Real People, with stories in every frame.

Jenn Ackerman and Tim Gruber are two photographers with one shared point of view: real people over polish, curiosity over assumption and emotional honesty over easy answers.

Based in Minneapolis, they have worked together since graduate school, photographing stories about people, communities and the moments that shape how we live. Their work begins with genuine interest in the people in front of them. They know trust cannot be manufactured and that being welcomed into someone’s life carries both privilege and responsibility.

Working together gives them two ways of entering a story but one instinct for what matters. They challenge each other, make each other laugh, and occasionally disagree about who saw it first. What they share is a deep respect for the people who let them into their lives and a responsibility to make photographs that feel true to that generosity.

Jenn and Tim believe meaningful photographs come from genuine connection. Their goal is not to make life appear flawless. It is to make images that feel alive, layered, generous, honest, tender, and recognizably human.

For our aerial work, we are FAA 107 certified pilots and fully insured.

Jenn and Tim on assignment for National Geographic.

Select Clients

AARP The Magazine
Bloomberg BusinessWeek
Bon Appetit
Chase Bank
Delta
Departures
ESPN
Esquire
Fast Company
Field & Stream
Fortune
Inc. Magazine
Men's Health
Midwest Living

Monocle
Mother Jones
Mpls. St. Paul Magazine
National Geographic
National Geographic Traveler
Nike
Outside Magazine
People Magazine
Popular Science
Refinery29
Rolling Stone
Runner’s World
Samsung
Smithsonian Magazine

The Atlantic
The New Yorker
The New York Times
The New York Times Magazine
The Wall Street Journal
The Washington Post
Target
T-Mobile
TIME
Vanity Fair
Wired

Awards

2025 American Photography 41 Book Selection
2024 American Photography 40 Book Selection
2022 American Photography 38 Book Selection
2021 American Photography 37 Book Selection
2020 American Photography 36 Book Selection
2020 Minnesota State Artist Initiative Grant Recipient
2019 PDN Photo Annual
2019 Communication Arts Photography Annual
2019 American Photography 35 Book Selection
2018 American Photography 34
2017 American Photography 33
2017 Communication Arts Photography Annual
2016 American Photography 32
2016 Magazzini Fotografici Exhibit, Venice Italy
2015 Communication Arts Photography Annual
2015 American Photography 31
2015 PDN Photo Annual

2015 Minnesota State Artist Initiative Grant Recipient
2014 Communication Arts Photography Annual
2014 American Photography 30 Book Selection
2013 McKnight Fellow
2013 American Photography 29
2013 Communication Arts Advertising Annual
2013 PDN Photo Annual
2013 Minnesota State Artist Initiative Grant Recipient
2013 Documentary Photographers Fund
2012 Best of ASMP
2012 PDN’s 30
2012 American Photography 28 Book Selection
2012 Flash Forward
2011 PDN Photo Annual
2011 Center Project Award Finalist

2011 Magnum Expression Award Finalist2010 International Photojournalism Competition on Human Rights
2010 Flash Forward – Emerging Photographers
2009 Emmy for Trapped
2009 Photolucida’s Critical Mass Top 50
2009 Communication Arts Photography Annual
2009 Webby Awards
2009 New York Photo Awards
2009 Best of Photojournalism Awards: 1st Place
2008 Pictures of the Year International
2008 Photographers Giving Back Award
2008 Finalist for the Honickman First Book Prize
2006 Pictures of the Year International

Real People, with stories in every frame.

Select Clients

Awards

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