From Home to Waterstones
a Passion Project to Bookshop Shelves: How My Photobooks Found a Home at Waterstones Liverpool ONE
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There’s something deeply special about seeing your work exist beyond a computer screen, especially when that work is photography. In a world that is becoming ever increasingly digital, it can feel rare to see our work in print.
As a Liverpool-based photographer and the founder of Laura Gates Photography, this journey began with creating photobooks purely for myself. Initially at University when completing modules, to personal photography projects, designed to keep the Everton & Goodison Park memories alive forever, away from social media and digital noise.
A screenshot of my feature in Goodbye to Goodison
Today, that same Goodison Park photobook is stocked at Waterstones Liverpool ONE, marking a huge milestone in my career as a professional photographer.
This is the story of how it happened.
If you’re new here and want to explore more of my photography work, from personal projects to commissioned shoots, you can view my portfolio on my Work page.
It Started With a Love of Storytelling
Photography has always been about more than individual images for me. I’ve always been drawn to the bigger picture, how photographs sit together, how they create a narrative, and how they can tell a complete story when given space to breathe. The emotion and feeling that an image or set of images can convey.
And for me, photobooks felt like the natural extension of that.
At the beginning, these books were purely personal projects. Really starting when putting holiday albums together so that family memories can live on beyond the trip. They were a way to explore ideas without pressure, to experiment with sequencing, layouts, and design, and to reconnect with why I fell in love with photography in the first place.
This is when I decided to create a book in 2017, just for myself. If we rewind back to that time, I had been invited in to photograph an Everton men’s game at Goodison Park. I was really excited by the opportunity and loved every second. From sitting behind the Park End goal in the first half, to the Gwladys Street in the second half. Watching my heroes warm up mere footsteps away, it was a dream come true to be capturing them on camera. Leighton Baines, Romelu Lukaku, Seamus Coleman, and more.
Images from 2017 in my first book, Forever Everton: A Goodison Farewell
Everton beat Watford 1-0 that day and I’ll never forget it. I took those photos and put them together in a hardback book for me to keep, to cherish those memories.
Years later, my passion for the Toffees and photography continued, and with the leaving of Goodison Park approaching I set out upon creating myself a photobook using photos taken from 2017 - 2024, I spent months putting it together. Going through every single photo, every page. Every memory.
It was countless hours of work, but what I produced was something I was proud of and really loved.
It was never meant for anyone else.
When it Became Something More
Over time, I started sharing this book with friends, family, followers, and other creatives. I was always nervous to share my work with the world.
What surprised me most wasn’t just that people liked them, it evoked emotion and feeling. People were able to sit and retell stories of their own memories from various match days and moments. How they’d sat in the Main Stand with their dad/grandad/brother/sister…whoever it may be. We all had our own different personal memories from the same games we’d all attended.
That’s when I realised these weren’t just personal keepsakes anymore.
These were images in a book that connected people.
Refining the Craft
Once I allowed myself to consider these books as something others might buy, the process became more focused. I always sought outside opinion and input, to ensure I wasn’t stuck in my bubble.
Every decision mattered:
How images flowed from one page to the next
The quality of the print and paper
The balance between design and photography
Creating something that felt timeless and honest
I wanted each book to feel like it belonged on a coffee table. Something that people can pick up and go back to time and time again to recall their memories of Goodison Park.
Going beyond
You’ll notice that I have not one, but two books. The first is the initial book I spoke about above, ‘Forever Everton: A Goodison Farewell’. This one covers 2017 - 2024, but not in a ‘game by game’ chronological order. More of a sporadic coverage of Goodison Park and the Toffees.
This was the book that caught the attention of a wider audience.
This was the book that sold over 1,000 copies worldwide. With no publisher, just myself and hard work.
This book inspired my second book, ‘Commence Operation Goodison Farewell’, I learnt from a few minor mistakes from the first book (more from my side in creation, not actual mistakes in the book). I was documenting every home match day in the 2024/25 season, why not put together a book that covers each game? Do I put the scores in? Do I put more words in?
A snippet from that final day at Goodison.
You’ll see I did put the scorelines in for each game. However, before we reappointed David Moyes, I had serious doubts about whether the book would see the light of day, never mind the scorelines. It was touch and go for a while. I’m so over relegation battles.
Commence Operation Goodison Farewell is my love letter to the final men’s season at Goodison Park, my home away from home. Covering every single home game during the 2024/25 season.
Taking the Leap
Approaching a major book retailer wasn’t something I ever planned for. I had already managed to get both books into the Museum of Liverpool gift shop, with thanks to the Goodbye To Goodison exhibition I was part of earlier this year.
I was shocked and proud when the Museum were stocking it. It never gets old seeing both books in the shop.
There were always moments of doubt, questioning whether the work was strong enough, whether it belonged in that space, and whether I was ready to put something so personal into the world in that way.
But the response the books had already received gave me the confidence to take the leap.
That leap led to a conversation with Waterstones Liverpool ONE.
And then came the yes.
On the shelves at Linghams, a bookshop I frequently visited as a kid.
Since stocking at the Museum, my books can be found in other locations:
Victoria Gallery & Museum, Liverpool
Seeing My Work on the Shelves
Seeing my photography books stocked at various shops is an amazing feeling. Something I had never really thought was possible.
Walking into iconic places like the Museum and seeing my photobooks sitting among established artists and publishers is a moment I’ll never forget.
It represents the hard work I’ve put in, and the years of quietly showing up for my own creativity.
More than anything, it’s a reminder that personal projects matter, and that the work you make for yourself can sometimes resonate far beyond you.
Why This Matters to Me
This milestone isn’t just about being stocked in a bookshop. It’s how I’ve pushed myself, how I’ve grown in my confidence and gone beyond my anxieties and worries. It’s about how I’ve pushed through the complications, the stress and the fear of rejection, what if my work IS good enough?
It’s about what can happen when you follow what you enjoy and when you allow creativity to grow naturally rather than forcing it.
These photobooks started as something just for me. Seeing them now in Waterstones feels like proof that trusting the process is always worth it.
Shooting pitchside at Goodison Park. A dream come true.
What’s Next for Laura Gates Photography?
Having my photography books stocked at Waterstones Liverpool ONE feels like both an ending and a beginning.
I’m continuing to develop new personal photography projects, maybe future photobooks, but more notably pushing to photograph more events.
If you’re visiting Liverpool ONE, you can find my photobook in Waterstones. And if you’re interested in my wider work, including lifestyle and portrait photography, you can explore more here on my website.
This experience has reinforced something I truly believe: personal photography projects matter, and sometimes, they lead you places you never expected.
