Solent student Ellis T. Carroll wins Graduate Fashion Week photo award

Ellis T. Carroll has won the Fashion Photography Award at Graduate Fashion Week 2026 for COMMON FOLK, an eight-part project that turns British and Irish folklore into fashion editorials. The final-year BA (Hons) Fashion Photography and Image Production student at Southampton Solent University was named winner on 25 June 2026.

What makes Carroll’s work stand out is not just the subject matter, but the way he built it. COMMON FOLK was shot on medium- and large-format film, then printed in the darkroom, with each editorial paired with contextual text. That combination of analogue process and narrative framing gives the project a slower, more deliberate feel than the endless scroll of digital fashion imagery, and it puts story back at the center of the frame.

Carroll, who is 21 and works out of London and Winchester, said the project was rooted in British and Irish folklore and grew from his interest in reclaiming British identity through contemporary fashion photography. In a field often driven by speed and surface, his winning edit leans into texture, authorship and cultural reference, using folklore as a visual engine rather than a costume rack.

The award came during a strong year for Solent at Graduate Fashion Week, where 13 students were shortlisted across 17 nominations in fashion photography, moving image, styling, marketing and inclusive design. Emma Calder, Solent’s course leader, said the shortlist reflected the passion, creativity and dedication students had shown over three years of study. She also pointed to the practical value of the event, which gives finalists direct access to judges, recruiters, industry talks, portfolio reviews and networking opportunities.

Carroll said those opportunities had already fed into his working life. He described Solent’s lecturers as helping make him “career ready” through shoot opportunities, shoot preparation and advice on approaching clients. During his final year, he was also booked as a fitness photographer for fashion house Kenton Kirwan, a sign that the portfolio work behind COMMON FOLK was already opening doors beyond the student category.

Solent has now built a clear run of Graduate Fashion Week recognition. Kristian Braband won the Terry Mansfield Fashion Publication Award in 2023 for Fashioning Minds, and Jennifer Harriman took the Fashion Marketing Award in 2024. This year’s win lands as Graduate Fashion Week marked the Graduate Fashion Foundation’s 35th anniversary at Truman Brewery in London, with awards, catwalk shows, industry networking and careers sessions all packed into the programme. For Carroll, the trophy arrives with a portfolio that feels pointedly current: tactile, researched and built to travel from folklore into fashion’s next phase.