lean timms

t w o d a y s p r i n g

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

i n c o u n t r y v i c t o r i a

w i t h l e a n

Two Day Spring Photography Workshop
The Estate Trentham | Victoria

With special guest stylist, Lynda Gardener

Dates: Saturday 5th & Sunday 6th November, 2022

Tickets: $2800

Location: The Estate Trentham, Victoria (an hour and fifteen minutes from Melbourne CBD)

Time: 9am - 5:30pm both days. Delicious seasonal morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea provided.

Suitable For: All photography lovers and levels - including small business owners keen to upskill and create their own content, absolute beginners ready to dive in and learn, photography lovers wanting to step up and into photography as a career, fellow photography professionals, etc.

Special Guest Stylist: Lynda Gardener - stylist, decorator and owner of The Estate Trentham

Please Note: Airfares, transportation and accommodation are not included.

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP:

Join me for a fun and intensive two days of learning this spring, as I openly share with you everything I know about the art of photography. As a small group, we will be focusing on the subjects of interior, food and travel photography and will be digging deep into the world of of light, composition, storytelling, post processing and so much more. The workshop will be part theory and part practical, with plenty of time to play and photograph our weekend together.

Our very special guest stylist and owner of The Estate Trentham, Lynda Gardener, will be sharing how she styles her beautiful properties, and how we work together in styling and shooting interiors. We will also have free rein of Lynda’s historic and character filled property, The Estate Trentham, where we can explore and photograph, and wander the gorgeous gardens, near by forest, and the picturesque village of Trentham.

The very talented Michelle Crawford has agreed to join us from Tasmania, and spoil us with her delicious cooking. Michelle will be sourcing local produce and creating a delicious spring menu for us (we have chosen the lux food option)! Think picnics and long table al fresco dining in the orchard and garden…

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, and inspiration to photograph, curate and share your own stories through imagery. You’ll also meet like minded creatives, find and feel a sense of community and hopefully go home with plenty of new friends. Two full days means so much to cover and soak up. I can’t wait to share everything I know and love about photography with you!

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 them. You’ll walk away with a thorough understanding of the (magical!) exposure triangle and be able to use your camera’s manual settings - including a suggestion of my favourite go to’s - to help you confidently capture a number of different subjects and styles.

Light
Nothing gets me more excited than reading and embracing natural light. Winter light is extra special. 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. 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.

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

Food Photography
If you’re keen on learning the hairspray and tweezer tricks, I’m not your girl. If you’re keen on learning how to keep things real and delicious and dig in worthy, I’m here. We will explore how to tell a story through food, and we will step through the process of photographing it together. There will be plenty of room around the table for everyone to take photos. I used to be a high school teacher. Everyone will get equal amounts of love.

Interior Photography
Photographing interiors is a beautiful and fun process, and The Estate Trentham is the perfect place for us to learn. We’ll move between the bedrooms, the lounge room, and the kitchen. Lynda Gardener will be sharing her interior styling tips, and I’ll share all the tips I have for taking a photograph that helps to make a home or space look delicious and inviting. Together, we will show how a stylist and photographer work together to create beautiful photographs.

Travel/Location Photography
This one makes my heart sing. It’s really all about sharing a genuine sense of place. We will go for a wander outside to the nearby forest and beautiful Trentham village, where we can use our light and composition skills to capture transportive photographs. I should say weather pending, but as the Swede’s say, there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing. So bring a raincoat and your sense of adventure, just in case!

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 in earnest. The best type of industry chat. Social media, getting published, marketing, pricing, image licensing, creative inspiration etc, etc.

Q&A’s
We will have plenty of time for questions throughout the workshop, and special allocated time toward the end of our second day. You bring your Q’s, I’ll bring my A’s. I love to share and am an open book!

ABOUT LEAN:

Lean Timms is an Australian travel, lifestyle and food photographer working across editorial, commercial and publishing fields, 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
Country Style
Food and Wine Magazine
Galah
Gourmet Traveller
QANTAS Travel Insider
Vogue Living Australia

TESTIMONIALS:

- Lean is one of those educators who is as generous with her knowledge as she is talented. She guided me through the areas I wasn’t confident in, and stepped me through her approach to light, composition and editing. I walked away with a much stronger set of skills and bucket loads of inspiration to apply to my work. Anyone would benefit from one-on-one time with Lean, she takes the time to ensure you achieve what you want out the workshop. I can’t wait to do another one! Anisa Sabet @anisa.sabet

- Lean's workshop was thoughtfully structured and thoroughly inspiring. In just a day, I found confidence in the foundations, and learnt how to venture creative challenges. Thanks to Lean's kind guidance and motivations, my travel and leisure photography is more enjoyable than ever before. – Samantha Roche @__samanthagrace

- As an object maker, it is important for me to have the skills to photograph my pots to simply and cleanly document my work showing the colour and form. Being able to photograph the work in a way that contextualises it, further conveying the mood and details that exist in the work is also essential, so that they may be accessed via a digital platform or application in a way that the viewer may be able to perceive a feeling of the work even if they cant touch it. Taking Lean’s photography workshop gave me the skills and confidence to achieve the photographs I could see in my mind but were unable to capture. I would highly recommend this workshop to all makers. - Richilde Flavell @girlnomadceramics

- Lean is a wonderfully warm and generous teacher. From the minute our session kicked off, her enthusiasm for photography, capturing stories and meeting new faces was clear. Our day together went so quickly, learning and practicing on the go and reinforcing all the tips and tricks Lean shared - so much goodness! I left feeling so much more confident with my camera and lots of excitement to continue practicing all that I learnt.  – Alison Jackson @ferroforma.studios

- I was lucky enough to actually get into one of Lean’s workshops. I am only starting my photography path and thought I might have been a challenge for someone as talented as Lean. Her kindness and patience was what I needed... and got in spades! I learnt so much and still refer back to that day in my mind when I’m trying to take that perfect shot. Lean is an undeniable talent and I would strongly suggest to anyone learning, or anyone that knows their way around camera to take a workshop with Lean. Have you seen her photos ? Do it!!! - Mandy Reid @whitecottage_flowerfarm_

ABOUT 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 here: @lynda.gardener

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP LOCATION: The Estate Trentham

The Estate Trentham is an original c1902 three bedroom federation house, owned by Lynda Gardener, and set amongst beautiful gardens in the heart of Trentham, just over one hour from Melbourne CBD.

The Estate Trentham is inspired by Scandinavian interiors, fresh white walls, dark floors and airy rooms and is complemented by natural wood furniture and a mix of old and new curated collections, from European flea markets, to local country finds.

The local gardener tends to the garden weekly, ensuring produce for each and every season. The harvest garden has an array of fresh herbs, salad leaves and vegetables that we will be making the most of during the workshop. A mini orchard featuring pears, apples and quinces, is also the perfect setting for long lunches and dinners under the trees. Surrounding the vegetable patch is a Mediterranean garden as well as strawberries, blackberries and raspberries.

During the workshop we will be moving around between The Estate Barn, a gorgeous building featured as part of The Estate grounds, as well as inside the house, and throughout the gardens.

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:

Unfortunately this is a non-refundable workshop. However, we do understand that things change and COVID looms. We would like to be as flexible as possible, so should you need to rearrange, 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 teach you! Really hope to see you in country Victoria this spring!

Lean. X