction. My guest is a 22-year-old photographer with access to the White House, Congress, and everything in between. And so rather than me tell you all about him, I wanna let him tell you his story from discovering photography in high school, which was only four years ago, to how he wound up in Washington, DC, and then how he wound up with his camera at the White House, the State of the Union, and beyond.

And I think there's three big takeaways from my conversation today. The first is just a cool behind the scenes look as a photographer in Washington DC's most protected environments. The second is hearing about his path and how he got there, which is helpful, I think, for all of us. And third, perhaps the most important takeaway is one of tenacity and ambition that helped Jonah make these things possible for him.

And so he may be 22, but I think all of us of any age can get some real insight from his experiences. And look at that. I said I wasn't gonna do an introduction, but I just did. So join me now for my conversation with Jonah Elkowitz.

Wait, I can't stop playing this music. I love this music. Da na na. All right, here we go. Thanks for joining me for today's show. Well, let me first tell you, I wanted to have you on today because you and I have known each other now for, I don't know, what, maybe like eight or nine years or so?

you

Speaker 2 (02:46.326)
Yeah, we're approaching eight. Yeah, I was eight or nine years.

you were in high school and you were just kind of getting into photography and you were really good at it. And I wasn't even into photography at that point. I was making documentary films. And next thing you know, you go to Northwestern University and you study photography and journalism. Is that right? Yes. Then you're out and you're now in law school. And during that time you're at the White House, you're

Exactly.

Speaker 1 (03:15.72)
at the State of the Union lens inside of, at that point I think of it in President Obama, President Biden's car, the beast. And just for the record here for our listeners, Jonah's 22. 22? And aside from just accomplishing all this at the age of 22, like his photos are amazing. I'm gonna give you his website at the end of this episode so you can go there. I've got so many questions. And so I wanted to have him to talk about that.

would love to talk about it and I appreciate coming together. It's been a while, it's been a few years, but I know we've been informally keeping tabs, but it's great. I'm never gonna turn down an opportunity to talk about photography. So, you know, I'm really happy to be here. Thank you for having me.

So why don't we just tell everyone like who you are, where you're from, what got you into photography when you were in high school and that whole experience and then move into Northwestern and all of your stuff in politics and Washington and everything.

Yeah, when I started high school in ninth grade, I was kind of interested in the whole media landscape in the sense of photo and video. Mostly I would say video at that point, because I had a lot of friends that were like beginner filmmakers and were sort of working on projects and they drew me in a little bit. So I actually was looking to take a photo class, but the photo class filled up or something like that, so I couldn't actually take it. So the next best thing I thought was take a video class.

You know, I was interested in both. didn't really have a preference for either at that point. So I took the video class in high school and I had this teacher who really, I would say, was more of an amazing photographer than anything. Like he had really great work across the board, but the photography is something that stood out to me. And in the back of the classroom, he would have these pictures of the Milky Way and this like astrophotography stuff. And to me, that was like every time I would go back there, I would be like, how did you take this picture to beyond anything that

Speaker 2 (05:05.494)
you would see in the normal encounter of astrophotography or just like going outside and stargazing, right? You don't get that level of clarity, obviously, that the camera can get with long exposures and all that, which I ended up learning about. But I went to him and I was like, can you teach me how you do this? So I would practice going outside with a tripod and using one of those beginner sort of super telephoto lenses with like the variable aperture. And I would just go outside and practice shooting the moon. And I would go back to class and I'd be like, you what do you think? What do you think?

But that kind of, you know, was the catalyst for a lot of the other stuff I started doing. then 10th, 11th grade, I went to Cuba and that's also what really kicked off, you know, my passion for photo, especially street photography. That's really when I developed my niche for it. And then, you know, I would start shooting everything. I started shooting high school sports and I actually did not take a video class after that year. I loved my teacher and I still talk to him to this day.

