The Association of Photographers

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The Association of Photographers We are the leading trade organisation protecting & representing the best of professional photographers.

The Association of Photographers (AOP) brings professional photographers together and works to protect their rights and promote photography. We campaign for all photographers and our awards promote the best in photography. We also provide information services, education programmes, exhibitions and publications to support these activities.

Out now - May issue of Focus from the AOP.Hopping into the sunshine with the help of Jo Sax's wonderful Easter shoot for...
01/06/2026

Out now - May issue of Focus from the AOP.
Hopping into the sunshine with the help of Jo Sax's wonderful Easter shoot for Fortnum and Mason.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter / now zine for the latest in our campaigning, policy and industry news, plus updates from our members.

Featured this month:
Ron Bambridge Photography
Olivia Brabbs
Jonathan Browning
Peter Dazeley
Theo Deproost
György Englert
Phil Fisk
Sam Ivan
Gavin Kemp
Amit Lennon
Richard Moran
Scarlet Page
Jo Sax
Chris Terry
Louise Hagger
Carolyn Mendelsohn FRSA FRPS
Soulla Petrou
Rania Elsayed

Celebrating Professional Photography & Industry News
The Voice For Photographers Since 1968

SUBSCRIBE HERE: https://2c9ff61d.sibforms.com/v2/serve/MUIEAAbNGy6HGH5j-BkJQkl3AaiHiCS6kbqvx37zVtpqvZTnhlHNednQjDyIwlKhjkajXVKCfBrqiDTz9_me8_6c2bbJN9U9Z3V5jcUO4731wXN0_R4MGmub7b9pBMOHgHVFsOxfcTlCOCWqURVCaRGbdC9pNgKeZBcuumRBmLEePUG1lc3ygRM7QrLwT-pSQPYWICGd63sfDsUE

(Cover image: ©️ Jo Sax)



Join AOP Accredited Photographer Soulla Petrou for a dedicated MAXIMA LED continuous lighting workshop.After 30 years of...
20/05/2026

Join AOP Accredited Photographer Soulla Petrou for a dedicated MAXIMA LED continuous lighting workshop.

After 30 years of predominantly working with flash, Soulla will share why she now feels both liberated and excited by experimenting with Maxima LED lighting. She will discuss the practical advantages of continuous lighting in today’s market, where photographers are increasingly expected to produce both still and moving images — or at the very least, light for motion work.

This is also a fantastic opportunity to get hands-on with the equipment yourself, so please bring your own cameras and light meters to explore these lights in action.

DATES AVAILABLE: 6th or 8th June

MAXIMA LED lighting - Key Features
* Revolutionary new circuitry makes the product three times lighter than conventional LED lamps with the same power output.
Easily integrates with your existing lighting kit using convenient adaptors for Bowens and Profoto.
* One model is weatherproof and suitable for outdoor use with third-party batteries.
* Energy-efficient design makes the lights more environmentally friendly.
* Manufactured with zero-waste production methods.
* Available in bi-colour options.
* Conceived by a cinematographer and designed to meet photographers’ needs for reliable, compact, lightweight, and easy-to-use equipment.

©️ Soulla Petrou



Register for 6th June: https://maximaled.com/product/soulla-petrou-06-06-workshop-admittance/

Register for 8th June: https://maximaled.com/product/soulla-petrou-08-06-workshop-admittance/

20/04/2026

No Categories. No Themes. Just Outstanding Photography.

AOP Open 2026

The AOP Open Award puts your work in front of the people who matter — without needing a huge following or years of experience. If you have a strong idea, a distinctive point of view, or work you believe in, this award is about talent, not titles.

Open to all and judged by a panel of leading industry professionals – including
AOP Accredited Photographers:
Carolyn Mendelsohn
Louise Hagger
Joseph Ford Photography
plus Photographers:
Violeta Sofia
Nick Turpin

along with Dawn Moretti of Dawn Productions and curator Julian Rodriguez.

A cornerstone of the Association of Photographers Awards programme, AOP OPEN champions exceptional imagery, powerful storytelling and creative skill and celebrates its 16th Year in 2026.

Selected winners gain more than recognition — with promotion, access to industry experts, and 1:1 guidance to help further develop or launch a professional career.

Whether you’re an established name or just starting out, AOP OPEN is your chance to have your work seen by leading commissioners, brands and industry figures – and to measure it alongside some of the best in the profession.

