Editorial Photographer — Published Assignments by Bill McCullough
I'm an editorial photographer based in Austin, Texas, collaborating with magazines, publishers, and cultural institutions. This portfolio showcases assignments and projects for national and regional publications. My work focuses on documentary storytelling, environmental portraiture, and long-form editorial features. I work with The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, and The Atlantic, producing documentary stories, reported features, and portrait-driven narratives for both print and digital platforms.
The following is a representative list of publications and editorial clients for whom I have worked on assignment:
The New Yorker
The New York Times Magazine
The Atlantic
The Wall Street Journal
Business Insider
New York Magazine
Publications & Editorial Clients
Selected Editorial Photography Assignments
A selection of published editorial photography assignments for major magazines, newspapers, and digital publications.
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — A Fan’s Notes on the Spectacle of Super Bowl Week
The Atlantic — Inside the Garden of Evil
Documentary assignment
Quanta Magazine — Bob Metcalfe, Ethernet Pioneer, Wins Turing Award
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — The Supreme Court’s Abortion Decision Has Given Beto O’Rourke a Fighting Chance
Documentary assignment
The Atlantic — The Insurrectionist in the Flower Shop
Documentary assignment
The Wall Street Journal — Hotels Are Reopening. Will Guests Have Any Reservations?
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — The Dream of Turning Texas Blue Depends on Latino Voters
Documentary assignment
Documentary assignment
Commonweal Magazine — The American Parish Today
Documentary assignment
The Wall Street Journal — Can Design Thinking Save Business?
New York Times Magazine — How to Make Billions in E-Sports
Documentary assignment
New York Times Magazine — How the Trump Cabinet’s Bible Teacher Became a Shadow Diplomat
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — Can Beto Bounce Back?
Documentary assignment
New York Times — Who Wants Ribs?
Documentary assignment
New York Magazine — 68 Minutes With David Brooks
Portrait assignment
The New Yorker — Maren Morris’s Pop-Country Synergy
Portrait assignment
The New Yorker — Beto O’Rourke’s Rorschach Candidacy
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — Calling for Beto O’Rourke in Texas
Photography essay
The New Yorker — The Best New Yorker Photography of 2018
Photography award
The New Yorker — Midterms 2018: A Letdown for Beto O’Rourke and Democrats in Texas
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — The Last Day of Canvassing for Beto O’Rourke in El Paso
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — What America Will See in Beto O’Rourke
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — Beto O’Rourke and Ted Cruz in the Final Stretch of the Texas Senate Race
Documentary assignment
Documentary assignment
The New Yorker — The Challengers:
New York Magazine — Can a Democrat Ever Win in Texas?
Documentary assignment
New York Magazine — 7 Months Pregnant and Trapped in a Hurricane
Documentary assignment
New York Times Magazine — Who Gets to Graduate?
Documentary / Portrait assignment
New York Times Magazine — God Called Them to Adopt and Adopt and Adopt
Documentary assignment
New York Times Magazine — Wizard Wind
Documentary / Portrait assignment
New York Times Magazine — Is there life after 30?
Documentary assignment
New York Times Magazine — The swarm
Documentary assignment
Documentary assignment
New York Magazine — Kara Swisher’s Source Code
Virginia Quarterly Review — American Wedding
Photography essay
Selected Editorial Photography Highlights
The New Yorker — A Fan’s Notes on the Spectacle
of Super Bowl Week
Documentary assignment · Reported feature · Street photography · New Orleans · 2025
There’s the game itself, and then there are the parties and promotions, a glad-handing orgy for the sports-entertainment complex. The assignment documented the culture, commerce, and spectacle surrounding Super Bowl week in New Orleans, photographed in a candid, street-photography style for a reported feature in The New Yorker.
Story by Nick Paumgarten.
I was commissioned by The New Yorker to photograph Super Bowl week in New Orleans using a documentary, street-photography approach for a long-form reported feature.
Published in The New Yorker.
Read the full article →
New York Times Magazine — How the Trump Cabinet’s Bible Teacher Became a Shadow Diplomat
Documentary assignment · Reported feature · International politics · Managua, Nicaragua · 2023
I photographed Ralph Drollinger in Managua for The New York Times during a private meeting with Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and during the public celebration marking the 40th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution. The assignment took place across restricted government settings and a large public event, and was photographed while traveling under government escort with the writer.
Published in The New York Times Magazine.
Read the full article →
Commissioning & Licensing
Whether you’re an editor, publication, or creative team seeking original photography, I work on commissioned editorial assignments and provide licensing for published work. I focus on creating images that are story-driven, documentary in style, and visually distinct, suited for magazines, newspapers, and digital outlets.
Commissioned Assignments: Custom photography for features, profiles, events, and cultural reporting.
Licensing: Select images from published assignments can be licensed for editorial use, with clear usage terms.
Collaborative Process: I work closely with editorial teams to understand the story, context, and desired visual tone.
To discuss a new assignment or licensing request, please contact me.