But he really, I think, showed me what I was better at and had a better passion for. And I love video. I work on projects. I have a lot of friends from Northwestern now that are filmmakers and I've been on set with them and helped them with their projects and I love it. But I think it helped me discover something that I'm even more passionate about and I'm grateful for having that experience.

So then what made you make the decision to actually focus on it when you went to Northwestern, as opposed to say majoring in business and keeping photography as a hobby or something?

Yeah, no, that's a good question. So I was applying to different schools and I was talking to somebody who was advising me at the time and they were saying, you know, you're really good at this photo stuff. You know, you should go try journalism, which at that point I didn't really do a lot of editorial or news photography. I really did a lot of like, you know, sports and street photography and all that. But at that point I was like, hey, you know, this is something closest to what I'm interested in. And I could probably do some photography and, know, I'd probably become a better writer.

Speaker 2 (07:00.842)
out of it, which in hindsight, I think I definitely did. And that's a useful skill set. But for me, that was kind of the closest thing to trying to utilize the photography. There is no official photography major or minor to my understanding. So for me, it was kind of seeing where I could utilize my skill and also improve upon what I I like to shoot, but also something where I think I would find it useful in all realms of life. mean, learning how to write and learning how to talk to people is useful in every sector.

But I definitely didn't anticipate, I think, the photography that I ended up doing, which made the program even better in the end.

Yeah, I want to talk about the photography that you did wind up doing. One quick question though, before we get there, I assume there were photography courses in that journalism major. And did you find those valuable and that they really did build your skill set and improve your skills overall?

Yeah. So most of it, the photography at school, at least there weren't actually any photo courses that I took. And a lot of the journalism curriculum isn't really, it's not really a photo journalism program specifically. It's more so journalism, but you know, having like people who are experienced with photo journalism and also having access to campus papers, the daily Northwestern and, those types of resources, I was able to incorporate it into a lot of my projects for school.

both for extracurriculars, but also when I was doing an article, I would find a time to add a picture. Or when there was a picture requirement, I would go crazy with it. I would get my cameras and sort of act like I was doing a real story for a newspaper. And that to me really was a great way to play with both of those things. It would be hard to justify going out to take pictures as a computer science major for a project. for a journalism article, I could

Speaker 2 (08:52.718)
kind of run wild with it. And that's what I did even for classes that were separate from journalism, but also had this like culture documentary element to it. Like I took a class in Hinduism and I did a photo story on a temple, which was really interesting. So I kind of found ways to weave the photography stuff into it along the way. And that's really how I kept it going throughout my time at school.

I ask that because there is always this discussion in the photography world of whether or not you need to be formally trained or if you can teach yourself or a combination of both through YouTube. And so it sounds like you had to be pretty proactive to be able to grow your photography skills, but you had the opportunity to do that while you were studying journalism.

Yes, definitely a lot of it was sort of self exploration and just trying to figure things out and trying to do new different things. But I think also having people that you can go to for advice, even like to this day, I talked to my high school photography teacher and you know, we're, we've very good relationship. And I think having mentors is a very good thing, but obviously in certain cases, you kind of have to make the most of it and just.

find any opportunity you can, you jump on it. So that's what I tried to do during school.

Awesome. All right, so I can ask you a question and then we'll get into the Washington DC stuff. And this may be a weird question, but not really. Just a touchy feely kind of question. How does it feel when you're shooting your photography? And let me just give you background on that. For me, I really love photography and I've gotten into it over the past five or six years. And I just really enjoy creating photos and I get such great satisfaction and joy out of that. Is that part of what it is for you?

Speaker 1 (10:38.166)
Rather than just a curiosity and a desire to improve, you get pleasure and joy out of this? Is there another feeling or something?

Yeah, I mean.

No, I think that's the word. think it's just stimulating, you know, and it's, I don't think it's a race, you know, like, obviously you want to improve and take great stuff and put it out there and, you know, sort of compete with yourself and compete with other people. But I think that a lot of it for me, especially like, and this is true in high school when things were stressful. I think it was a great thing to lean on because it helped me, I think, discover more about myself and

you know, the things that I liked and obviously it gave me and I say this a lot, it gives me a reason to explore new places. And I think that's very true. Like through photography, I've probably met more people, discovered more, went to places that I would not have gone to had it not been for like that, that drive, that passion from just that sort of desire to go and capture things. The photography was just a way to go and do it. You know, even now, like I look forward to it because it's kind of like a

break from reality, you know, like I put my phone away for if I'm running around doing street photography or whatever it is and I just like try and engage and be present and Actually, there are some people that say that even some places they go now they don't even bring their camera because even doing photography in that sense like makes them not present because they're just focused on the photo, but I really think that photography as a whole it really just makes me feel more engaged and

Speaker 2 (12:12.162)
That's how it makes me feel. It makes me feel joy and I think inspired too. Inspiration is definitely a word for that.

I agree with you about not being present when I'm with friends or family. However, when I'm by myself and I have my camera, I actually feel that it helps me engage with the place I'm at. Yeah. So for example, I'm going to London in three weeks and I'm only actually there for like the afternoon because I have to go somewhere else. But I booked a hotel to catch a nap in the morning. And then I basically just know that from like 12 to like five in the afternoon, I'm just going to go out with my camera.

because I feel like it does help me explore and connect with the place. But I do know, like, I'll go out with my wife and, you know, my kids and I'm taking photos and they're just like, hello, hello, we're here.

Absolutely.

Speaker 2 (12:59.82)
Yeah, I've had that. I've had my fair share and I get it when you're with I think the really the bet the time where you appreciate the most is when you're when you're on your own time. And, you know, people have obligations like you can't just always disappear by yourself. Like that's a that's a privilege. But I think it definitely gives a new perspective when you're able to take that time by yourself. Photography in that sense, at least for me, and it sounds like for you, too, is more of like something that you appreciate on your own. And obviously, the best part is sharing it with other people, too. Like that's equally, you know, I have so much

I feel excited when I'm take a great picture and I go to my dad or my mom or my siblings or my friends and I'm like, look at this picture. I love this picture. So I think there's that aspect, but I think the process is very individual and it really, in order to take advantage of that, you have to, in many cases, I think the best way to is to have that sort of time to yourself to do it.

completely agree. All right, let's talk about your photos in Washington DC. And just to set the stage here, I have this here in front of me. I wanna just let everyone know what I'm looking at, okay? So Jonah is in his first year at law school. You have photographed in both of the recent White House administrations. You were there for both Biden and Trump. You've got photos at the State of the Union with Biden. I've got another here. It looks like...

in Congress, like in Congress. There's a photo here. It looks like Hakeem Jeffries, Mike Johnson. You've got Jerome Powell. It looks like you were there for the Mark Zuckerberg congressional hearings.

the Big Tech hearing early last year.

Speaker 1 (14:36.12)
We've got photos of Schumer, Matt Gaetz. It looks like you're at CPAC, Laura Trump. mean, everything, you're there. And just so we're clear, this is not a conversation about politics. It's about the photographs. Absolutely. And the access that you have, because it looks like you're right up there close in the pool with your camera lens in the beast, in the president's car window, like getting a photo of him there. RFK Jr., Mitch McConnell, Elizabeth Warren. I mean, you were everywhere.

Tell me about this. wait, and can I just brag one more time real quick? Thank you, I want to. I wanna make sure I'm just bragging about you. Cause then you've got publications like Politico, Forbes, United Press International, The New York Post, Page Six, National Geographic, The Daily Northwestern, which is your alma mater. And that's just to name a few. like Jonah, talk to me. Like how did this come about other than your awesome photography? And like, I have tons of questions.

Absolutely.

