Industry News
Reality TV contests look for the best of the best, but the BBC’s new photo show takes a different approach. The Great British Photography Challenge, a four-part series presenting six contestants with a variety of challenges, is both a contest and a masterclass designed to mentor each participant. The first episode is now available online through BBC 4 for viewers in the UK.
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While other photography-focused reality TV contests have popped up over the years, the Great British Photography Challenge frames the show not as a stringent elimination contest, but, as BBC explains, it’s more of a “mentorship.” Unlike shows like the Great British Bake-Off, contestants will not be eliminated every week. Instead, each of the six participants will spend the competition building a portfolio, with a winner selected on the final episode.

The contest also appears to focus more on creativity and a good eye than technical perfection or high-end camera gear. In fact, each episode starts with a challenge where the contestants have only an hour to create a photograph of a specific subject using their smartphones. Then, students move on to larger challenges. Shoots vary from Brighton Beach to a boxing arena, according to the BBC, and contestants range in age from 21 to 60 years old. Each contestant specializes in or is inspired by a different sub-genre of photography. Eventually, contestants will undertake larger projects with a celebrity expert in a specialized area of photography, including fashion, landscape, nature and wildlife, documentary, street photography and more.
The best part? The BBC’s new photo show is hosted by none other than renowned portrait and fashion photographer Rankin. Along with photographing celebrities like The Rolling Stones and David Bowie, Rankin is also the co-founder of the magazine Dazed and Confused. He will be joined by celebrity experts like Chris Packham, Maryam Wahid and Lamarr Golding, as well as guest appearances by models, actresses, stylists and editors.
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“Being a part of the Great British Photography Challenge has been an incredible opportunity to nurture the next generation of photographers,” says Rankin. “All the contestants had such unique and varied backgrounds, but what brought them together was their love for photography. The contestants have exceptional promise, and I’m excited for the UK to see their talent.”
In an interview with Amateur Photographer, Rankin explained that the show decided to add smartphone photography to the mix because “it’s a great way to strip back a photographer and make them approach a subject differently than they do in their normal day-to-day practice.”
The mix of masterclass with competition may help viewers to pick up some new photography techniques of their own. The first episode is now available online for viewers in the UK. To view the first episode or see the next air date, visit the BBC’s Great British Photography Challenge.