This photography competition asks what hope means to you

A new community project and photography competition has been launched to attempt to ‘inspire hope for the future’ through the power of images.

The project has opened its call for submissions to both amateur and professional photographers to submit their entries before midnight on November 5, 2017.

A selection of the top 100 photos will be chosen to be exhibited in London in December, with all profits donated to mental health charity Young Minds.

‘O Hapless Warrior,’ Credit: Charlie Calder Potts/Show of Hope

Project organiser Georgie Gerrish told Amateur Photographer: “We feel that at the moment there is too much negativity circulating in the public sphere, our news channels and social media feeds are a constant torrent of hate speak, violence, anxiety and alienation.

“It is about each person thinking about hope and instilling what it means to them in an image and about them sharing that positive image with others.”

‘Baths of Budapest,’ Credit: Christopher Baker/Show of Hope

Georgie’s cousin Matthew Gerrish came up with the idea and organised a group of artists and charity workers to make the project happen.

The team decided to donate their profits to mental health charity Young Minds because of the increase in young people struggling to deal with their mental wellbeing.

Georgie added: “We hope the photos themselves will raise the spirits of those taking them and seeing them, but then by selling the editions we will be giving money to a charity thats making a real difference in the lives of vulnerable youth.”

So what are the judges looking for in the photography competition element? Georgie said that above all they are looking for stories of whatever people’s personal visions of hope are.

The project is international and open to all photographers of any age or ability. As well as your photo you will need to submit a short statement about what the photo means to you.