Redeye is delighted to be returning with the next National Photography Symposium (NPS), its biennial event, this year held at the MediaCityUK base of the University of Salford. The Symposium will be held over three dynamic and engaging days, 1-3 November 2018.

Entitled The Future of Work in Photography, the Symposium will be a chance for people working with or in photography to discuss current issues, trends, ideas and visions for the future of photography.

Innovative and forward-looking, the three-day programme of events will be richly curated and designed to begin conversations, collaborations, movements and campaigns to improve the sector, with over 20 influential people speaking.

NPS 2018 will be based around three strands:

1. Cultural and social shifts: what new roles have developed in photography, which skills remain relevant, and how are these be disseminated? Exploring where amateur and professional artists overlap, how to finance creativity, and the photography of the future.
2. The impact of technology within the industry: how is photography and creative work being consumed and shared, through which platforms? What new possibilities does technology present, how will AI and algorithms have an impact, and how are the large tech organisations influencing this?
3. Political and legal: exploring ownership, IP, copyright, the use of metadata, the place of blockchain, and whether current laws are workable. Discussing how global social changes such as climate, war or migration affects work.

Contact charlie@redeye.org.uk and kate@redeye.org.uk for further information or to ask questions.

Call-out for contributions

Would you be interested in contributing a short (10-15 mins) talk or presentation, or taking part in a panel discussion? Redeye would be pleased to hear from anyone whose work connects with the subjects listed above. We welcome photographers, artists, researchers, writers, producers or people in fields to the subjects being discussed.

Please send your expression of interest including:

• Information about your work and background or CV
• A paragraph about your proposed talk or contribution
• Your contact details
• Any venue or technical requirements

Send to redeyesubmissions@gmail.com by Tuesday 28 August 2018 at 10am. Maximum email size 10MB. You should get an immediate email acknowledgement. If you don't, please call (0161) 833 9993.

We will let you know if we would like you to take part by mid-September. We can’t pay fees for these shorter contributions but can pay for expenses and attendance to the conference.