In 2022 I sat on a panel of three at the prestigious Ivy Club in central London for a talk themed: The Humorous Side of Photography. To my far right is Haley Morris-Cafiero, an American photographer whose ‘Wait Watchers’ series, in which she photographs the reactions of passers-by to her presence, went viral in 2013. To my immediate right is Alison Jackson. I present for 15 minutes highlighting why humour can be an important tool for photojournalists in delivering a truth and hand the microphone to a smiling bleached blonde Jackson, creaking head-to-toe in her rock star black leathers. ‘I think photography is a slimy and untrustworthy medium that seduces you into believing it’s real,’ she says with commitment. Despite our differences, I admit to being a little seduced by Jackson’s argument, photography and character.
Jackson shot to prominence in 1999 when she created black & white photographs that appeared to show the late Princess Diana and her partner, Dodi Al
