Canon helps blind children experience photography

Continuing its work to use elevated print to help more people experience art and photography, Canon UK & Ireland has partnered with the Royal Society for Blind Children (RSBC) to create a tactile photography exhibition that allows visually impaired student to experience images through touch.

The exhibition come about following a project in late 2025 when Ellsa Iannacone, an ambassador for Canon, delivered a bespoke Canon Young People Programme workshop for seven RSBC students in Orpington.

The workshop involved students creating portrait images cantered around their favourite activities, using photography as a tool to express their identity and personality.

The portraits were then transformed into tactile relief prints using Canon’s elevated printing technology, and printed via the Canon Arizona 2380 XT. The elevated prints are made possible thanks to PRISMAelevate XL software which uses height maps and multiple layers of UV-curable ink to build raised textures to be explored by touch.

The exhibition is a way of inviting students to engage with photography in a new way and broaden how visual stories can be experienced beyond just sight.

The original workshop encouraged conversations around access, representation, and equality with activities and guest speaker, Daniel Oluwatobi, inspiring and motivating students to navigate the creative industry despite having visual impairments.

Speaking about the workshop, Oluwatobi said: “I know first‑hand how powerful it is to hear from someone like you, doing what you love. Photography is about how you feel, how you interpret, and how you tell your story. I hope the workshop demonstrated to the students that their perspective is not a limitation, but a strength.”

When it comes to the exhibition, Sarah Mallion, vice principal and head of Business and Operations at RSBC, says: “Seeing students engage with their own work in such a tactile and meaningful way has been incredibly rewarding.

“The response from students’ families has been overwhelmingly positive, and the project has shown how technology can open up new ways for young people to connect with creativity. We hope this is just the beginning of more accessible exhibitions and learning experiences.”

Neale Conroy, marketing director of Imaging Technologies & Communications Group, Canon UK & Ireland, adds: “It’s been wonderful to see how this project has helped students experience photography in a completely new way. At Canon, we believe imaging should inspire curiosity, confidence and creativity, and this collaboration with RSBC brings that to life in such a meaningful way.

“By using elevated print technology to make images accessible through touch, we’re helping more young people connect with visual storytelling and share their own perspectives.”

Canon says the initiative reflects Canon’s commitment to making creative education more inclusive as well as exploring the storytelling potential of print and making art and photography more accessible as seen in 2024.

Watch below our coverage of Canon’s debut World Unseen event which first demonstrated the power elevated prints and photography: