Chester Photo Festival 2026 — Making Voices Heard

Chester Photo Festival is a UK photography festival held in Chester, England, with the second edition running October 16–29, 2026 across six city center venues: University of Chester, Chester Picturehouse, St Werburgh's Church, St John's Church, the Grosvenor Museum, and one additional space. The festival was founded in 2023 with its inaugural edition in May 2025.

The 2026 theme is "Making Voices Heard," exploring photography through myths, feelings, memories, and personal narratives. Submissions are accepted across photography (up to 5 JPEGs per artist), moving images and short films (online link plus still), and artist books or zines (as PDF).

The fee structure is unusual: submission is free for up to 5 works, with fees charged only if the work is selected. Selected work pays £45 at the early deadline (May 15) or £60 (£45 for students) at the late deadline (July 15), at which point selection closes once 300 works have been accepted.

Selected work is exhibited across the Chester venues with standard framing provided in three sizes (50×40, 40×30, 30×30 cm), published in the festival book, and the artist receives a participation certificate plus invitations to networking events and artist talks. AI-generated work is accepted.

The festival is open to photographers at all experience levels with international submissions welcome. Selection is overseen by academics and researchers including Dr Alexandru Modoi and Professor Erik Knudsen.