Speaker 2 (15:31.81)
No, absolutely. So this editorial, you know, political photography has really become a passion of mine, something that I didn't really understand until I went to DC for a semester for Northwestern's Medilla on the Hill program. And the program wasn't itself directly a photography program. I actually got rejected from the program and I called or I emailed the program director and he was like, you know, this isn't a photo program. I thought you would be disappointed. And I'm like, well, let's figure out how we can.

how we can do it. That moment really changed everything. And I'm so, so glad. mean, now, my, that photo director is one of my good friends. wrote a recommendation letter for me for law school. Like he is a mentor, a friend, someone who inspires me, but I'm glad that he took a chance on me. Being there in DC kind of was the catalyst for all this stuff. When I was there, one of my friends connected me with somebody at...

Politico and they ended up bringing me on as an intern while I was there. And, you know, they really got me into the State of the Union address, which I was so lucky to be able to photograph for Politico and for Northwestern. That was an amazing experience. then later that that same year, I was doing my journalism residency, which is a Northwestern program, and I arranged it sort of outside of the normal bounds with the New York Post, which I thought would be a really great opportunity. And they really let me loose with the photography stuff.

I got to cover RFK Junior in Long Island at a rally, was really, really fun experience. And got to take those pictures. And then, you know, a lot of other stuff was later in the year. And even this year I went back to DC and with that access was able to take some of these pictures. I would say the program was really the catalyst for a lot of the political photography and sort of showing me a different side of photography that I hadn't.

had that much experience with before. I've documented a lot of social justice work and editorial photography in that sense, but the raw politics stuff is something more new to me. I've only been doing it for a year or so, but it's really an incredible side of photography that I'm so glad that I discovered because I really, really enjoy it. And I think it's really fulfilling and you get to be there for all these important moments. You know, I think one of those in particular was when President Biden was, he was talking about a tentative agreement related to the

Speaker 2 (17:51.818)
Israel Hamas war. And I was in the room when he was announcing it and it was such a surreal thing to just someone my age to be there. that's kind of how it got started. today, obviously at school I'm not in DC as much as I was, but I'm still looking for moments and opportunities whenever they arise to do this kind of stuff.

And so were you part of like a press pool or how does that work? You have your pass and you can just go when you want to go or there are events and you get invited to come to the events or how does the whole access part work?

That's a great question. And that's something that always continuously changes from administration to administration. But when I was there, first under the Biden administration, then the Trump administration, partly, they're actually very inviting to people who are not from the main wire outlets, so to speak, or, you know, big journalism outlets. So they really do make it accessible to get in there for things like arrivals and departures, you know, where the president leaves the South Lawn on Marine One, or press conferences with the press secretary.

You know, those things are very accessible to the press. Obviously when you start getting into Oval Office executive order signings, when you start getting into announcements like that, those events are typically restricted for the pool, which is generally coordinated by the White House Correspondents Association and the sort of the press wing of the White House. I did not get access to that kind of stuff, but you do get access to a lot of other things, just being a general member of the press.

And there are also certain events where they will email you and you have to request access beforehand. And there's a limited number of people that they'll allow for space, for occupancy reasons, for a lot of other things. But I've generally had a really good experience under the both administrations with being accommodating to student journalists. And obviously I was contributing to different wire services, UPI, Analome, and Shutterstock. But I found that they were super inviting and open to capturing a lot of.

Speaker 2 (19:54.082)
different things going on at the White House. And they were super open to having young journalists, members of the press there. But at least in terms of from my program, at least when I was there, I was the only one with a hard pass. So the hard pass, I kind of think is like the Disney fast pass, so to speak. You don't really need to have an appointment with the Secret Service to get into the White House grounds. Gives you for the most part, daily access to what they call Pebble Beach, which is where

And the press briefing room, is where the press sort of hangs out when they were waiting different events throughout the day. So the hard pass really was a great way to get that fast pass access, especially when, you know, Biden was arriving via helicopter or something like that. I would run over there. It really just gave the flexibility to be able to go in there whenever something was going on, which was a really, really great thing. And I have it with me. I keep it on my desk is like a, you know, I like to look at it. It's a great reminder that students and young people deserve to be in the room.

