I visited Cambridge a couple of times in 2023 and found this characterful city a great location for street photography. Famed for its prestigious, high-ranking university, it has a lovely blend of history and architecture (from medieval churches to Gothic and Neoclassical college buildings), as well as a unique vibe brought by all the students and tourists swarming through the city centre.
Plus, all this is in a very manageable area, with everything worth seeing and doing being within walking distance. Perhaps the one drawback is that it’s so lovely that it lacks that offbeat edginess that we like as street photographers. But if you’re in the UK and looking for somewhere to combine travel and street photography, then Cambridge is an excellent option for either a day trip or a weekend away. And, you can get there by train from London’s King’s Cross Station in just over an hour.
Museums & parks
In between pursuing compelling street moments, you can browse world-class museums such as the Fitzwilliam Museum, a Grade I-listed building crammed with half a million artworks and antiquities which is one of eight great museums run by the University of Cambridge. Or you can give your feet a break from pounding the cobbled streets by popping into any number of sweet-smelling bakeries and specialty coffee shops; places like Fitzbillies, a local chain combining bakery and cafe. There are many enticing restaurants too, and if the sun’s shining it’s a delight to drink and dine outside and watch the world go by.
Cambridge also impressed me as a very green city, firstly due to the amount of cyclists – apparently there are more here than in any other British city – and secondly because of its many parks. In summer these are a magnet for picnickers and sunbathers, while in autumn they’re awash with wonderful colours. It was a joy to stroll through Christ’s Pieces, Parker’s Piece, Jesus Green and Midsummer Common, finding scenes to photograph as I went. On a future visit I would also be tempted to browse the Botanic Garden, covering 30 acres and containing 8,000 plants, with free tours available.
The Botanic Garden also belongs to the university, which really is the heart and soul of the city, generating a buzzy, youthful atmosphere. Students are always coming and going between games and lectures, so much so that you almost feel part of it. The university was founded way back in 1209 and its picturesque colleges are dotted around the city centre, inviting you to poke your head through their front entrances to admire the stunningly maintained gardens and buildings. Better still, take a walking tour of them such as this one led by the students themselves.
Punters & markets
Another of the city’s defining features is the River Cam, which meanders gently around the city centre behind the old colleges. I often find that water spots present opportunities for street snaps and the Cam was no exception, not least because it is the scene of Cambridge’s most idiosyncratic activity: punting. Punts are long wooden boats which you steer by pushing off the riverbed with a long pole. It apparently originated in the 19th century as a means of transporting cargo along waterways, though today it’s purely for leisure and tourism purposes. It was amusing to watch wobbly first-timers struggle to balance the boats and avoid an impromptu, unwanted swim!
The best place to get a picture of the punters is the area around Magdalene Bridge. The picture in this post that I took from there is especially dear to me, not just because I love that fiery little autumnal tree, but also because my grandfather studied at Magdalene College (the building to the left), in addition to several other family members. So I look at this picture and think of him, as well as how different Cambridge would have been back then, in the years just before and after World War II, unencumbered by cars and crowds.
Another fruitful area I found for photography was the vibrant daily market on Market Square, reportedly in use for that purpose since the Middle Ages. I liked it most in the dusk twilight.
So those are my early impressions of street photography in Cambridge, a city that has a lot to offer both photographers and travellers.
All the photos in this article were taken on Kodak Portra 400 film during two trips, in summer and autumn. Here are a few more to finish with:
