Lest We Forget

It's not often that you get a photo festival in North Yorkshire so when Photo North popped up on my radar I made a note on my calendar to go along and have a browse.

Hosted at the International Conference centre and showing work from a whole host of photographers, I met up with my good friend, Gordon and perused the work on display. Most of it was documentary style photography which, honestly, isn't my preferred genre, however that being said, I was able to appreciate it all. One image in particular "Shadows of War 2" taken at Arres, France by Tom Stoddart, caught my eye. The image is haunting and so poignant on this day (the 100 year anniversary).

After chatting with Gordon about my relatives who had fought in WW1 he pointed out that my ancestor, Sgt Leonard Pottrell had lost his life where this shot was taken. How apt then, that it was this photograph, above all the others, that had spoken to me.

Whilst the photography on display wasn't exactly my cup of tea, I feel that it's imperative to support events such as this if we want them to continue and grow. Yorkshire and the surrounding areas are teeming with accomplished, talented photographers who perhaps don't get the recognition they deserve because their work isn't seen, as it would be in a larger city like London. If we want to change that it means attending things like Photo North - as the saying goes, use it or lose it. Hopefully, Photo North will be back and will expand to include more diverse genre's of photography alongside the talks it offered this year.