Northampton photographer named as captain of Team United Kingdom at the World Photographic Cup 2027
A well-renowned Northampton photographer has been named as the captain of Team United Kingdom at the World Photographic Cup 2027.
Khandie Rees, who has run her business Khandie Photography since 2013, was selected for this prestigious position by the British Institute of Professional Photography (BIPP) – which represents the UK in this worldwide competition.
Khandie’s role is to select a national team to compete against professional photographers from across the globe, and individuals will compete for medals with their results counting towards winning the cup for their country.
Khandie has taken over for 2027 with a fresh approach, enthusiasm and an innate ability to rally the troops, with the final Team UK submission due at the end of October before the awards ceremony in Calgary, Canada next April.
“I came to Northampton as a photographer and never thought I’d be a studio photographer,” Khandie told the Chronicle & Echo. “It skyrocketed and I have two top selling books out. I travel to Europe for work and to give talks, and I work with big name brands.
“It’s about being yourself and I mentor a lot of people, including those with challenging backgrounds to get into creative industries. It hasn’t been linear and it’s taken time, as it’s a saturated town with creative photographers, but Northampton isn’t the only territory.”
Khandie has been coined as the people’s photographer as she is vibrant and relaxing in equal measure, with a focus on the personality of the client or brand she is working with. With a social media analytical background, Khandie understands what shots will convert to create evergreen content that fits the brief and beyond.
“I’m blunt, direct and what you see is what you get with me,” said Khandie. “I’m not a gatekeeper. I’ve loaned my studio out to someone with no budget and my camera equipment. I’m not elitist and I like to help people.”
Those who were part of choosing Khandie as the captain of Team UK praised her as celebratory, a cheerleader, a solid leader and someone who stands on business. Khandie was touched as being inclusive is of utmost importance to her.
She continued: “I can’t say I’ve always been perfect but I help people as freely as I can, as no one did that for me. More education needs to be done on the business side. Photographers cannot compete with each other as even if we looked at the same person, how we capture would be uniquely different.”
In this role, Khandie hopes to help the next level of photographers – and by this she does not necessarily mean young people but those up-and-coming in the industry, which may include people who have had the courage to pursue a new career.
Khandie’s career highlights include seeing her work on an album cover, her books being top sellers, being trusted to work overseas, and being part of the Women’s Rugby World Cup, and she looks forward to building on this with her involvement in the World Photographic Cup 2027.