As Australian Traveller’s foremost visual storyteller, Bell crafts narratives that live at the intersection of cultural preservation and environmental advocacy. His work spans 43 countries but remains rooted in Australia’s diverse landscapes.
“Show me the custodians, not just the landmarks.”
Ewen Bell’s career began not in newsrooms but through the intimate act of framing moments. His early work with Australian photography collectives honed a distinctive style blending technical precision with emotional resonance. Over two decades, this foundation evolved into a globetrotting practice that marries visual storytelling with written narrative, most notably for Australian Traveller, where he’s become a defining voice in antipodean travel journalism.
Bell’s 2024 blog series provides unprecedented access to Himalayan Buddhist communities, combining time-lapse photography of prayer rituals with oral histories from novice monks. The work’s significance lies in its counterpoint to commercialized travel content – here, Bell becomes both documentarian and cultural intermediary. His methodology pairs Z7 II mirrorless captures with participatory observation, yielding images that feel less like observations than invitations.
“Photography isn’t about freezing moments – it’s about starting conversations across cultures.”
In this technical masterclass wrapped in poetic narrative, Bell demystifies aurora photography while advocating for dark sky preservation. The article’s impact stems from its dual utility: aspiring photographers gain actionable advice (ISO settings, moon phase planning), while environmentalists find compelling data visualizations showing light pollution’s advance into Arctic regions.
Bell’s magnum opus for Food & Travel UK redefined culinary journalism through its integration of recipe documentation with agricultural anthropology. The piece traces heirloom chili varieties from high-altitude farms to monastic kitchens, using hyperlapse sequences to showcase centuries-old food preservation techniques. Tourism Bhutan subsequently adopted his images for UNESCO nomination dossiers.
Bell’s Bhutan work demonstrates his knack for transforming local knowledge into narrative gold. Successful pitches should mirror his approach with Tashi Dorji – a Bhutanese guide featured across multiple pieces. For instance, a pitch about Maori fishing traditions might highlight connections between ancestral navigation techniques and modern marine conservation efforts.
His aurora photography tutorials excel at making technical data relatable. A climate change pitch could emulate this by suggesting time-lapse comparisons of glacial retreat paired with interviews using oral history methodologies.
The Bhutan chili study exemplifies Bell’s food writing philosophy. Pitches might explore Japan’s wasabi farmers combating climate change through traditional irrigation systems, ideally with access to multi-generational family producers.
Bell’s recent experiments with AI noise reduction in low-light photography suggest interest in tech-aided authenticity. Pitches could propose testing new sensors in extreme environments, like capturing Saharan star trails using desert-adapted camera gear.
His refusal to photograph certain sacred rituals in Nepal sets a precedent. Stories about Indigenous intellectual property in tourism would align with his practice of co-authoring captions with cultural stakeholders.
At PressContact, we aim to help you discover the most relevant journalists for your PR efforts. If you're looking to pitch to more journalists who write on Travel, here are some other real estate journalist profiles you may find relevant:
