Must see Photography Exhibitions in London

The best way for any aspiring photographer to learn is to attend as many photography exhibitions as possible. Use the opportunity to cast a critical eye over the techniques others have used, as you develop your own style.

Here, we showcase some of the best ones on in London at the moment:

Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2014

Aurora over a Glacier Lagoon by James Woodend, UK

This runs at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, until 1st February next year and includes an array of awe-inspiring images, from psychedelic auroras to meteor showers and more. And, this year, its sixth, this free exhibition has attracted a record number of entries, and showcases astronomic photographic feats that offer an unparalleled chance to see how it’s possible to overcome the particular challenges of shooting the night sky. Professionals and amateurs have entered categories like Deep Space, Our Solar System and Earth and Space. More information here

Make Life Worth Living: Nick Hedges Photographs for Shelter 1968-1972

Toxteth, Liverpool, March 1969 by Nick Hedges

This exhibition is at the Science Museum until 18th January. It incorporates about a hundred images from UK photographer Nick Hedges’ personal archive, taken for Shelter in the 1960s and 1970s. They are a stark depiction of poor living standards and poverty, premièred here after the lapse of a 40-year restriction aimed at protecting the subjects’ privacy. This show is one not to be missed. More information here

Revisiting Romania: Portraits from London

Smaranda Ardelean by Ion Paciu

This show is at the Balcony Gallery at the Horniman Museum, Forest Hill, until 8th March. This arresting display of photos shows modern Romanians living and working in the UK’s capital. The images were shot by Ion Paciu, the tutor at Photoion Photography School. The exhibition shares some of the stories behind these Romanians’ journeys to Britain, alongside aspects of their lives and their relationships with their native land and culture. A great one for experiencing and absorbing portrait photography. More information here

Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2014

Wildlife photographer of the year 2014, winner in the category Birds – Bence Máté, Hungary

This exhibition is at the Natural History Museum until 30th August 2015, with a late opening on the last Friday of every month. This year, as it celebrates its fiftieth anniversary, the competition opened more categories and encouraged photographers to look differently at how stories about wildlife are told. Expect striking visuals, strong narratives and, above all, a passion for the natural world. This year’s winner was Michael Nichols for his picture of a pride of lions sleeping on rocks under a dramatic African sky. More information here

Constructing Worlds: Photography and Architecture in the Modern Age

photo by Iwan Baan

This exhibition runs at the Barbican Centre until 11th January, and showcases photography going back more than three quarters of a century. Buildings were the easiest thing to photograph with the first cameras, given the long exposure time needed, even if light, human activity and weather make them hardly static.

From Berenice Abbott’s Night View, New York (an electrified cityscape) to images of West Coast modernism by Julius Shulman, to shots of the Indian dream city Chandigarh, from the 1950s, to images of Cairo, this is not to be missed if you have an interest in architectural photography. More information here