We love design in all its forms. The pixels we spend our days perfecting, the exciting work coming out of Leicestershire’s Universities and the joy of our local built environment, the city we call home. Next time you’re out and about amongst the buildings of Leicestershire and Rutland, look up, look around and capture the beauty in an image, you could be the next LRSA photography competition prize winner.
The Leicestershire and Rutland Society of Architects runs its photography competition every year. It’s open to anyone with a phone/camera and curiosity about the built environment. You don’t need to be an architect or a photographer, just an interest in what’s around you.
Design is everywhere, not just on a screen
The curve of a Georgian terrace on New Walk. Light falling across the fins of Curve’s facade. The patina of two-hundred year old rural brick against an agricultural backdrop… Leicester and Rutland are full of beautiful design, old and new. Once you start noticing good design in the buildings around you, it’s impossible to stop – and there’s a rabbit-hole of history in which to get lost.
The LRSA photography competition
We’re proud of our home and this celebration of the city and county in which we work and live is something we’re keen to encourage. To enter, your photo needs to:
- – have been taken in Leicestershire or Rutland
- – be a single image – not composited
- – not have been AI-generated or AI-edited
and that’s it, you’ll just need to say where each photo was taken and if you’re under 18, a parent or guardian needs to give consent.
Entries close on 10th October 2026 at 23:59, so still plenty of time to capture your image. Head to the LRSA photography competition page to see the full terms and enter up to three photos of Leicester and Rutland’s built environment.
The LRSA photography competition & Love Architecture 2026
The photography competition is just one element of LRSA’s Love Architecture 2026 season, a month-long celebration of architecture and the built environment across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland. The events include walks, talks and even a pub quiz:
- President’s Prize Student Competition: 28th September to 7th October 2026. A design competition for architecture students, competing for a prestigious prize.
- AI Event: Artificial Intelligence: Monday 5th October 2026, 18:00 to 21:00, at The Marquis of Wellington. An evening exploring artificial intelligence in development, run with Landmark Planning Ltd.
- Guided Walk of the City Centre Trail: Saturday 10th October 2026, 10:00 to 12:00. A walk through Leicester’s architectural plaque trail.
- Guided Walk of Leicester Cultural Quarter: Sunday 11th October 2026, 12:00 to 14:30, starting at LCB Depot. A closer look at the buildings and changing identity of the Cultural Quarter.
- LRSA Pub Quiz: Thursday 15th October 2026, 17:30 to 21:00, at Queen of Bradgate. A social evening for the architecture and built-environment crowd.
- Pecha Kucha: Tuesday 27th October 2026, 18:00 to 21:00. A fast-paced series of presentations from some of Leicester’s creatives, 20 slides each, 20 seconds a slide.
Full details, times and booking links for every event are on the Love Architecture 2026 calendar.
Whether you enter the LRSA photography competition, turn up for the pub quiz or join a guided walk, the joy of finding and exploring good design in your city awaits…
Next time you’re walking through the city or out across the county, look up, look around and take a snap, it could be a prize-winner.
Frequently asked questions
It's the LRSA's Architectural Photography Competition, run as part of Love Architecture 2026, celebrating photographs of the built environment across Leicestershire and Rutland.
Anyone can enter, not just architects or professional photographers. Entrants under 18 need a parent or guardian to give consent and provide their own contact details on the entry.
Photos of the built environment taken in Leicestershire or Rutland. You can enter up to three images and each one needs its location stated.
No. The competition rules rule out AI-generated or AI-edited images, along with photos that composite two images together.
Entries close on 10 October 2026 at 23:59. Entries go through the LRSA's own photography competition page, where you can upload your images, state where each was taken and confirm you meet the consent and terms requirements.
The photography competition sits alongside a student design competition, an AI in development evening, guided architecture walks, a pub quiz and a Pecha Kucha presentation series, all listed on the LRSA's Love Architecture 2026 calendar.
We Love Leicester. Anything that celebrates the city and its beauty is alright by us.
