The weekend of 23–25 May, we hosted the Oslo Street Photo Festival for the second time. OSPF is probably Norway’s first – and so far only – street photography festival. It started as a dream when I founded the Oslo Street Photo Collective in 2021. In 2024, it became a reality. And now, we’ve done it again.

We had 13 fantastic speakers – a mix of Scandinavian and international guests – who shared their thoughts, experiences and images. It was a weekend full of inspiration, with both depth and humour, and plenty of room for questions and discussion.

We also held a dedicated session where members of Oslo SPC presented and talked about their own work – something that means a lot to us as a collective.

What I’ve learned from organising a festival

Building a festival from scratch is a learning experience. Here are some of the things I’m taking with me:

• Things take time. Everything takes longer than you expect. Especially when it comes to securing speakers, venues and sponsors. Give yourself more time than you think you’ll need – and expect delays.
• People want to share. The street photography community – both in Norway and internationally – is generous. Many we reached out to couldn’t attend this year, but expressed a clear interest in joining us in the future. And those who did come gave us glowing feedback about the way they were welcomed and looked after.
• Look for solutions, not problems. Yes, it’s a cliché – but it’s true. A positive attitude makes it easier to collaborate and find good ways forward when things get tricky.
• Respect people’s time and capacity. Everyone on the organising team is doing this in their free time, without pay. That means we have to respect that people have different capacities. Flexibility and trust are key.
• Rent a venue – don’t get it for free. Last year, we were offered a venue for free. That saved us money, but gave us a huge amount of work – everything from chairs and sound to projectors had to be handled by us. This year we rented a venue that handled most of that. It cost a bit more, but saved us time and energy where it really mattered.
• Show images. People come to see photos – and we should take that more seriously. This year, like last year, we only showed the competition images. Next year we want to do more: show work from our Oslo SPC members, and maybe even mini exhibitions from our speakers. There’s a lot of potential here – and we want to give people even more inspiration.
• Accept praise – and critique. I’m not always great at this, but I’m trying to get better. Getting positive feedback during the festival is energising. Hearing what could be improved afterwards helps us grow. That’s why we also run a follow-up survey – to learn and make OSPF even stronger next year.

👆 Here are four I managed to shoot inbetween the chaos and organizing. I didn’t have much time to shoot pictures because I had to run around like a madman every now and then.

A huge thank you to the team

This wouldn’t have been possible without the people I work with. Oslo SPC and OSPF are built on teamwork, and I’m incredibly grateful for the crew I get to collaborate with: Andreas Feydt, Eva Brodtkorb, Morten Andresen, Øyvind Nordhagen, Thomas Myhre, and İtibar Aydemir Uslu. We know our roles – and we step up when needed. This is the best team I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with.

Thanks also to Tommy Nordpole, who documented the festival like a champ! Everyone who was there (and those who followed along on Instagram) praised the job he did. And to Berkan Uslu, who took time off work just to help us with setup and takedown – thank you!

Next year will be even better

OSPF 2026 will take place 5–7 June next year. Planning has already started – and I can’t wait. Hope to see you there.

Ekstra:

Samuel Lintaro Hopf, one of the speakers at the festival, has made a video about his experience of the festival. It starts at around 3:30 minute mark:

You can also read his thoughts on his blog: https://www.lintaro.de/2025/05/27/impressions-from-the-oslo-spf-2025/