Holmfirth Perspectives – A Photography Walk & Evaluatory Zine

Join artist Ellie Waters on a short walk around our town of Holmfirth. During this walk we will be taking photographs of the natural and built landscapes of Holmfirth, whilst sharing and collecting stories relating to these spaces. Everything we talk about will map the culture of Holmfirth to inform the Cultural Strategy for Kirklees. Your involvement can help make these plans more relevant to your place!

We will start the workshop at Read bookshop, in the downstairs project space. There are some steps down to that room, those with accessibility issues please get in touch at hello@wearelocal.org.uk. Here we will discuss the areas of significance in the local township and share stories of these spaces, these stories might be personal, historical or observational. From this discussion we will map out our walking route together keeping within a half a mile radius of the town centre.

We will stop for 5-10 minutes at each site to discuss and take photographs with conversations to be recorded on a dictaphone. At the end of the walk, we will have a quick debrief and a hot drink giving you the opportunity to email Ellie all your collected imagery. She plans to transcribe the dictaphone recordings and use them alongside our collected imagery, the work will be output as a digital photography zine which will be shared with you and the wider community online!

The walking route is open to change following initial discussions at the start of the workshop.
1. Walk meeting point: Read Bookshop
2. The Civic Centre (Events)
3. Holmfirth Tech College (Education and architecture)
4. Sands (Recreational sports and outdoors/parks)
5. Holy Trinity Church (Religion)
6. The Nook (Food and hospitality)
7. Holmfirth Market (Farming and produce)
8. Mill shop (Industry)
9. Nora Batty’s house (Tourism)
10. Walk end Point- Read bookshop- Have a browse and bring home a lovely souvenir of your walk.
Walking difficulty?: Low
Type of terrain: Paved Walk ways, chance of some grass/soil areas.
Potential accessibility issues: Some incline, and decline walking. Some unpaved and uneven walkways.
Equipment needed: Camera Phone, or digital camera (please bring your cable to connect to photographer’s laptop at the end of the walk). Please bring devices fully charged.
About Ellie Waters:
I’m a documentary photographer based in Holmfirth. I am interested in our natural and built environments, and understanding how we identify with these spaces. I often work on long term projects touching on themes of place, home and belonging. I work with both digital and analogue photography processes, I use audio clips, video and text to tell stories on topics I am passionate about. I’m looking forward to being part of this project to capture and amplify the voices of our community whilst better understanding our cultural identity.
Website – www.elliewaters.com
Instagram – @_ellie_waters