Ian Sam James is an American-born British documentary photographer and multidisciplinary audio and visual storyteller.
He spent his childhood in the former Soviet Central Asian Republics of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, the San Francisco Bay Area, California (USA), London (UK) and the Black Forest in Southwestern Germany. These experiences greatly influenced his globally aware, transnational perspective.
After graduating with a degree in Media & Communications from Goldsmiths College, University of London, Ian worked in radio, television, music and film, before shifting into documentary photography and photojournalism. His interests are social and humanitarian stories and the effects of climate change on our planet. Most recently, Ian was the station manager at Wangki Yupurnanupurru Radio, an Indigenous community radio station located on Bunuba country in Fitzroy Crossing, far northern Western Australia, servicing 40+ remote communities from 5 different language groups across the Fitzroy Valley. While at Wangki Radio, his tiny team was recognised for their award-nominated coverage of the 2023 Kimberley floods, the worst flood disaster in WA state history, and Danggujarra, the breakfast show, won the 2023 CBAA Community Radio Award for ‘Excellence in Indigenous Broadcasting’.
Ian is currently based on Gadigal land, in Sydney, Australia.