lean timms

p h o t o g r a p h y w o r k s h o p

a r m i d a l e, n s w

a u s t r a l i a

1 s t / 2 n d m a y 2 0 2 5

Photo 2 by Jemima Phelps, photo of Lean teaching by Belinda Monck.

TWO DAY PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP

ARMIDALE, NEW SOUTH WALES

WITH GALAH PRESS

EDIT: SOLD OUT!
Please email Lean if you’d like to go on the wait list for this or another workshop!

WORKSHOP DETAILS:

Workshop Dates: Thursday 1st and Friday 2nd May, 2025

Workshop Location: The Corner Store, Armidale, New South Wales, Anaiwan Country.

Workshop Time: 8:30am - 6:00 pm both days.

Two Day Workshop Tickets: $2800 + GST.
Please note we will be taking payments in two instalments - half when you book and the final half a week before the workshop, due Thursday 24th April.

Guest Teachers: Annabelle Hickson - Editor in Chief of Galah Magazine, writer, photographer, podcaster, pecan farmer and mastermind behind the Galah Regional Photography Prize. Hugh Stewart - acclaimed and exceptionally talented photographer and director, and member of the judging panel for the Galah Regional Photography Prize 2025.

Workshop stylist and model: Lynda Gardener - stylist, decorator, author and boutique accommodation owner.

Suitable For: This workshop is formatted for all photography lovers and levels - including small business owners keen to up skill and create their own content, absolute beginners ready to dive in and learn a new art form, photography lovers wanting to step up and improve on their skills, those wanting to become professional photographers, and fellow photography professionals already in the field who are interested in furthering their industry insight, networking opportunities and creative nourishment. As a teacher it's my absolute priority to provide value for everyone, at all photography levels.

Catering: Delicious morning tea, lunch and Champagne apéro will be prepared for us both days.

Special Treat: At the conclusion of the workshop on Friday, we will be attending the party and prize announcement for the Galah Regional Photography Prize 2025, being held at the New England Regional Art Museum - your ticket to this fantastic event is included in the cost of your workshop ticket. Woo!

Please Note: Airfares, transportation to and from the workshop and accommodation are not included.

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP:

Join me in the picturesque New England high country for an immersive and fun two days of learning, as I openly share everything I know about the art of photography with you. This two day photography workshop will be absolutely packed to the brim with educational, creative, inspiring and insightful content. It's the perfect opportunity to launch into the world of photography, or to give your current photography skills a confidence boost, some guided direction, or some delicious nourishment. As a small group we will explore the art of visual storytelling by embracing light, creative composition and working through your own photography style. We will focus in on the subjects of lifestyle and editorial photography, and will also have a special session on portrait photography. We will explore your camera’s manual settings and together work through the skills and secrets of editing/post processing. We will lift the curtain and have candid chats about industry insights and thriving in a creative business. I will share the ins and out of my own personal photography style and process, but most importantly will be there to help guide yours. The workshop will be part theory and part practical, to cover all learning styles, and with plenty of time to play and photograph our two days together.

I am thrilled that we have not one, but two incomparable guest speakers for the workshop. Annabelle Hickson Editor-In-Chief and publisher of Galah magazine, writer, photographer, podcaster and pecan farmer, will be sharing with us her golden insights into the publishing world, expectations for editorial assignments and invaluable industry insight on pitching to magazines. We will be celebrating with Annie on Friday night at the Galah Regional Photography Prize.

The inimitable Hugh Stewart will be gracing us with his wisdom, humour and experience as one of Australia’s foremost portrait photographers. Hugh will lead us in an open Q&A session on his photography journey, specifically his love for portraiture, and will also shoot some portraits for us in a very special practical session.

We will also have the chance to photograph our impossibly glamorous workshop stylist Lynda Gardener, who is just as fabulous in front of the lens as she is styling for it. What a privilege these sessions will be - I can’t wait for us to experience this!

To top it all off, at the conclusion of the workshop on Friday night, we’ll be joining Annabelle and the Galah team at the New England Regional Art Museum to celebrate the exhibition and party for the Galah Regional Photography Prize 2025. Think music, dancing, delicious food and drinks from the best local producers, and a major prize announcement - all while surrounded by the stunning work of some of Australia’s most talented regional photographers. Holy inspiration! I can’t think of a better way to celebrate everything we’ve learned, and everything we love about photography.

After two days together, you will go home with an abundance of photography knowledge, the ability to shoot your camera on manual settings, the confidence to approach and capture a scene using natural light, inspiration to photograph, curate and share your own stories through imagery, a new group of creative friends and an experience so special you won’t ever forget it. Two full days means so much to cover! I can’t wait to share everything I know and love about photography with you!

Photo 2 and 4 by Alicia DeSario

TOPICS WE WILL BE COVERING:

Natural light digital photography 101
We’ll dig into photography and camera basics, and why it’s important that you understand and use them. You’ll walk away with a thorough understanding of the (magical!) exposure triangle and be able to use your camera’s manual settings to help you confidently capture a number of different subjects and styles. For the professionals, I will provide lots of juicy layers here, and will share my own personal professional tips and go to settings.

Light
Nothing gets me more excited than reading and embracing natural light. I’m excited by the autumn light and colours we’ll experience together in leafy Armidale. We’ll explore light direction first, it’ll blow your mind. We’ll find light and shadow and all the ways they can both make a photograph sing. We’ll work with harsh light and soft light and learn how to manipulate the outcome of both. We’ll follow it around inside, and go hunting for it outside. I’ll share with you all my tips on light and bright photography along with the contrasting moody chiaroscuro style.

Composition
The way a photograph is framed can completely shift the way a subject is viewed. It’s a really fun game. We will play with lots of different perspectives, angles, and formulas and I’ll give you plenty of helpful guidance to develop your own composition style, too.

Storytelling
No matter the subject, a story is always worth being told. We could spend the whole two days on storytelling alone. I have a special formula, you’ll love it. I can’t wait to dig into this with you.

Portrait Photography
Hugh Stewart will be talking through his portrait photography journey and also guiding us through one of his famous portrait sessions. You will also have the opportunity to create your own portraits, with our gorgeous Lynda Gardener ready to step in as a model in our makeshift portrait studio.

Lifestyle Photography
This one makes my heart sing. It’s really all about sharing a genuine sense of place and we will get to do this together by shooting our own little slice of Armidale including vignettes styled by Lynda Gardener.

Editorial Photography and Pitching
Editor in Chief, Annabelle Hickson, will lead us in a session sharing golden insights into the publishing world, expectations for editorial assignments and invaluable industry insight on pitching to magazines.

Post Production/Editing
I will step you through my editing flow, both on Lightroom and phone. We will cover basics, explore your style, exporting tricks, and develop your own preset.

Industry Chat
Let’s chat openly - the best type of industry chat. Marketing, pricing (actual numbers!), getting published, pitching, image licensing, editorial insights, creative inspiration etc, etc. This part is always juicy, insightful, and fun. Anything and everything is on the table.

Q&As
I want to answer any and all of your questions. We will have plenty of time for questions throughout the workshop, and special allocated time toward the end of our second day. I am an open book and want you to go home with loads of information and value no matter what your level in photography - so please bring your questions and we can chat through them as a creative group together.

ABOUT LEAN:

Lean Timms is an international travel, lifestyle and food photographer working across editorial, commercial and publishing fields. Lean is currently based on Ngunnawal and Ngambri Country, Canberra Australia.

Forever exploring and full of curiosity for this world, Lean’s greatest love is to discover and document inspiring places and stories. Lean’s approach to photography is driven by natural light, in situ spontaneity, storytelling and capturing a genuine sense of place. 

A once upon a time creative arts high school teacher, Lean loves to teach and share, and has been lucky enough to teach photography at workshops and retreats all around the world.

