Friday, 12th April marked the first opening day of Photo North 2025 at The Carriageworks Theatre in Millennium Square. So a group of us from university headed over on the train to Leeds to immerse ourselves in everything from exhibiting work, from both celebrated and emerging artists, engaging in talks and screenings from industry professionals, to exploring stalls from various printers, book makers, and established brands such as Fujifilm, MPB and Cewe. It was the perfect day with the perfect weather to explore the wider photography world and gather inspiration for our final major projects.

As soon as we arrived, we headed straight into the main exhibition space. The range of work on show was really impressive, categorised by titled dividing boards, making viewing easy. The main floor had everything from traditional portraiture to experimental documentary and student competition work. 

One of the standout pieces for me was The Land is Yellow, The Sky is Blue by Marc Wilson and Anna Nekrasova-Wilson. Whilst The Land is Yellow, The Sky is Blue doesn’t directly connect to my own photographic practice, it still left a lasting impression on me. The project focuses on life in the Ukrainian village of Balakliya. The work was visually beautiful but also deeply moving, documenting the everyday moments of the community before and during the war. The combination of images and personal stories gave it such emotional weight; it was one of those projects that really sticks with you. The photobook further echoed this message.  While the subject matter is far removed from my personal work, I appreciated how the images conveyed a deep emotional connection to the land and its people. The integration of personal stories alongside the photographs created a powerful narrative that transcended mere documentation and highlighted the resilience of the community.

Even though my focus lies more on commercial product photography, seeing this project helped me reflect on the emotional power of imagery and how photography can serve as a tool for storytelling and social awareness. Reminding me that there is a shared ability within photography to evoke emotion, provoke thought, and inspire change.

After we had finished exploring the main room, we took some time to go for a coffee and refresh before we attended a talk by Channel 4, which was about understanding what it is like to be a young person in the creative industry. An important topic to consider when coming to the end of my degree. The panel included four apprentices from the last five years at Channel 4, which was genuinely inspiring to understand how they were able to come from a position similar to mine to now have carved out their own paths in such a competitive industry, and professionally work for one of the biggest TV channels.  Some of the key takeaways I took from this talk included

The importance of networking, pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, and the value of making connections.They spoke honestly about everything, including feeling impostor syndrome, which I can relate to, and their day-to-day life working as an apprentice for Channel 4. Understanding that there is a bit of everything to do from being in the office retouching, to be on shoots on location to shadowing higher ups. Throughout the talk, all four of the panellists continued to highlight the importance of showing personality and passion, progressing your own creative style. 

Once the talk was finished, we enjoyed the sun outside and had a quick lunch break, after this we headed back into the exhibition to see the rest of the work that we had missed. While walking around, we found ourselves constantly talking about presentation techniques—things like the type of paper, framing styles, and hanging choices. Since we’re currently planning our own degree show, it was super helpful to see how other photographers had chosen to display their work and what we felt worked best.

After a quick lunch break, we explored the rest of the exhibition and headed into the market-style room where all the vendors were set up. From photobook makers to paper suppliers, everyone was really friendly and full of advice. We ended up chatting loads with G.F Smith whose ‘Azure Blue’ paper we are using for the exhibition, who also kindly gifted us a sample box, allowing us to explore further printing finishes, textures and weight. It gave us confidence that we had chosen the right paper for the exhibition. 

To wrap up a brilliant, sunny day, we wandered around Leeds, shooting on my Yashica Zoommate 70 35mm film camera in the perfect weather that we had. The whole day was great, full of inspiration and it was great to meet so many people who love photography, and see so much beautiful work in the exhibition.