So why Shrewsbury?

shrewsbury photography friendly town, cartoon festival
There's a special atmosphere that make Shrewsbury photography friendly. The people here just seem to get on with life and enjoy it. This picture, captured by my student Tony Grisedale during a Street Photography Workshop, neatly sums up that attitude. Photograph by Tony Grisedale

So why is Shrewsbury photography friendly?

“If they don’t make you welcome, they’re not proper Shrewsbury people.” This was said to me by a Shrewsbury resident when I first took my camera into the town for a session of Street Photography.  So, is it just the people who make Shrewsbury photography friendly? Well, it’s certainly the main reason – but even that wouldn’t work if there was nothing worth photographing.

Having now taken several one-to-one photography students around the town taking pictures and run Street Photography Workshops here, I can vouch for the fact that there are pictures to be seen around almost every corner.

Combine a welcoming atmosphere and a town with great visual appeal – and you have a photographer’s paradise.

Main photograph above by my student Tony Grisedale taken during the Shrewsbury Cartoon Festivaland

Shrewsbury photgraphy friendly,street photography workshops in Shrewsbury, photographer shows his oicture
Mostly it's the people who make the beautiful town of Shrewsbury so photography friendly. I've been commissioned to photograph people, towns and cities all over the world, and I'm convinced that Shrewsbury is the best town in England to learn Street Photography. Here's Joe, one of my photography students, showing his picture to a local photographer during a Street Photography Workshop in the town centre

Rock On! Shrewsbury

Like all vibrant market towns, Shrewsbury always seems to have something going on – often in the streets.

There are Morris Dancing events, Cartoon Festivals, buskers, art shows and live music. Photographers are always welcome at these events – it’s what makes Shrewsbury photography friendly.

Shrewsbury is famous for its multiple Gold Awards in The Britain in Bloom Competition. If you enjoy photographing flowers then we can take pictures in The Dingle – Percy Thrower’s floral masterpiece.

I enjoy photographing Shrewsbury after dark, and I get a buzz from taking photographers on mixed light and night photography walks though the town. If you’d like to do this, please contact me so that we can arrange a photo session.

 

rock 'n roll lady shrewsbury
Zest for life - dancing to live street music in Shrewsbury
shrewsbury happy people - woman with plastic fish
Shrewsbury Photography friendly - no, I don't know why this lady was carrying a plastic fish, but it made an interesting picture for my strudent Gordon Stockley
Thumbs of for Photography Friendly Shrewsbury. Another well-captured picture by Gordon Stockley taken during his photography workshop

Why is Shrewsbury photo friendly - even after dark?

shrewsbury night photography
Shrewsbury at twilight - my student Jeremy Flint captured this picture of the Porthill Bridge over the River Severn using mixed light with flash to capture a wonderfully colourful and atmospheric image. Photograph by Jeremy Flint

Shrewsbury is a market town with a medieval street plan that is pretty much unspoilt. The town boasts over 660 listed buildings including several fine examples of timber framed houses from the 15th and 16th centuries. The town nestles in a loop of the River Severn, which surrounds it on three sides. This means there are river scenes and interesting reflections to photograph – especially in the evening. So my Mixed Light Photography Workshops in Shrewsbury have proved very worthwhile.

Among this labyrinth of old streets is Grope Lane – said to have been named because it was in the old ‘red light’ district. With its narrowness and overhanging buildings it’s easy to imagine the hanky-panky that went on here after dark.

Shrewsbury photography - pictures around every corner

street photography shrewsbury
So many aspects of the town make Shrewsbury photography friendly. Local people who seem to welcome visitors, beautiful buildings, and a medaevil street plan that creates visual surprises at the corner of every alley and lane. Photograph by Philip Dunn

Shrewsbury is not all just 'pretty' pictures

Yes, of course the fact it is so visually attractive makes Shrewsbury photography friendly. But it’s not all Morris Dancing and black-and-white houses. Where there are people, there are photographs to be taken, and, that’s really what Street Photography is all about.

If you would like to improve your skills or make a start in Street Photography – join one of my Photography Workshops in a town where photographers are accepted – join me in Shrewsbury, the photography friendly town.

photography friendly shrewsbury photographers at work
Photographers at work during one of my Photography Workshops in the centre of Shrewsbury
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