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David Oates | Manchester Photographer

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Latest Editorial, Portrait & Commercial Photography Projects

A selection of my most recent commissions and ongoing projects.

The work shown here spans editorial assignments, portrait commissions, documentary projects and commercial photography for organisations and publishers. It reflects current areas of focus and the range of contexts in which I am working.

New projects are added regularly.

Portrait of Delaine Le Bas at Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester

Delaine Le Bas: Un-Fair-Ground Exhibition Photography at The Whitworth

David Oates February 18, 2026

At the opening of Un-Fair-Ground at The Whitworth in Manchester, artist Delaine Le Bas transformed the gallery into an immersive environment using layered textiles, painted slogans, and fairground imagery. The exhibition is designed to be experienced as a single, cohesive space rather than a series of separate works, inviting visitors to engage with themes of visibility, representation, and resistance.

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In Artists, Event Tags delaine le bas, Whitworth Art Gallery, Art gallery photography, Art, art installation, art gallery opening, artist, art opening, Art in Manchester, university, University of Manchester, painting, sculpture, installation, performance art, performance, roma
Three young female students discussing a canvas painting at the 2024 Fine Art Masters Show in Holden Gallery, Manchester, contemporary art photography

Photographing the 2024 Fine Art Masters Show at the Reopened Holden Gallery

David Oates October 14, 2024

The Holden Gallery in Manchester has now reopened following a major two-year refurbishment of the historic Grosvenor building, revitalizing its exhibition spaces and offering a fresh, contemporary setting for art. I was recently back at the gallery to photograph the 2024 Fine Art Masters Show, an annual highlight that showcases the incredible talent of emerging artists from across the UK.

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In Artists, Documentary Tags Manchester School of Art, Holden Gallery, manchester metropolitan university, Masters show, Masters degree, Fine Art, graduation, graduates, final year show, Art gallery photography, art gallery opening, art installation, art opening, Art school, Art in Manchester, Arts in Manchester, Art, artist
_37B7021.jpg

Cloud Studies by Forensic Architecture

David Oates July 12, 2021

Photographs from the excellent new exhibition Cloud Studies by Forensic Architecture currently showing at Whitworth Art Gallery as part of Manchester International Festival.

https://forensic-architecture.org/investigation/cloudstudies

‘Cloud Studies’ was made for the exhibition Critical Zones: Observatories for earthly politics at ZKM Centre for Art and Media in Karlsruhe. Alongside the physical exhibition, our work is also presented on the virtual exhibition platform.

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In Documentary, Editorial, Event Tags MIF, MIF2021, Art gallery photography, Art, art installation, artist, art opening, Art in Manchester, Arts in Manchester, Manchester Art Gallery, Whitworth Art Gallery, university, University of Manchester, Cloud Studies, Forensic Architecture
Portrait of poets Andrew and Ian McMillan photographed for The Sunday Times

Ian & Andrew McMillan

David Oates January 28, 2019

It was a real pleasure to photograph poets Andrew McMillan and his father Ian for the Sunday Times ‘Relative Values’ feature a few months ago.

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In Artists, Portraits, Editorial Tags artist, Ian McMillan, Andrew McMillan, Sunday Times, Relative Values, Poet, Poetry, Manchester Photography, Manchester photographer, Editorial Photography, Portrait Photography
Cecily Brown.jpg

Cecily Brown

David Oates March 6, 2018

Shot at the opening of Shipwreck Drawings at Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester 

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In Portraits, Artists Tags Cecily Brown, artist, Manchester photographer, Manchester Photography, Portrait Photography
Associated, Brooklyn
Associated, Brooklyn
Great to work with TOL Events, @adidas and @versus at @manchesterunited yesterday.

