Renowned Photographer and Filmmaker David McLain Joins Blue Zones as Fellow

MINNEAPOLIS, March 18, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Blue Zones is pleased to announce that David McLain has been elected a Blue Zones Fellow. The Blue Zones Fellows is an honorary society that recognizes outstanding achievements and contributions to Blue Zones research, community transformations, and population-level well-being improvement initiatives.

McLain is a trailblazing photographer and filmmaker whose lens has captured the essence of life in some of the most remote and fascinating corners of the globe. He has photographed seven feature-length assignments for National Geographic, including the iconic “The Secrets of Living Longer” cover story, a collaboration with Blue Zones founder Dan Buettner which became one of the top-selling magazines in National Geographic history. This project and the continuing collaboration with Buettner brought McLain to all the blue zones regions – regions known for their exceptional concentration of centenarians – where he visually documented the daily lives and environments that contribute to such longevity. He also photographed Blue Zones Kitchen, a #1 New York Times bestseller and one of the top 50 best selling cookbooks of all time.

McLain specializes in exploring big questions through intimate stories about real people. He was the Director of Photography for the feature documentary Bounce, which premiered at SXSW, and is one of the five founding members of the Sony Artisans program, where he has helped Sony break new ground in digital photography. McLain is also a founding partner of Slipstream, a production company focused on reporting the biggest health stories of our time through original reporting and ethnography. He has an innate curiosity, the ability to listen, and a deep empathy for people who inhabit different realities than his own.

Dan Buettner, Blue Zones founder and National Geographic Fellow and Explorer, said: “David McLain is one of National Geographic’s greatest photographers, one who has shot many iconic stories. There’s no one better to bring Blue Zones concepts to life.”

As a Blue Zones Fellow, McLain will leverage his storytelling expertise to continue to bring the Blue Zones research and philosophy to life. He will be a Blue Zones Keynote Speaker and will continue to play an important role in the Blue Zones mission of researching and documenting the most extraordinary populations in the world and using that wisdom to create healthier, happier communities.

Ben Leedle, CEO of Blue Zones and Co-founder of Blue Zones Project, said: “We are honored to name David McLain a Blue Zones Fellow. His remarkable talent for capturing the essence of these extraordinary cultures around the world has brought the Blue Zones research to life for millions of people around the world and will continue to play an important role in our mission to empower everyone, everywhere to live better and longer.”

“I’m honored to join the Blue Zones team,” says McLain. “For decades, I’ve documented the incredible resilience and longevity of people in the blue zones regions. I’m excited to share these stories and help others unlock the potential for a longer, healthier life.”

About Blue Zones®
Blue Zones employs evidence-based ways to help people live better, longer. The company’s work is rooted in explorations and research done by founder and National Geographic Fellow Dan Buettner in blue zones regions around the world, where people live extraordinarily long and/or happy lives. The original research and findings were released in Buettner’s bestselling books The Blue Zones Solution, The Blue Zones of Happiness, The Blue Zones, Thrive, and Blue Zones Kitchen—all published by National Geographic books. An Emmy Award-winning docuseries, Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones, was released on Netflix in 2023. Using original Blue Zones research, Blue Zones works with cities and counties to make healthy choices easier through permanent and semi-permanent changes to our human-made surroundings. Participating communities have experienced double-digit drops in obesity and tobacco use and have saved millions of dollars in healthcare costs. For more information, visit us at bluezones.com.

Media Contact: Naomi Imatome-Yun
naomi@bluezones.com
Blue Zones

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