The AOP Gallery is showcasing a stunning array of contact sheets in its current exhibition, Contact Sheets: A Closer Look. Alongside two unseen contacts from AOP late member Patrick Lichfield there is a wide variety of work from 17 current AOP members.

From a contact sheet of Banksy at work to Gilbert & George at home, to experimental cross processing and stunning paladium contacts, to the famous Katie Price, Debbie Harry and the Duke of Windsor. The exhibition also looks back at the nostalgic scenes of the Covent Garden Market in 1968 and brings us an insiders view of the Royal Opera House.

Images are on show from:

As long as there has been photography there have been contact sheets. Once an essential component of the photographic process, their existence has diminished as the digital age progresses. Contact sheets however, represent an important era in photography and are destined to become a significant part of photographic history. They possess an inherently precious quality, as they are not manipulated, an extreme rarity in this day and age. In addition, they provide us with an invaluable insight into the photographers’ method of thought, as well as revealing the largely unseen and fascinating editing process

All images below © Duncan Caratacus Clark