The Photographers' Gallery Reviews Summary

Staff and Service

Pros:

• "Staff mixed too, some lovely, some smug and ignoring all the ordinary visitors."
• "Good gift shop and helpful staff."
• "The staff are always very welcoming."
• "Staff were welcoming and friendly!"
• "The guy at the entrance was rude and didn't bother giving any introduction at all."
• "And the staff are friendly and helpful."
• "Staff were very friendly and helpful."

Cons:

• "The guy who runs it is moody, if not rude."
• "Even though purpose built, I find it architecturally awkward and cramped to navigate and the gallery space isn't generous."
• "The staff is friendly and the building itself is quite interesting."
• "The staff were friendly and helpful too."
• "Great staff and facilities."
• "Staff friendly and knowledgeable every time I've visited."
• "I also found the staff helpful and friendly."

Exhibitions and Collections

Pros:

• "Thoroughly enjoyed all the exhibitions open during my visit in early July."
• "The constantly changing exhibitions rarely disappoint."
• "The Chris Killip retrospective was brilliant for me, coming cold to a large body of work."
• "The photographic exhibitions are always fantastic, showcasing amazing photographer's work."
• "The current exhibition showcasing Daido Moriyama’s collection of work was incredibly inspiring."
• "Spread perfectly over 5 floors, I went to the Album Photography exhibition and it didn't disappoint - beautifully set-out with a great focus on the varying styles."
• "Roman Vishniac's photography was being shown (until 24/02/19) when I visited, and additional to his great photography you get a unique account of the Jewish experience leading up to WW2."

Cons:

• "Exhibitions can be a bit hit and miss."
• "A bit disappointing. The space isn’t particularly nice and at the time I went there were only really 3 floors worth of exhibitions including any kind of photography."
• "5 floors of pure disappointment."
• "However, having only one photographer over 3 floors became rather boring."
• "The exhibit was ok, but not well documented."
• "I haven't been to the gallery for many years. I found the current exhibitions a bit hit and miss."
• "I've never been more disappointed unfortunately in the displays of photography when I went there at the time."

Location and Accessibility

Pros:

• "Central location is good and easy to find. It’s got a cafe with decent seating and a shop in the basement selling all sorts of photo bits and books."
• "Step off super busy Oxford Street into this oasis of calm."
• "Based in heart of Soho, on a narrow street right next to Oxford Street and Marks and Spencer."
• "Located down a little side street off Oxford Street, blink and you'll miss it, make sure you have an idea where it is before you go."
• "Great location 5 mins from the Oxford St. Supporting young and established photographers."
• "Their new building is a tall, thin mewshouse right in the middle of Soho where you can avoid the Oxford Street crowds and check out some (usually free exhibitions)."
• "One of the best galleries in London for photography, photojournalism, and photographic arts."

Cons:

• "On the down side, the current location, while bigger than the previous one, is very awkward, with not enough room sometimes and a single slow lift on the way up."
• "it's in the back alley of a busy street, and the sign of it is not very massive so it took me some time to find it."
• "You would think a photography gallery would be mostly displaying photos but that's not the case here."
• "NOT AN INCLUSIVE SPACE... Displaying history without acknowledging its flaws does nothing but perpetuate its flaws."
• "In cafeteria youre not allowed to eat your own food."
• "Book shop is good, Café okay, both are overpriced and were better when they were in their previous location."
• "I admit I was disappointed. I expected to see amazing photos, but instead there was an exhibition relating to photography and games."

Value and Pricing

Pros:

• "£5 to visit although free after 5pm Thursday."
• "If you go before 12 it's free."
• "Nice gallery on multiple floors. £5 for adults, free for kids, really good value."
• "Exhibitions are often modestly priced, and I'm grateful for this, as I feel able to take a chance on an artist/exhibition I don't know so well."
• "It's free to enter before 12 noon."
• "Small fee (for London) compared to the quality of exhibitions. 8 pounds on-site or 6.5 online."
• "Entry was just £2, and I happily spent several hours exploring the different collections."

Cons:

• "Low price makes it worth a look... sort of."
• "I want to help the Gallery with the price of the ticket. But once I've finished the visit I am very sad because I expect to stay there longer time."
• "Set over five floors, but galleries only cover a few and consist of usually just one room, the amount of exhibits shown does not justify the £5 entry fee."
• "The £5 entrance is well worth it."
• "£2.50 for seniors & children or with the demonstration of a student ID, and £5 for everyone else."
• "Inexpensive to visit at any time, and they even allow a free hour at the end of the day."
• "The cafe needs to go 100% plant based."

Cafe and Shop

Pros:

• "Ground floor cafe is a haven off-hours, but rammed at lunchtimes."
• "Don’t forget to stop by the café, a peaceful place with great tea(!)."
• "The best thing about the gallery is its coffee shop."
• "The cafe on the ground floor is small, but has good quality coffee and cake."
• "Good coffee place and decent bookstore."
• "Has a great cafe which you can visit without buying entry tickets - perfect for a hot beverage and cookie or cake."
• "Cafe is on the ground floor, always a bonus and outside seating is available too, small artistic benches."

Cons:

• "The new café is okay but you get the feeling that it's trying to hard to be a more 'up market' café/restaurant' with prices to match."
• "It's okay in my opinion the café isn't as good as it used to be in its previous incarnation."
• "The cafe area is just perfect."
• "Café lunch food so so, but it's a good place to sit to have a rest and chat."
• "Unfortunately you only get rather watery Lavazza coffee."
• "A gritty black and white exhibition by Tish Murtha juxtaposed with a full colour installation of Photographs and film by Alex Prager."
• "We had a pit stop here because I was getting hangry on a walk around London. Quick service."