Select Photography Clients and Publications:

Tourism Australia
Condé Nast Traveller
QANTAS Travel Insider
Australian Traveller
Vogue Living
Lonely Planet

Photo 1 of Lean by Doreen Kilfeather, photo 2 of Lean by Alicia DeSario, photo 3 of Lean by Zoe Helene

ABOUT OUR SPECIAL GUESTS

ANNABELLE HICKSON

Annabelle started her writing career as a news reporter for The Australian newspaper in Sydney and Brisbane before a handsome farmer in a small aircraft lured her out west to a grazing farm which they transformed into Australia’s second largest pecan orchard.

During this time, Annabelle wrote a regular monthly column at Country Style magazine, co-created a podcast called Dispatch to a Friend and published a book called A Tree in the House (Hardie Grant), which has been translated into German, Dutch and Chinese.

Now Galah is her focus. Galah is an award-winning cultural magazine for people who care about regional Australia. Galah celebrates regional Australia and the creative, diverse and innovative people who live here. It's a magazine that feels more like a book - so much so, that she turned it into one! - and it's success is proof that print is far from dead.

See more of Annie’s work here: @annabellehickson @galah.press

HUGH STEWART

Hugh Stewart grew up on a farm in New Zealand. He left for Europe straight out of school and was living in a notorious London squat in the early 1980s when he first picked up a camera and started taking portraits of his friends. After a few years of travel, he found himself in Sydney in need of a job so put together a portfolio and received his first assignment for Australian Vogue. This led to further commissions for magazines and advertising agencies which encouraged him to head back overseas resulting in a couple of decades working as a professional photographer in London and NYC.

Particularly well known for his celebrity portraits, Hugh has photographed Johnny Cash, Michael Caine, Jude Law, Nicole Kidman, Paul Newman, Ed Harris, Kenneth Branagh, Naomi Watts, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Tom Hanks, Catherine Deneuve, Clint Eastwood, Julian Schnabel, Rod Stewart, Sir John Mills, Sir Ian Mckellen, John Updike, Leonardo Dicaprio, Bill Nighy, David Hare, Geoffrey Rush, Cate Blanchett, Robert Redford, Emma Thompson, the Duchess of Devonshire and five Australian prime ministers.

His portraits have been exhibited internationally including in the national portrait galleries of London and Canberra. In 2020 he was highly commended in the national photographic portrait prize in Australia. Another of Hugh’s specialties is shooting on-set portraiture and stills for movies, having worked extensively with director Baz Luhrmann on films like Romeo and Juliet, Moulin Rouge and Elvis. He also directs tv commercials and short films and has recently completed work for clients such as RM Williams. Glenfiddich Whisky, ACON, The Commonwealth Bank and Bill Granger. Commercial clients include Sony, Microsoft, Levis, J.Crew, Singapore Airlines, Emirates Airlines, Australian Tourism, RM Williams, HBO, Netflix, Warner Bros, Sydney Theatre Company, Mastercard as well as two campaigns for Chanel No.5. The Maverick Soul is a book co-created by Hugh and Miv Watts. Published by Hardy Grant in the UK and available worldwide.

Hugh lives in Sydney with his wife and three children and continues to work between Australia, the US and Europe.

See more of Hugh’s work on his website and via @hughstewart_

Photos of Hugh Stewart by Hugh Stewart.

WORKSHOP STYLIST AND MODEL: LYNDA GARDENER

Lynda Gardener is a Melbourne based stylist, decorator, retailer and all round creator of beautiful spaces. Lynda’s aesthetic is wielded through layers of rustic, antique and modern design details, creating the perfectly balanced blend of old and new. Her ability lies not only in her skill of searching for and bringing objects together in an aesthetically pleasing way, but in her signature style of creating tactile and emotive spaces.

