OFFSHOOT: how socially engaged photography helps communities explore their relationships with nature

OFFSHOOT is a collaboration between University of Salford Art Collection, RHS Garden Bridgewater and Open Eye Gallery, which will culminate in special exhibitions next year. It will also be part of Open Eye Gallery’s LOOK Climate Lab and Photo Biennial 2026.

Socially engaged photographers Fiona Robinson, Anoosh Ariamehr and Liz Lock have been selected to work regularly at RHS Garden Bridgewater with different groups from the Salford community. They are now leading photography-related workshops and activities inspired by the gardens and gardening in general. Fiona Robinson and Anoosh Ariamehr are working with RHS Garden Bridgewater’s wellbeing and community groups who attend via socially prescribed programmes, and Liz Lock is working with four different youth groups.  

We asked them to share how the residencies are going and what advice they have for people who are interested in photography as a way of exploring connections with nature, plants, places.

Therapeutic gardening sessions

Fiona Robinson works with the regular group of individuals who have been prescribed a series of therapeutic gardening sessions. 

The group come for a therapeutic gardening session, so the sessions are really varied. They may be planting, harvesting or watering in the Wellbeing garden. We also have regular walks through the rest of the RHS site.  

The photography activities are there to enhance this, so we may do a short photowalk exploring with cameras and mobile phones. We’ve also done some cameraless photographs using plant material from the garden (anthotype and cyanotype). There is always plenty of time for people to chat and enjoy the gardens and drink fresh herbal tea.

There have been lots of great conversations, and both members of the group and the RHS staff have commented that the photography is helping them slow down and look at the garden more deeply.

I’ve also found some fabulous new plants for making anthotype images. This is a technique where the petals of flowers are ground to extract the pigment and then painted onto paper. This is exposed to sunlight (usually for several days/weeks) to create images.

As for the advice for people who are interested in photography as a way of exploring connections with nature, plants, places. Most importantly, just get outside and take some time to look carefully. Any camera or phone will make images – but it’s often more interesting to look at things from above or below rather than at usual eye level.

Photography as a way of looking gently

Anoosh Ariamehr is working with Recreate-U, a Salford-based, all-ages wellbeing group running family and adult sessions on the Community Grow plot at RHS Bridgewater.

I’m Anoosh Ariamehr, a socially engaged photographer and community artist. My practice weaves storytelling and photography together, particularly with marginalised and displaced communities, to explore identity, belonging, home and those untold stories that so often go unheard. I see photography as more than images: it is a means of building connection, enabling collaboration and making space for voices that have been heard less, or not heard yet, but very much matter.

My RHS Community Garden residency, Connecting Through Nature, explores how people’s relationships with the natural world can heal, connect and empower. I’m working with Recreate-U, a Salford-based, all-ages wellbeing group running family and adult sessions on the Community Grow plot at RHS Bridgewater, in partnership with RHS staff and volunteers. Community members learn about growing fruit and vegetables, discover how time in nature supports wellbeing, and enjoy the garden’s calming environment.

Our sessions have developed into a trusting, professional, yet friendly and safe space. We combine gardening, socialising, photography, care and listening: slow walks around the garden, observational prompts, practical photography tasks and occasional storytelling workshops that introduce simple photographic techniques. Some weeks focus on documenting gardening activities; other weeks prioritise photography sessions or photowalk and joint selection and reflection.

Small, embodied images, a hand in the soil, a bloom or flower, or the act of harvesting fruit and vegetables that we have planted and tended, have repeatedly resonated. Community members often connect these images to memories, feelings of safety, new senses of belonging and tangible achievement. The photographs gave people a real sense of agency over their narratives.

Practical advice for using photography to explore connections with nature by Anoosh Ariamehr

• Begin slowly: use your senses first. Spend a few minutes listening, smelling and touching before you raise a camera.
• Keep it simple: a mobile phone or a basic camera is sufficient; the emphasis should be on noticing, not on gear.
• Treat photography as a listening and co-creative practice rather than mere documentation. Invite community members to decide what to photograph and how images will be used.
• Use short, focused exercises to open conversation (for example: one macro shot of a leaf; three images that feel like ‘home’; or a single image that captures a daily care ritual).
• Prioritise consent and clarity about ownership and use of images. Agreements should be explicit and revisited before sharing work publicly.
• Be trauma-sensitive and inclusive: ensure sessions are accessible, offer breaks, and adapt activities to different needs.
• Share authorship through collective editing and small, meaningful ways of showing work, mini exhibitions, postcards, or a shared web page help sustain impact.
• Follow up: ongoing engagement, feedback and opportunities to show results help make projects meaningful and lasting.
• For me, photography is a way of looking gently and listening closely to nature and the human stories that surround it. When the process is genuinely collaborative, images become gateways to memory, calm and belonging.

Gardening for young people

Finally, Liz Lock is working with 4 different youth groups (2 this autumn and 2 in the spring) facilitating 10 sessions per group:

“The sessions are going well and we are exploring themes around nature and identity. I am halfway through the sessions with my current groups and it has taken that long to build up a rapport with them. I look forward to the coming weeks where the photography and writing will start to take shape.”

OFFSHOOT residencies work will be part of Open Eye Gallery’s LOOK Climate Lab, launching on 22 January 2026.

Text: Maria Gulina, Fiona Robinson, Anoosh Ariamehr, Liz Lock

Images: Fiona Robinson, Anoosh Ariamehr