@adidasfootball @adidaswomen
Great to work with TOL Events, @adidas and @versus at @manchesterunited yesterday. @adidasfootball @adidaswomen
Pizza fire
Pizza fire
Robert Indiana, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, September 2022
Robert Indiana, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, September 2022
Buslingthorpe Works.
Buslingthorpe Works.
Manchester City Gallery

#manchester
#gallery
Manchester City Gallery #manchester #gallery
Barmouth beach 

#barmouth #wales
Barmouth beach #barmouth #wales
Amsterdam Noord

#amsterdam #amsterdamnoord
Amsterdam Noord #amsterdam #amsterdamnoord
#wales #beach #seaside #holidays
#wales #beach #seaside #holidays
It was a pleasure to photograph Ann Treneman for The Times recently, a shoot that resulted in my first cover for The Times Weekend supplement and my first image on the cover of The Times.
Until 2015, Ann was The Times' parliamentary sketchwriter and
It was a pleasure to photograph Ann Treneman for The Times recently, a shoot that resulted in my first cover for The Times Weekend supplement and my first image on the cover of The Times. Until 2015, Ann was The Times' parliamentary sketchwriter and then the paper's chief theatre critic. Ann subsequently retrained in horticulture and the article details her preparations for this year's Chelsea flower show for which she has designed a garden. @thetimes #thetimes #chelseaflowershow @timesweekend @the_rhs @show_chelsea @anntreneman1
Some highlights from my recent shoot at Adidas UK

#adidasuk #adidasxgucci #sport 
#sportswear #reebok #adidasoriginals
Some highlights from my recent shoot at Adidas UK #adidasuk #adidasxgucci #sport #sportswear #reebok #adidasoriginals
#britishrailways #britishrail #eastlancashirerailway #bury #train #trainspotting #heritagerailway
#britishrailways #britishrail #eastlancashirerailway #bury #train #trainspotting #heritagerailway
Frigates
Frigates
Some paper peeling off a wall in Marseille. I'm currently in Scotland, the light is inferior

#marseille #citeradieuse #southoffrance #suddelafrance #mediterranean
Some paper peeling off a wall in Marseille. I'm currently in Scotland, the light is inferior #marseille #citeradieuse #southoffrance #suddelafrance #mediterranean
I am shocked and disappointed to hear that Alastair Hudson has been asked by the University of Manchester to leave his post as director of Manchester and Whitworth art galleries.

Alastair turned the Whitworth into a gallery where diverse voices coul
I am shocked and disappointed to hear that Alastair Hudson has been asked by the University of Manchester to leave his post as director of Manchester and Whitworth art galleries. Alastair turned the Whitworth into a gallery where diverse voices could be heard, excluded groups were welcomed and important questions asked. I hope the university sees fit to reverse its decision and I look forward to continuing to photograph the exhibitions curated under his guidance. #manchester #whitworthartgallery #whitworthgallery #manchesterart #cityartgallery #forensicarchitecture #alastairhudson @forensicarchitecture #university @whitworthart @magwagdirector
In the spray booth

#carbody #manchester #bodyshop #spraybooth
In the spray booth #carbody #manchester #bodyshop #spraybooth
In Situ (formerly The Commercial/Turville) in Hulme (or as it's now known, Castlefield)

#manchester #castlefield #hulme
In Situ (formerly The Commercial/Turville) in Hulme (or as it's now known, Castlefield) #manchester #castlefield #hulme
Mam Tor. Mother Hill. The Shivering Mountain.

The base of Mam Tor is composed of black shales of the Bowland Shale Formation of Serpukhovian age overlain by turbiditic sandstone of the Mam Tor Sandstone F
Mam Tor. Mother Hill. The Shivering Mountain. The base of Mam Tor is composed of black shales of the Bowland Shale Formation of Serpukhovian age overlain by turbiditic sandstone of the Mam Tor Sandstone Formation of Bashkirian age. #mamtor #derbyshire #nationalpark #nationaltrust #peakdistrict #edale #hope #castleton #geology
Lockdown BMW

#bmw
Lockdown BMW #bmw

David Oates is a photographer based in Manchester, England.

Clients include Wall Street Journal, ESPN, The Financial Times, Art Fund, Transport for the North, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, BP, BBC, The Times, The Observer, UK Youth, Samaritans, The Whitworth Art Gallery, Asthma UK, Finisterre, 11 Freunde (Berlin), Scandinavian Airlines, Manchester Museum, OTW (Stockholm, Business Insider (New York) and the British Ecological Society.

Exhibited internationally at Dallas Biennial, Recontres D’Arles, France; Festival Images, Vevey, Switzerland and the Dong Gang Photography Festival, Korea.


David Oates Photography

david@davidoates.net

07732 272 163

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