Henri Cartier- Bresson’s quote, “Your first 10,000 photographs are your worst”, is apt in today’s age when everyone is a photographer, but not necessarily an accomplished one. It is in these times of new daily millions of published digital photos, and selfies, those who want to become a professional or already are and want to discuss photography with their equal peers find their voice lost in the crowd of novice photography. Restricted forums can be useful but meeting someone in person to discuss your passion is priceless. Getting access to expensive equipment, a photography studio for as less as a few hundred dollars, or the convenience of pay as you go, instead of a long term commitment surely makes it worthwhile to meet offline in a space dedicated to photographers. We have selected a few coworking spaces servicing photographers and enabling connections.

1. gravy.: Philadelphia, US. A studio and gallery combined, gravy. makes the top of our list as this is perhaps the only place in the world dedicated to and housed by photographers. Established in 2011 it now has grown into fifteen members and a collaborative photography coworking space. If you are a photographer, this coworking space is the best value for money you will ever get unless you end up working in the National Geography office or with the Planet Earth team J. gravy.’s mission is to promote discussion and advancement of photography as an art form. They support local photographers, with space for exhibitions, artists talks and photography specific workshop. They have a busy exhibition schedule, and this makes it an interesting coworking space as professionals from your industry comment and critic on photographer’s work. This genuine value add, accelerating the learning curve is rare online. They are now calling entries for the next exhibition “Another Day in Paradise” planned to open in July 2019. The winning 3-5 entries will have their work showcased at the exhibition. If you are a photographer, who needs that exposure, do not lose this great opportunity. gravy is also seeking new members with the membership benefits ranging from coworking desk, dark room access, and excitingly the opportunity to curate monthly exhibits. The monthly coworking desk costs vary from $150-$250 and can be customised based on the need.  The coworking space can also be hired for photo shoots, events, workshops and exhibits. It is by far the best coworking space for photographers in America.

2. PHOTOFUSION PHOTOGRAPHY CENTRE: London, UK. Established in 1979 as a Co-op of documentary photographers to London’s largest photography resource centre. It is an institution with a remarkable history. It provides professional development programmes, and through its members only scheme, hosts artists talk, feedback sessions and discussions on setting up a professional photography service. It also has a small coworking space that provides coworking desk hires with Mac workstations ranging from an hour to a day at subsidised prices from £10- £60. Apart from coworking desks, photographers can also hire Black and White Colour darkrooms which again are priced reasonably between £27-£40 for 4-6 hours usage. They also offer a scanning suite hire with Imacon 949 Virtual Drum Scanner with 8000ppi optical resolution plus Epson 10000 XL flatbed scanner. There is a team at hand to provide instructions in case one is not familiar with the equipment. True to its Co-op philosophy prices are reasonable between £10-£40 depending on the slot duration which can be purchased in multiples of 20 minutes.  
Additionally, they also offer film processing and scanning as a separate service at reasonable prices. Their extensive event and talks calendar is worth the price of membership for photographers for the excellent topic selection, the expertise of the presenters and the sheer number of photographers in attendance. Overall one is surrounded by photographers and people relevant to the industry in a coworking space dedicated to promote photography and encourage learning and collaboration.

3. Be STUDIOS: Worcester, US. A coworking space wholly dedicated to photographers. Created by wife and husband duo, Giselle Rivera-Flores and Jaime Flores, who liked the creativity and energy of the Worcester\'s Printers Building, so much that they built a coworking space and community for local and visiting photographers inside it. Equipped with all necessary props and providing access to expensive equipment at affordable price Be STUDIOS is the ideal place for photographers to use rather than investing in it themselves. Workshops make it a natural place for photographers to converge in Worcester. It provides flexible packages to drop-ins and its members. Hourly rentals start from $75 per hour which includes use of White/Grey/Black Backdrops, lighting equipment and rolling stations. For those who would like to visit on part-time basis or full time but do not need a permanent desk can choose either from a $150 or $200 per month membership which also offers 4 hours of studio time, a makeup area, entry to workshops, talks, networking events in addition to the facilities provided in the hourly package. And for those who need office space a $350 per month membership option which gets a 12 x 12 office space, 10 hours per month studio time and equipment, per month 3 hours access to the meeting room in addition to service provided in other packages.

We also like to give a shout-out to these lovely coworking spaces that while not focusing solely on photographers do provide photo studio renting services.

4. CoHOUSE: Sydney, Australia. A stylishly designed dedicated coworking space for creatives and photographers provides event space, photography studio, coworking desks and permanent offices. They also provide access to exclusive industry events, meeting rooms and printer access along with other basic coworking office amenities. Dedicated single coworking desks start at $50/day and $150 per week plus taxes. Private office suites that can house up to a team of six costs between $450 - $750 per week plus taxes. The studio and event space is provided on a half day or full day hire and is priced at $400 and $600 plus taxes respectively for weekdays with higher pricing on weekends. Conveniently located close to Sydney Airport it is an ideal coworking space for an in transit business traveller or local businesses in the area.

5. The Roller: Sydney, Australia. A coworking space housed by a relaxed community of businesses, creatives, photographers, video production professionals, marketing agencies and software freelancers. It offers a fitted office for 3-5 people, open plan coworking desks, bathrooms and shower facility along with storage for gears and equipment. It also offers a bookable photographic studio, ping pong table, 24 hours access and is dog-friendly. One can choose from private office charged from $290 per week, dedicated coworking desk at $135 per week or just become a club member for $25 per week which provides lounge and meeting room access only. The photography studio is charged by the hour starting at $50 while the cost for full day hire ranges from $300-$600 depending on membership status. Please note all prices exclude local taxes and are in Australian dollars.

6. COWORKING BONN: Bonn, Germany. It is a busy coworking space in the heart of Bonn. It provides coworking desks, meeting rooms a photography studio and a multimedia seminar room. One can do live streaming, videography and podcasts along with using the photo studio. The photo studio is 50 square meter, is equipped with LED panels, flexible adjustable ceiling lights for better shooting.  One can produce both product and advertising photography as the equipment is sufficient for it. However, glamour and portrait photography is not possible due to lack of equipment. If the customer has the equipment, then it can be shot. They also have an in house professional photographer who can shoot for you for a fee if required. They offer coworking desks ranging for a day, week and month along with a flexible option. Desks are divided into three options. A standing workstation, wall work station and island work station. Priced varies from as low as €5 for a day desk to €270 for a monthly coworking desk. The Flexi package is €75. Meeting rooms are booked in 2 hours multiple with a minimum of 2 hours starting at €40 up to €132 for 8 hours for a conference room. The seminar room is priced at the cost of €95 for 2 hours and up to €280 for 8 hours.