Sponsored by Capture One and Fujifilm UK & Ireland - Awards will be given for Still / Series and Moving entries.
Cash Prizes + include £1500* kit from Fujifilm UK & Ireland + Capture One software

Winners and selected finalists will also be exhibited at Fujifilm UK & Ireland House of Photography - London in early 2027.

Find out more and
https://www.aopawards.com/aop-open-2026/
Entries close: 8th June 2026

Featured 2025 Winners & selected finalist images by
©️ Owen Harvey GOLD Winner 2025
©️ Charlotte Hartley
©️ Tom Farmer
©️ Jerome Maas SILVER Winner 2025
©️ Alex Macro
©️ Eliska Sky
©️ Charlotte May


Out now - March Focus from the AOP.Subscribe to our monthly newsletter / now zine for the latest in our campaigning, pol...
09/04/2026

Out now - March Focus from the AOP.

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter / now zine for the latest in our campaigning, policy and industry news, plus updates from our members.

Featured this month:
Monty Rakusen
JonathanandEdwin AndersonandLow
Wendy Carrig Photography 2024NDY CARRIG
Nick David
Jack Eames
Robert Fairer
Louise Hagger
Gabrielle Motola
Soulla Petrou
James Parker
Zula Rabikowska
Liz Seabrook
Adam Shaw
René van der Hulst
Tracey Welch

Celebrating Professional Photography & Industry News
The Voice For Photographers Since 1968

SUBSCRIBE HERE: https://2c9ff61d.sibforms.com/serve/MUIEAAbNGy6HGH5j-BkJQkl3AaiHiCS6kbqvx37zVtpqvZTnhlHNednQjDyIwlKhjkajXVKCfBrqiDTz9_me8_6c2bbJN9U9Z3V5jcUO4731wXN0_R4MGmub7b9pBMOHgHVFsOxfcTlCOCWqURVCaRGbdC9pNgKeZBcuumRBmLEePUG1lc3ygRM7QrLwT-pSQPYWICGd63sfDsUE?fbclid=IwY2xjawQdB3lleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFKaXk0OTN1UU5FRkF3MjFRc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHs5G92wjNxtSrlg45bcBzsQNkBMJB_3Akt-nJKfowjdB8AG3za

(Cover image: ©️ Jack Eames)




09/04/2026

Now Open - 2026 AOP Student Awards
Sponsored by Fujifilm UK & Ireland Capture One & APHE The Association for Photographic Education.

Discovering the next generation of photographers and image-makers.

Established in the early 1980s, the AOP Student Awards recognise and highlight the emerging photographic talent which exists in further education institutions across the UK.

A stepping stone to greater things - many past AOP Student Awards winners go on to become discovery winners as assisting photographers and then as professional photographers achieve the highest accolades in our AOP Photography Awards along with wider industry recognition.

We pride ourselves on nurturing talented photographers and image-makers throughout their career and providing those crucial first opportunities to be seen by those that matter.

Now open for entry - any student on a UK photographic course at either HD or FE level can choose between three categories:

PEOPLE - Judged by Aneesa Dawoojee - Aneesa Photography Dawoojee
This category covers any form of people-photography from portraiture to street photography, photojournalism and beyond. The People category is an opportunity to make visual comments about the human race and its ways.

PLACES - Judged by Greg Funnell Photography
Rather than duplicate possible locations such as landscapes and architecture, we offer this category which provides unlimited opportunities. We promise that we will be as flexible as you need us to be.

THINGS - Judged by Eleanor Harrison of Pearson Lyle Management
This category covers almost everything else. Think Irving Penn’s found objects, Mapplethorpe’s flowers, Ori Gersht’s explosions, cats, dogs, bats and monkeys by Tim Flach, and sublime still-lifes by Richard Maxted and then make something unique and sensational of your own.

Entries are accepted as either Still, Series (up to 5 images) or moving format (up to 15 mins max).

With an exciting range of prizes including a kit bundle from - this is a competition not to be missed!

Find out more via link below




https://www.aopawards.com/2026-aop-student-awards/

Out Now - Focus from the AOP, Issue 2 February 2026Subscribe to our monthly newsletter / now zine for the latest in our ...
10/03/2026

Out Now - Focus from the AOP, Issue 2 February 2026

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter / now zine for the latest in our campaigning and industry news plus updates from our members.