Lynda began her professional design career styling commercial concept stores which eventually broadened into the world of her own independent retail ventures, owning and curating boutique accommodation and delving further into interior design. Along with her highly sought after decorating work, Lynda also currently owns and runs five boutique accommodation properties. Lynda’s properties and commissioned work have consistently been featured in a number of reputable national and international publications.

See more of Lynda’s work on her website and via @lynda.gardener

ABOUT OUR LOCATION - THE CORNER STORE, ARMIDALE

Come and meet us at The Corner Store - a gorgeous boutique studio space in leafy Armidale, in the beautiful New England high country. We are beyond lucky to have Lynda Gardener bringing her signature style to the space for us to delight in (and photograph!).

Photographs of The Corner Store by Studio LJ.

PAST WORKSHOP PARTICIPANT TESTIMONIALS:

- Lean's workshop truly exceeded my expectations. Lean is incredibly knowledgeable and passionate, providing personalized feedback and guidance throughout the course. Set in a stunning location, the workshop offered a perfect blend of theory and hands-on practice, covering everything from shooting in manual mode to composition, storytelling and editing techniques. The small group size fostered a supportive atmosphere and each day was well-structured. Stepping into this experience as a beginner, I left with a newfound confidence. I highly recommend this workshop to photographers of all levels. It's an investment but it’s worth it and is an experience not to be missed. Thank you Lean for sharing your knowledge, creativity and patience. - Chelsea Furtardo @__smell.the.roses__

- This course was an indulgent luxury for me, and a significant investment in my current chapter of life. Lean was cognisant of this, creating an experience that felt generous, whilst still understanding her own worth. Perhaps that is just a complicated way of saying I felt like it was good value for money! Lean seamlessly navigated a class of beginners and seasoned professionals - not an easy task by any stretch. Lean’s teaching is gentle and encouraging and she managed to guide without prescribing. The content was comprehensive and informative - I thought the breadth of content was great. But most of all Lean presented in a way that was vibrant and full of humour, which is obviously just a reflection on Lean as an individual - it is invigorating to be around passion, so thank you Lean for sharing this - Hannah Lewis @penguinpantry

- What can I say other than wow! I didn't really know what to expect before embarking in this course, but Leans x2 day photography workshop absolutely blew my sock off. Lean is such an incredible teacher, no stone was left unturned, and the beautiful work book we got to keep has been a really lovely reference to return too. Lean was able to teach a broad range of students with different backgrounds and photography knowledge and keep everyone highly engaged. I honestly couldn't recommend this course more highly. I have walked away far more confident behind my lens and it was simply the best weekend with like minded creatives. If you get the opportunity to do this course, just book the ticket. you won't be disappointed. Sarah Miles @sarahmiles.studio

- I am delighted to have had the opportunity to attend Leans fabulous workshop. As a complete novice I learnt so much from a very talented, generous, fun and inspirational photographer/teacher. Connected with a group of delightful and interesting women, who have created a network so we can continue to learn and grow together. Enjoyed great food in fab restaurants and spent time in the natural environment - what’s not to love!! I had a great time and still on a high! Thanks Lean! Alison Revell

-This workshop was everything I needed and so much more! Lean was such an incredible teacher catering for all levels of photography and bringing such a wonderful group of people together! I walked away from the workshop feeling inspired, supported and with so much more knowledge. I also left with a new community which feels like family and I’m so grateful for it! After the two days I didn’t want to leave! - Kelsey Zafiridis @kelseyzafiridis.photography

Are you keen but not quite sure yet? Do you have some questions for me? Please send me an email and I would love to chat more with you!

CANCELLATION POLICY:

Please kindly note that this is a strictly non-refundable workshop. However we do understand that things change and life happens, so should you need to reschedule we are more than happy to rebook you to another workshop at another time. Valid travel insurance is also encouraged for your trip. Thank you for understanding.

It would be a joy to learn, create and connect with you in Armidale this May. I hope so much to see you there.

Lean. X

Photo 1 by Sophie Bellard, photo 2 by Sabine Bannard