I appreciated when I was there and I continue to really believe in now and take advantage of.

and it's enabled you to grow so much as a photographer.

absolutely. Yeah. mean, you know, grow in terms of learning to be in a fast paced environment like that, you know, with the president, with members of the cabinet, with members of Congress, like that was a huge experience and also meeting other people. are so many amazing photographers that you see on Instagram and you see, you know, on on AP and all those websites, but you actually don't know who they are until you interact with them. And I was lucky to interact with many of them at different points in D.C. and

Speaker 2 (21:30.328)
getting to learn about them on a personal level, on a professional level was something that I also really appreciated and also show them who I am, you Absolutely.

Evan Vucci? Love that guy. I don't know him, but I love his work. So you got to meet him?

Yeah, Evan Vucci sits, so he's the chief White House correspondent photographer for the Associated Press. So he travels with the press pool usually to what I have seen. And he's also just in the White House all the time. So I've come across him. I mean, we've shared sandwiches together, like, you know, waiting for delayed arrivals for the president. He's such a great guy. Many people will probably know him from the photo of Trump when he was shot at the rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, with him raising his fist that has become.

a viral sensation. He's just a super, you know, super friendly guy and really likes to help the younger generation. And also an incredible photographer. You know, with that also when you're there, there's so many different photographers that you get the same experience with different perspectives, different editing. And that was another thing, like going to the editing rooms and seeing like how, you know, we were all in the same room, but how people captured the moment so differently was

Unbelievable.

Speaker 2 (22:43.316)
really helpful for me and seeing, you know, where I could improve, especially when a lot of people are taking the same shot. It really matters to know how you can differentiate yourself. Cause a lot of times you're just with photo sprays and stuff. It's just a line. So you're in the same row as a bunch of photographers. You get like a minute and then it's over. So in that minute, you've got to find a way. Obviously you want to get the, you know, the frontal shots and that sort of stuff, but learning how to capture that moment from a different angle. Maybe someone didn't.

think of or didn't see that takes time, takes experience, it takes practice, but it's a really important skill.

hearing all this. could talk for another hour, but I want to be respectful of your time.

No, likewise, absolutely.

I do have a questions. So one, how different of an experience is it from the Biden administration to the Trump administration? And what is, the major difference as a photographer with access to the White House?

Speaker 2 (23:36.738)
I at least, you know, I'm speaking from the few times that I went during the Trump administration. So I was there for the semester when president Biden was there. So I got to sort of be there for a lot more stuff. But some of the things I've noticed at least being there for a couple of Trump events is that there are a lot more of them. There are a lot more open press events in the day that people will get to see that maybe they didn't get to see previously.

I don't know if that's just because more of the events are made public or because the president is having more events. I'm not exactly sure, but I've just noticed that there are more opportunities. World leaders coming to the white house, that sort of thing. And also, I mean, in terms of like the hard pass experience, they were really great to renew my past for the Trump administration. You know, obviously the Biden administration started it and then Trump renewed it. Both have been pretty good, I would say, with the hard pass stuff, at least from my experience and to people I've talked to, but.

As what happens with administration to administration, some of the rules change, but generally I felt that both have been really open to members of the media, especially like myself, someone who's maybe younger and doesn't have that kind of mainstream media or at the time didn't have that experience. I haven't been doing photography for 30 years and I certainly haven't been in DC for that long. So I really kind of felt under both that there was a lot of access and I'm grateful that they've

kept me coming back and allowed me to go and take pictures and capture these moments. And I'm just, I'm very grateful.

