This is a sponsored article on behalf of The Arch Company.
The beautiful exposed brickwork, the muffled roar of engines from on high, the chance to step inside and discover your new favourite bar, bakery, barbershop, or industrial space serving the local community — we love a good railway arch at Londonist.
So do the folks over at The Arch Company — the nation's largest small business landlords — who are calling on aspiring photographers across the UK to capture their local railway arches in all their glory for the chance to win a cash prize, and have their winning image on the front cover of a magazine.
This is The Arch Company's #LoveYourLocalArches Photography Competition 2021. It's all about celebrating great photography, stunning architecture, and the incredible ways in which these unique spaces are being reinvented, as The Arch Company continues to invest in bringing these spaces into use.
The competition is open to amateur and professional photographers alike — as long as you're aged 16 or over, you're invited to give it a go. Just make sure that your chosen railway arch is one owned by The Arch Company before working your magic on it.
Once you've submitted your entry, it'll then be judged by a panel looking for well-crafted, emotionally expressive images that "communicate a visual narrative through excellent technical and creative skills".
The overall winner will take home a prize of £1000, and there are smaller cash prizes for category winners and runners-up. This year's categories are:
1. Unique Spaces
An opportunity to "focus on what makes the arches different using environmental portraiture".
2. Capturing Movement
Lifestyle images that are "less static and [more] unexpected".
3. Industrial Heritage
Photographs that pay tribute to the "history of the arches and their heritage, by bringing a modern twist to the historical spaces".
Each category winner gets £400. The five runners-up across all three are then subject to a crowd vote, with the most popular in each category getting £100 apiece.
As well as the title of #LoveYourLocalArches Photographer of the Year 2021 and that all important cash prize, the winner also gets the chance to showcase their talent to a wider audience. Thanks to a star spot on the cover of Arch Life — The Arch Company magazine — your photograph will be seen by 4000 businesses across the UK.
All in all, the competition is a fantastic opportunity to show off your skills, see railway arches in a whole new light, and possibly nab yourself a nice little chunk of cash while you're at it.
So, which arch will it be? From Brixton to Bethnal Green, there are plenty of gorgeous options right here in London, though you're free to photograph any of the railway arches owned by The Arch Company across the UK. Happy snapping!
The #LoveYourLocalArches Photography Competition closes at 11.59pm Friday, 12 November 2021. The winner and runners-up will be notified by Monday 22 November. Terms and conditions apply - see The Arch Company website for details.
