An intimate exhibition exploring the Royal Family’s relationship with the camera
Discover Life Through a Royal Lens, Hillsborough Castle’s first exhibition featuring a unique collection of Royal photography. This must-see exhibition documents the British Royal Family's ever-evolving relationship with the camera over the last 200 years.
Life Through a Royal Lens brings together over 60 of the most iconic images ever taken of the Royal Family, dating back to the reign of Queen Victoria. See images from notable royal photographers such as Rankin, Cecil Beaton and Annie Leibovitz, and learn about the history and stories behind each image.
View some of the Royal Family’s personal and lesser-known family portraits for an intimate window into the people behind the public figureheads.
Don’t miss this critically acclaimed photography exhibition at Hillsborough Castle.
Header image: Queen Elizabeth II holding a Leica camera about to take a photograph while attending the Royal Windsor Horse show in 1982. © Bob Thomas / Popperfoto via Getty Images
When
Until 03 November
In line with castle opening hoursTicket Information
Included in combined castle tour and gardens tickets (Members go free)
Book a group visit Buy Hillsborough Castle and Gardens ticketsRoyal Life Behind the Scenes
For centuries, majestic portraits and physical replicas ensured the public could recognise their monarch. This depiction was revolutionised in the 19th century with the invention of photography, revealing the true likeness of the monarchy to the public for the first time.
Life Through a Royal Lens explores how photography has been used to create an image of duty and stability throughout the centuries. Discover how advances in technology and media have allowed the Royal Family to connect at a more personal level with a wider global audience; for example, Annie Leibowvitz’s series of official photographs of Elizabeth II – the first time an American photographer had taken an official state portrait of the monarch.
Image: Queen Victoria with the Princess Royal, the Prince of Wales, Princess Alice, Princess Helena and Prince Alfred 17 January 1852. The children are gathered in a group around Queen Victoria, whose face has been scratched out. Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III 2023
Discover Life Through a Royal Lens, Hillsborough Castle and Garden’s intimate exhibition exploring the Royal Family through photography.
Photographers and their Royal Sitters
The choice of photographer, photo composition, clothing, and environment throughout the Life Through a Royal Lens photo series also provides insightful cultural commentary on the social climate at the time each photo was taken.
The exhibition explores the impact of photographers in redefining modern royal portraiture, from Cecil Beaton, one of the great shapers of royal image in the 20th century, to the varied choices for formal photographic commissions in the 1980s onwards. These later commissions from photographers such as Rankin recorded Elizabeth II’s likeness for perpetuity and contributed innovative new pieces to the Royal Collection.
Exhibition highlights
The Prince and Princess of Wales with Prince George in 2013.
Photo by Michael Middleton
Princess Elizabeth arrives in Belfast for a tour with the Duke of Edinburgh in 1949.
Image: © Belfast Telegraph
Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their three children, and The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
The official photograph to mark Prince Charles' 70th birthday was released along with two light-hearted out-takes, one of which is shown here. The images communicate the stability of monarchy and the sense of glimpsing an intimate moment between the individuals behind the public image.
Image: © Chris Jackson / Getty Images for Clarence House
Prince Albert by William Constable. This is the first known photograph to have survived of a member of the British Royal Family.
Image: Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III 2023
Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh wave to the cheering crowds from a window in Hillsborough Castle, on the first day of their two-day Silver Jubilee visit to Ulster in 1977.
Image: © PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles and Princess Anne, 6 November 1954.
Image: Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III 2023
Prince Charles' 70th Birthday, 2018
Prince Charles, The Prince of Wales, The Duchess of Cornwall, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their three children, and The Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
The official photograph to mark Prince Charles' 70th birthday was released along with two light-hearted out-takes, one of which is shown here. The images communicate the stability of monarchy and the sense of glimpsing an intimate moment between the individuals behind the public image.
Image: © Chris Jackson / Getty Images for Clarence House
Image: Royal Collection Trust / © His Majesty King Charles III 2023
Princess Elizabeth with lilies, 1929
In 1929 Princess Elizabeth was photographed by her father, the future King George VI, standing in front of a group of Madonna lillies.
The photograph was taken at St Paul’s Walden Bury, the Hertfordshire home of the Princess's maternal grandparents, the Earl and Countess of Strathmore. It was exhibited by the future King in the 1930 Kodak exhibition of work by royal photographers.
Explore what's on
- Things to see
- Tours and talks
The Castle
Discover elegant State Rooms still used by the royal family inside Hillsborough Castle.
- In line with castle opening times
- Hillsborough Castle
- Included in combined castle tour and gardens tickets (Members go free)
- Things to see
The Throne Room
Explore the ceremonial heart of the castle, where Queen Elizabeth II received guests at a coronation ball in 1953.
- In line with castle opening times
- Hillsborough Castle
- Included in combined castle tour and gardens tickets (Members go free)
- Things to see
State Entrance Hall
Start your tour in the magnificent state entrance, where royals, politicians and peacemakers all enter the castle.
- In line with castle opening times
- Hillsborough Castle
- Included in combined castle tour and gardens tickets (Members go free)
Browse more history and stories
The story of Hillsborough Castle and Gardens
‘The Grandest House in County Down’
Art at Hillsborough Castle
Hillsborough Castle has become a place in which to see amazing art