That's really nice to hear because from the outsider perspective, it seems that Trump has a much more antagonistic relationship with the media. And he may actually have that, but it seems like the idea of having this increased frequency and maintaining your access and keeping that knowing is actually very positive in my opinion, because from the outside looking in, it seems like there's a lot of tension there. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (25:25.918)
no, definitely the relationship is, is different. And one of the interesting things that I've seen also is a lot of the, especially when Trump was doing the, signing of the executive orders or when he signs executive orders, who usually have the press in there for like, I think I would say typical oval office spray is like a couple minutes. I've seen ones where Trump has the photographers and the press in there for like an hour, which I don't think a lot of people expected. So

There's definitely a lot of variation. mean, for me, the more time the better, the more time to take those pictures is always a great thing and to just be in the room when things are happening. But those are just some of the changes that I've heard from people on the ground that are going on, some of the things that I've witnessed. But obviously things are always up in the air, things are changing. So what I might have seen a month ago might be different today. But generally those are the trends I would say that have been kind of occurring behind the scenes and also among the press corps.

Cool. Any tips for people that are listening to this that have an interest in this type of photography or getting into political photography? Anyone that wants to move into this field and get experience.

Yeah, I think the first thing is starting local and starting with what's around you. So if you have a representative that, you know, congressional rep or a local house rep or something like that, a state rep, there's a lot of ways to go cover what they're doing. There are events, there's stuff like that. All of these politicians and all of these political parties, et cetera, and political events, they all have media teams. They have media emails. You know, I would say the first thing to do, especially to start building

portfolio. If you can't just, you know, go into the White House, which is a privilege and also the access can be difficult for things like that. I would say start with what's around you and start with seeing what your access is. Because a lot of times, you know, they want members of the media there. They want people taking pictures. I would also say to look at different platforms. There's a lot of stock image programs that, you know, will look for photos like that. So if you get a photo of a politician or someone speaking like

Speaker 2 (27:32.556)
You can upload it and make money from it as well if that's something you're interested in doing for editorial purposes. There's a lot of websites, Shutterstock, Alamy, that do that kind of work. But I would say really, I think it's more about what you capture rather than who you capture. Obviously the person being important is relevant for news purposes, but I think if you can build a portfolio of good moments and really distinctive shots that...

might not be of the president of the United States. think there's a lot of value to that. And I think if you're interested in obviously working your way to do that, you can reach out to the White House press office. If you're interested in doing things at the Capitol, you could reach out to the appropriate photo and video galleries for that. But I would say if you're interested in doing something more localized, people want to have photos taken. It's big thing. And there's a lot of opportunities. Like obviously you can try and intercept people paparazzi style, but you want to go and cover it.

for your own outlet or for your own purposes, especially as a student. A lot of these organizations are very friendly and politicians really love having students and student journalists. So I think you got to shoot your shot. You got to be resourceful. You got to see what's around you. There's a lot of opportunities. You just got to go into it. And also, stay tuned to what's going on on social media as well. When Trump was going to all those trials last summer, when I wasn't...

working, you know, for my internship, I would be trying to see where he was. You know, I went to Trump tower and camped out and took pictures, but I think at least in this day and age, there's a lot of opportunities to get involved with stuff. And I think you just gotta, you gotta go and do it. And if you like it, you know, you can contribute for different outlets and then work your way up. And obviously ideally the tippy top is, you know, getting access to things like air force one, which is, you know, it's still on my bucket list. It's a very difficult thing to do, but.

I think there's a lot of avenues to do it. There's a lot of avenues to get involved.

Speaker 1 (29:30.028)
Jonah, thank you for your wisdom and sharing your experiences. It's terrific because there's a lot of people in this country and not all them have access to the White House.

No, yeah, and it's like, if you could tell from the pictures that I have done, it's really piqued my interest in this sort of genre of photography that I don't think any other has. Like I love doing street photography and astrophotography, but something about doing this kind of editorial photography is really, really exciting and fulfilling. And it's certainly a very interesting thing that I've had the privilege of being able to participate in. It's something that I, you know, I think one of the top experiences of my short, you know,

life so far, but it's something I'm going to remember, I think, for long time.

At the end of every episode I ask my guests three questions. Alright, here we go. First question, what's your favorite genre to shoot and why?

Go for it.

