My Favorite Audio Podcasts on Visual Topics

Audio podcasts are the perfect accompaniment to my long, once-a-week commute to O'Reilly HQ. If I can find shows that are relevant to work, even better, because I feel like I'm gearing my brain up for the workday rather than stressing about the traffic that's keeping me from the things I have to do when I get there. (And did I mention these commutes take place on Mondays?) But since my job is to edit books on decidedly visual subjects (Photoshop, Digital Photography, etc.), finding good audio-only podcasts to jumpstart my work-brain is tricky. There are lots of fabulous shows out there on the topics I want to hear about, but if I'm driving I only want to hear about them. Not surprisingly, most of the shows out there rely on having a video component, which would understandably pose a road hazard were I to enjoy them during commute hours.

I have found a few gems, though, so I present my top 5 Audio-only Podcasts on Visual Topics. But first, a bit about my criteria:

• Audio only - Or at least not reliant on being in front of a screen, for obvious reasons.

• Long enough - I don't load all the podcasts I've subscribed to onto my iPod because I don't want to spend a lot of time navigating the menus while I'm driving. I create a "Road Podcast" playlist on my nano and update it on the weekends in anticipation of the drive. It takes the same amount of organizational effort to upload a 2 minute show as it does a 27 minute show, so I like shows that give me value for my efforts. Of course, there's the attention span factor, so I'd say 20-30 minutes is ideal. You can go longer if you're really interesting.

• Reliable enough - I like shows that come out on a more-or-less regular schedule. First of all, I'm looking forward to it, and second, there are organizational resource issues here too. I want to be able to plan what will fill up my weekly playlist on Sunday night.

• Availability on iTunes - One button and the podcast fairy fills my audio cupboard with goodies to choose from. Did I mention that I'm stingy with my organizational efforts. (Oh sure, some might call it lazy, but I like to think of it as ergonomically efficient. Ask any bartender or line cook or Rachael Ray.)

• Catchy theme music - Virtually a requirement.

So here is a list of five great podcasts that manage to effectively cover visual subject matter in an audio-only* format:

• The Digital Story - Photographer, author, speaker-on-things-digitally-photographic-extraordinaire Derrick Story offers up a once-a-week (Tuesdays) show for the members of his virtual camera club. In his trademarked authoritative but enthusiastic and compassionate style, Derrick covers the whole gamut of the digital photography experience. Each show has a specific topic which can be anything from "Life Beyond Program Mode" to "Street Shooting Etiquette" to "What About Film?" Love the episodes where Derrick chats with other photographers. Comprehensive show notes available on the Digital Story website mean that you can listen for fun, then go back and look up the specifics later.

• InDesign Secrets - David Blatner and Anne-Marie Concepcion of the InDesign Secrets website have a terrific, humorous upbeat podcast by the same name. Their content is generated from questions they encounter from readers, listeners, and attendees of their seminars, so it's all about solving people's pain. They both clearly know InDesign inside and out, so the answers seem spontaneous and spot-on and they even occasionally seem to be learning from each other as they go. Love the recurring segment "Obscure InDesign Feature of the Week." Sure, I may have to wait until I'm in front of a computer screen to try out some of their tips. But while I'm "hands free" David and Anne-Marie's infinite variety of tips help me discover what I didn't know I didn't know.

• Adobe Lightroom Beta* - Adobe Pro Photo Evangelist George Jardine talks with engineers, authors, and photographers about Adobe's new (and still under-construction) app for photographers. George (dubbed "Mr. Lightroom" by one of his fans - see Podcast #12) has such terrific organic interview style that lets his guests go comfortably wherever they naturally go. So you might end up hearing a group of Adobe engineers talk about their latest obstacles and achievements or you might listen to a photographer talk about Lightroom and how it works with their particular needs. The most recent episodes feature lots of interviews from members of the Adobe Lightroom Adventure, including three of my favorite authors Derrick Story, Mikkel Aaland, and Peter Krogh. George earns the asterisk on the audio-only rule because his recent offerings are enhanced with the still images adventurers shot in Iceland. But with images that beautiful, I'm not going to complain.

• Rookie Designer - Graphic designer Adam Hay creates his podcast for the "not-so-accomplished designer." In it, he shares his discoveries, both personal and technological, made during his first 5 years as a designer. (I'm not a designer myself, but I make an unintentional habit of pestering them regularly.) Adam is honest, self-effacing, and discusses everything from creative inspiration to professional networking to software applications. I'm a sucker for a well-implemented theme (baseball), and every installment of Rookie Designer includes "Keys to the Game" (tips), "Rookie Mistake" (self-explanatory), and "From the Bullpen" (places to go for more info). Notes for these items are listed in the blog post for each show on the Rookie Designer website.

• Project Runway: Tim Gunn - Hey, fashion is visual, I never said it was all about work. What better way to stay abreast of trends in popular culture (as all editors should) than watching Project Runway, Bravo's reality show that has fashion designers competing to make runway creations in an attempt to make it to New York's fashion week. The best thing about this show for me is Tim Gunn, the "coach" that helps the designers assess their creations before they are subject to runway scrutiny by Heidi Klum and the other judges. Tim's podcast comes out Thursdays (the TV episode airs Wednesday night), so as he goes through his candid take on each designer's creation (and personal issues, of course, this is reality TV), the images of the fashionable creations are still in my mind. His podcast is full of snarky fun, interesting fashion insights, and Tim's impeccably delivered product placements and catch-phrases. Carry on, Tim.