Rhian Israel

Rhian Israel is a Cultural Heritage Photographer at Amgueddfa Cymru. She is passionate about making museum objects accessible to everyone and capturing visually engaging imagery, to tell the story of our National Collection.

Rhian Israel will be speaking at the Digital Collections Summit 2026 :

Beyond Record Photography

Museum photography is often understood as a tool for documentation, preservation and access. Yet, photographs can shape how audiences encounter, understand and connect with collections. Drawing on experiences at Amgueddfa Cymru and the CELF project, this talk explores the space between documentation and interpretation. Through examples from Art, Social History, Archaeology and Natural Science Collections, it considers how photography can reveal stories, support engagement and encourage closer looking while remaining faithful to the object. The session reflects on the evolving role of museum photography and asks what photographs can do, beyond documentation photography.