Celebrating Professional Photography & Industry News

The Voice For Photographers Since 1968

SUBSCRIBE HERE: https://2c9ff61d.sibforms.com/serve/MUIEAAbNGy6HGH5j-BkJQkl3AaiHiCS6kbqvx37zVtpqvZTnhlHNednQjDyIwlKhjkajXVKCfBrqiDTz9_me8_6c2bbJN9U9Z3V5jcUO4731wXN0_R4MGmub7b9pBMOHgHVFsOxfcTlCOCWqURVCaRGbdC9pNgKeZBcuumRBmLEePUG1lc3ygRM7QrLwT-pSQPYWICGd63sfDsUE

(Cover image: ©️ Wendy Carrig)




28/02/2026

Come along and meet the AOP team on Stand No. H65 where will be offering:

AOP Accredited Photographer Pre-Approvals with exclusive TPVS show discount along with Insurance Surgery sessions and more!

Further programme details to follow

A Personality Right in the age of AI?
15:30 to 16:30 Monday 16 March at the NEC.

Join Nick Dunmur- Professional photographer and Business & Legal Adviser to the AOP along with Jack Jones - IP lawyer at Sheridans, Carole White - CEO, Premier Model Management and Tony Harmer - Illustrator and Educator for a lively and insightful discussion.

Tickets are on sale for The Photography & Video Show 2026.

TPVS: AOP Discount code: AOP26
Use this unique discount code to secure 20% off standard and concession advance entry, expiring at midnight 12 March.

Remember too that professionals can apply for free entry!

Book here: https://www.photographyshow.com/welcome/tickets


Join us for a FREE webinar wiith Working Class visual artist,Farm labourer, Founder and photographer - Joanne CoatesA F...
25/02/2026

Join us for a FREE webinar wiith Working Class visual artist,Farm labourer, Founder and photographer - Joanne Coates

A Fireside Chat - Rewilding Photography, with Joanne Coates

Tuesday 3 March 2026
19:00 - 20:30

Presented by the AOP Sustainability Working Group, this FREE webinar is an online AOP discussion for World Wildlife Day, exploring the role of photographers and independent image makers in nature recovery.

The conversation will focus on how authentic storytelling and sustainable practices can help shape wider culture around nature and wildlife.

Book your FREE place here: https://buytickets.at/associationofphotographers/2088825

ABOUT:
JOANNE COATES is a working class visual artist using the medium of photography. She lives and works across the Yorkshire Dales and the North East of England. Her work explores rurality, hidden histories, and inequalities relating to low income through photography, installations, and audio.

She uses photography to question stories around power, identity, wealth, and poverty. She was first educated in working class communities, and then at London College of Communication (BA Hons Photography). Participation and working with communities are an important aspect of her work.

The AOP SUSTAINABILITY WORKING GROUP is tasked with demystifying sustainability within photography and short-form moving image production and providing clear strategies for all professional image-makers to use in the urgent pursuit of a net-zero carbon future.

Our aim is to provide advice and information on the business case for photographers and producers to be developing low carbon or carbon-free ways of working, along with helpful resources from practitioners and links to tools that measure greenhouse gas emissions from shoots/production, and how to use gathered data to benefit your clients and business.

Why join the AOP?We're here to support you, as a professional, whatever stage you're at in your career. AOP membership:...
16/02/2026

Why join the AOP?

We're here to support you, as a professional, whatever stage you're at in your career.

AOP membership: A mark of professionalism and excellence.

The Association of Photographers is the leading voice for professional photography—championing creators, protecting standards, and shaping a sustainable future for the industry. Trusted by brands, commissioners and industry partners, as an informed, independent authority, we uphold industry standards around licensing, contracts, copyright, AI and ethical working.

Founded by Photographers for Photographers we offer specialist support in a rapidly changing industry

We're a community of image-making professionals who speak your language and shout for your rights. From student to fully Accredited, ther's a level to suit whatever stage your career is at.

Join Us
https://www.the-aop.org/membership

Put the kettle on and tune in to the Exposed Negative Podcast for their interview with Isabelle Doran, CEO of the Associ...
12/02/2026

Put the kettle on and tune in to the Exposed Negative Podcast for their interview with Isabelle Doran, CEO of the Association of Photographers.

Discussing Copyright and AI - if you are a photographer or image making creative, discover how and why we are fighting for your rights.

Listen in for some laughs, insights and hard truths - not to be missed!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWzWauz5yH0

The Exposed Negative Podcast with hosts Greg Funnell and Tom Barnes, both AOP Accredited Photographer members.

Greg Funnell Photography
Tom Barnes



Address


Opening Hours

Monday 09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 17:00
Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00

Telephone

+442077396669

Website

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