‘cultural photography’ a real thing?  As I started my research, it did not seem to exist.  There were ‘culture’ categories in photo contests for photographers who spent most of their time with tribal culture – but the genre just did not seem to be out there.  I found that culture did not mean just remote cultures.  There is plenty of culture that exists within cities and densely populated places.  it represents a full on approach to understanding parts of the world around you. He realized that while National Geographic had been a childhood inspiration, something he looked to for initial cultural exposure, it was limited by the visual constraints of the editorial world.  Culture is not limited to being photographed in color and thus, His work was seen as maybe having some overlaps with them, but being different enough to warrant a new title. It might not answer every condition that will arise in cultural photography, but it will give us a solid starting point for developing it further in the future.  It will expand, it will morph, and like most new things … it is not 100% original.  It is an amalgam of things we know, put together in a way that has not previously existed.  My intention with this is not only to shed some light on why take on certain projects, but also to give a space for other photographers who share this ambition under an umbrella that unifies our approaches, without limiting differences in how it might express itself.