Speaker 2 (30:24.066)
Wow, I might surprise some people, but actually probably not. But I think for me it's been, and I think it will continue to be street photography. Like street photography is, it's the most, the lowest barrier to entry. It's something you can do virtually anywhere, anytime, any place. It's kind of really where I started doing a lot of my photography outside of Asher photography and sports. And it's one of the most fulfilling genres that I've been able to.

participate in.

I feel the same way. know, of the things street photography is not always on the street. It could be just anywhere, right? And I've got this little Rico GR three and I just sometimes like when I'm traveling, I love doing it in airports and things like that to kill time. it's, it's some of my greatest, some of my favorite photos are from like an airport. I think I mentioned the other day when I was having my epidectomy, I pulled out my iPhone. I was taking photos in the emergency room.

you sent me a few I was like I didn't even know you were allowed to do this

no, you're not allowed to do this. But it wasn't, first of all, I was very respectful of people's privacy and also the photos, they kind of sucked because I was, know, my appendix was about to come out. I was sitting there in a gurney, not a gurney, like a stretcher, bed, and I'm just like, So the photos were not really as good as they could have been. All right, question number two. What camera brand do you shoot on?

Speaker 2 (31:47.746)
I shoot Sony. I think Sony is the OG. I really do. When you're making sensors for your competitors, you're the one to buy. That's my opinion. I shoot with two bodies normally. The a7 III, which is at this point a pretty old camera, but you know, that's still one of my workhorse cameras. And I recently actually got only a few months ago, I got the a7 IV, which I really, really love. That camera is amazing. And then when I was in DC, I was shooting, I actually borrowed my

What Sony do you have?

Speaker 2 (32:16.844)
family members A7C, which is the full frame sensor in the body of a crop sensor, like the Sony A6000 body, but with the full frame sensor. Well, what do you shoot primarily? You RICO or Sony? Yeah, okay.

the Ricoh is just my little pocket camera when I want to look like I, when I want to be discreet and I'm just out. I'm a hundred percent Sony. And now I'm, I used to have the a seven four love that camera, but got a gift of an a seven or five. So yeah, it was from my wife and I was like, I don't need another camera, but I shoot with the a seven or five now. I love the a seven or five because it's got the, you know, 60 megapixel

Oh, that's a great.

Speaker 1 (33:02.764)
Sensor, has the new tilty screen that goes in like 16 directions.

I think that's going to be on the the a7 5. I think they're probably going to run with that. Yeah, without a doubt. that's a you know, it's a great camera that the five I'm looking I like that one a lot, but I'm glad you shoot and enjoy it. It's a nice camera.

I love it, I love it, absolutely love it. All right, and question number three, on a scale of one to 10, how often do you get that burning itch to just get out there and shoot photos?

I mean, probably like a seven, six, but at least while I'm in school, I found ways to try and do, I mean, I do photography weekly at this point. I do a lot of gigs for different clients and I'm not really going out and doing the street photography stuff as much, but I would say the wanting to do the street photography. That is probably like a seven, know, an eight, especially with what I'm doing now. I could certainly use a break and I think that would be a great opportunity to go out and take one.

Where can people find you? Instagram, your website, and I want everyone to go look at Jonah's work.

Speaker 2 (34:06.798)
Yeah, everyone can find me. use Instagram pretty often. Jonah Elkowitz on Instagram, just my first and last name. And then also my website, if you want to take a look at my work, jonahelkowitz.com or jelkphoto.com, it redirects to the same site.

Awesome, and if you're like me and you need it spelled out, that's J-O-N-A-H-E-L-K-O-W-I-T-Z. And that's on Instagram and his website. Jonah, you know, we met, like we mentioned eight or nine years ago when you were in high school, and it's been so cool for me to watch your journey and see how you've progressed and grown. It's really cool.

Thank I'm grateful to be here. Thank you for having me and thank you for keeping me in mind all these years. I appreciate it.

Thank you so much for joining me for today's episode. Our next show will feature more valuable stories from our community members. If you'd like to audition to be a guest, please visit bigphotohunt.com for more information. Thanks again for listening today.