FRAMES Photography Podcast with Neil Selkirk

In today’s episode, W. Scott Olsen speaks with Neil Selkirk, a British-born American photographer known for his intimate portraits and documentary work. A former student of Diane Arbus, he is the only photographer authorized to make posthumous prints from her negatives.

You can listen to this interview using our podcast player below, but we strongly encourage you to subscribe to the podcast in your podcast app so you don’t miss future episodes.

Born in London in 1947, Neil Selkirk moved to New York in 1968, where he began building a career as a portrait and documentary photographer. His work has appeared in major publications including Esquire, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, and The New York Times Magazine, capturing everyone from celebrated public figures to ordinary people encountered in everyday life.

Selkirk’s photography combines a strong sense of observation with an interest in human character. His portraits often reveal something unexpected about their subjects, balancing carefully considered compositions with the spontaneity and authenticity of documentary photography.

An important influence on his career was Diane Arbus, whose master class he attended in 1971. Following her death, Selkirk became the only photographer authorized to produce posthumous prints from her negatives, developing a deep understanding of her work and playing a significant role in preserving her photographic legacy.

Alongside his editorial assignments, Selkirk has pursued numerous personal projects, including Certain Women, a long-term series of portraits exploring motherhood, and Lobbyists, which examines the individuals behind political influence in Washington. His photographs are held in major museum collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.