This year the world-famous Sony World Photography Awards exhibition will be held outside London for the very first time as award-winning leisure and retail destination Liverpool ONE is selected to hold host.

The exhibition features the very best in international contemporary photography, including images of current events, wildlife, landscape, portrait and travel. The awards have established themselves as one of the world’s leading photography competitions and the biggest in the UK.

Chris Bliss, Estate Director at Liverpool ONE, said:

“We are delighted to be welcoming the Sony World Photography Awards to Liverpool ONE.

“Liverpool ONE is a fantastic location for this and we are confident this is something which will prove to be extremely popular with both the people of this city and from further afield too.

“We look forward to working with Sony and making this an event to remember for everyone. Hopefully Sony will consider returning to Liverpool ONE in future years.”

The exhibition, at 40 South John Street, includes work from some of the best photographers from around the world. It is classed as the largest and most prestigious photography exhibition in the UK, attracting more than 150,000 entries from 230 countries this year alone.

The exhibition, part of the city’s cultural programme running alongside the International Festival for Business, will open at 5pm on Thursday 26th June. It will then open daily from 11am until 7pm through to 17th July and entry is free.

Launched in 2008, the awards are dedicated to supporting and cultivating photographic talent and discovering new photographic talent from across the world. A series of competitions are held throughout the year for photographers of all ages and skill levels and a new team of judges are selected each year from the World Photographic Academy. The best images are then brought together for an exhibition.

Scott Gray, Managing Director of the World Photography Organisation which arranges the awards, said:

“One of the main aims of the World Photography Organisation is to raise awareness of photography as an art form. We are therefore delighted to have been granted the opportunity by Liverpool ONE to relocate the exhibition outside of London for the first time within the UK.

“The photography on display aims to inspire and inform. It is a wonderful opportunity to provide the public with the unique cultural experience of admiring the exceptional photography on display during their time at Liverpool ONE”.