CALIFORNIA FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP | point reyes

FOOD PHOTOGRAPHY WORKSHOP IN POINT REYES, CALIFORNIA

four days of hands-on lessons, exploring what makes a compelling food story, in beautiful Point Reyes, by the coast on a working goat farm!!

SOLD OUT! wow, thank you!

{register} email bella [at] ful-filled.com to reserve your spot

This will be my first food photography & styling workshop and I could not be more excited to be co-hosting this incredible retreat alongside my dear friend Betty Liu of bettysliu.com! We will be retreating to a modern farmhouse nestled in the pastoral hills of the Point Reyes region of California. Set on a working creamery, we will be staying on a 160 acre farmstead amongst herds of dairy goats and sheep. We will have a full-circle farm to table experience, where we witness the milking of the goats, the making of the cheese, and then style cheeseboards with a variety of cheeses produced right from the land we will be staying on. We’ll venture just a few minutes from the farmstead to the stunning Pacific Ocean coastline, where we will take in the majestic views, breathe the sweet ocean air & feel the sand between our toes. Taking advantage of the gorgeous vistas, we will discuss landscape photography & how to best capture these scenes.

Our food photography & feasts will consist of the freshest local dairy, meats & seasonal produce that we will in turn use to style still lifes and document action while being inspired by our surroundings and each other. We will be joined by professional chef Matt Flores, who will be lovingly cooking our meals throughout the retreat, which will include several dishes prepared in the farmhouse’s very own wood fired oven.

ABOUT POINT REYES

The Point Reyes region is located on the pristine Pacific Ocean coastline of Marin County California. Renowned for its untouched beauty, with more than 50% of the land being designated open space, the landscape is filled with rolling hills, towering forests and rugged beaches. Being the least populated region of the bay area, going to Point Reyes feels like a time warp, with time slowing down to a speed that can be compared to the unhurried pace of the cattle, goats & sheep that wander the sloping landscapes.

We will be staying in the quaint small town of Tomales located along scenic Highway One just beyond Dillon Beach & Tomales Bay. Being surrounded by both farmland and water, there is a special kind of seamlessness between the act of eating and just being in nature while staying here. The loveliness of these landscapes, which flank the Point Reyes National Seashore, are in fact shaped largely by food and the raising of it. We will get to experience firsthand the rhythm of farm life as we retreat in a modern farmhouse set on a restored dairy farm. With fresh eggs from the chickens, honey from the bees and award winning cheese produced at the creamery adjacent to the farmhouse, being set on a working farm will make for deeply meaningful food stories.

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WORKSHOP HIGHLIGHTS 

LIVE STORYTELLING | We’ll put together beautifully styled food stories and demonstrate how we choose a shooting space & how we select props to fit the scene. We’ll go on a farm tour, bake and style galettes, cakes, and wood-fired pizzas, all stories we can practice documenting.

INCORPORATING THE HUMAN ELEMENT | A huge part of both betty’s and my work is including the human element in our food stories, instantly activating a photo with that human presence. We’ll talk about how we accomplish this – what our setup looks like. We’ll have opportunities for you to capture those action shots that add so much life and movement to a photo.

LIGHTROOM DEMONSTATION & PRESET BUILDING | We cannot emphasize enough the importance of editing and therefore creating a consistent look – your personal voice. Styling and light are important to building your style, but the editing is the last “stamp” you have to make that photos yours and will take your work to the next level. We’ll sit down to a collective lightroom editing session, where we’ll talk about post-processing and how to develop your own preset to get the look you want consistently.

PHOTO LESSONS | Naturally, before we dive into styled scenes and shoots, we’ll cover the basics of photography to get you comfortable with manual mode (aperture, ISO, shutter speed).

SMART PHONE PHOTOGRPAHY | This may come as a shock to you, but the majority of my work on Instagram is done with my cell phone – both video and still. I will be teaching a segment on how light, styling, and vision can create a beautiful image regardless of the tool used to take the photo. During this segment we will also explore how to create & edit videos with your cell phone as video is becoming the next big thing in social media & blogging.

EXPLORE | This farmhouse is on a working goat dairy farm, situated in Point Reyes in Marin County – a beautiful area of Northern California, a short distance from the coast. With beautiful views and lush fertile land, this land will be our home for four days. We’ll embark on a farm tour to say hello to the goats. We’ll take a trip to the beach and style a scene – simply enjoy the sun and seaside air.

WORKFLOW | We’ll go over workflow, from taking photos, backing up, and processing, to the blog post stage and we’ll give tips and tricks on how to speed this process up!!!

MARKETING | We’ll have discussions on blogging, blog sponsorship, and how to navigate the murky waters of Instagram and create a consistent feed to showcase yourself and your brand. Betty has become renowned for her stop motion videos, being featured twice by Instagram last year. I have created viral Instagram videos as well (reaching over half a million views!) and am regularly featured on Saveur and Food52’s feeds – we’ll talk about how to promote yourself and get noticed by brands!

REFLECTION | An important part of any design or artistic process is reflection and critique. We’ll showcase our work and encourage the camaraderie of collective critique, examining our personal preferences and what our eye is drawn towards. We’ll reflect on our work and by doing so, evolve our creative process and find inspiration from each other.

All levels welcome, and if you are looking for a particular aspect, feel free to email me!

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WORKSHOP DETAILS

APRIL 27-30
Point Reyes, CA
taught by betty & bella

TICKET OPTIONS:

Single Air Mattress in Shared Room  sold out!

Single Bed in Shared Room  sold out!

Full Bed in Loft (ladder access)  sold out!

Full Bed in Shared Room  sold out!

Queen Bed in Shared Room  sold out!

INCLUDED:
all lessons and discussions
3 nights lodging, 3 dinners, 2 lunches, 3 breakfasts
welcome gifts
other drinks and bites during the workshop
activities / excursions

Nearest Airports:
SFO and OAK
*Please note that airfare, transportation to and from workshop
are not included in the ticket price

*bring your DSLR, laptop and smartphone if you wish to participate
in photo and editing sessions

Register by emailing bella [at] ful-filled.com to reserve your spot and feel free to email me or betty (at bettysliu07 [at] gmail.com) if you have further questions!

To book your spot, we require 50% initial payment, then the remainder by March 30th, 2017. Due to the nature of this workshop, this workshop is non-refundable. This workshop is in high demand, with many spots already being reserved before registration officially opened – there are limited spots, so make sure to snag your spot now!