Alexandria holds plenty of creative secrets, but tucked away on its industrial edge is one of Sydney’s most highly regarded photography institutions.
Backed by no less than 342 five-star Google reviews, Sydney Photographic Workshops has spent over two decades helping students move beyond automated camera settings. I sat down with co-founder and Canon Master, Daniel Linnet, to get a bit of a close-up on my subject matter.
Daniel immediately sets the scene: “I was already painting as a hobby, a friend in Bondi had an Olympus OM1 and gave it to me as I figured I could use it to remember images I wanted to paint but then, I became obsessed with the camera and the immediacy of the medium. I already watched loads of movies so wanted to capture that cinematic feel, that artistry, inside a single frame.”
Cameras and photography have come a long way from the 80s. Daniel is unsentimental: “I don’t miss anything from the old days. As I still practice, I have some old Hasselblads, Leicas, large-format cameras. I still teach the thought process from early film days, when you needed to choose your film ISO wisely then set your aperture and shutter speed. The shot essentially had to be 90% done in your head. You had to see it before you even lifted the camera! The big difference today is digital photography has opened up the industry to the mainstream, as digital has sped up the whole process. It’s instant. The downside is that images have become more disposable and devalued photography as a craft.”
Photography was once seen as a bit of a dark art, Daniel confesses. “These weird people, mixing up chemicals in a darkroom for 10 hours at a stretch, carrying around expensive clunky gear. Today, however, I quite enjoy post-production editing in Lightroom (Adobe software) because I can blend my skills of painting and drawing, which got me into photography in the first place.”
I challenged him with the camera being a mechanical device and not art, to which he gestures sagely and whispers, “Ahh, art is there (pointing to his temple) not in there (wiggling his fingertips).”
Since Daniel was waxing lyrical, I then quoted, “Photography is not a job, it’s a lifestyle.” I asked, “What did you mean by that?” “I live it every day. I live things. I observe and log things into my mental visual library, and then draw on that when I get a brief.”
However, the photography industry is changing. Daniel explains: “It’s all been reshuffled a bit now. Back in the 90s and early 2000s, there was definitely a hierarchy in photography. The big advertising shooters were kind of the rock stars commercially while the National Geographic and editorial documentary photographers carried huge respect creatively.
These days, there’s a whole new layer added to the mix, the ‘content creator’ world, and camera companies now heavily design and market gear around that space. Let’s face it, social media is a hungry beast that needs constant feeding with new images.” He then quickly adds: “The reality is digital has made photography affordable. You no longer need to buy film or pay for developing. Just use your camera.”
Professional photography is actually a bit of a juggling act between passion and paying the bills. Daniel is quick to clarify: “It’s more important to keep the passion going, honing your skills, and finding new directions, because as a photographer you have to constantly reinvent yourself as markets change. My motto is, ‘Take photos for the passion and the money will come.’”
When I ask Daniel why he opened his school back in 2005, he leans back in the sofa chair and smiles. “Well, strangely I fell into it. A client rang me and said his teacher at Manly Community College had dropped out. Could I fill in as the course starts in two weeks? Of course, I said yes without processing what I am really getting into. Suffice to say that after two years, I felt qualified to open my own school.”
Daniel runs the school with co-founder Wendy Linnet and they are known as the dynamic duo. Their styles kind of complement each other. “Wendy is very much driven by her heart whereas I’m pragmatic, so that’s the yin/yang right there. She is great with customer service; she makes people feel they are the most important. She exudes that energy. The bottom line is we care. We care that the students leave with the answers they came for, which probably explains our Google reviews.”
I ask Daniel to tell me a bit more about their school. “Once Wendy and I decided to take the leap, we set up a variety of courses to cater to different levels, including an eight-week beginners course, an introductory half-day taster-style, a travel workshop where we go to different locations and portrait one-day workshops. There are two speed lighting courses split into half-days, as they are heavy on the technical side so we are wary of overwhelming students. There’s a four-week Lightroom course and, of course, we do private sessions if people don’t have the time to commit to a full course or have a particular challenge they need to address.” I can see a bemused look on Daniel’s face and he continues: “It’s ironic because we are set up to prepare students for the industry but the vast majority of them are simply keen hobbyists.”
My research reveals 15 photography schools in Sydney so I naturally ask Daniel what his point of difference is. “I believe it’s teaching, ‘How to see, not just shoot.’ I am very much focused on the thought process behind photography: what am I seeing, what the subject is, what the story might be, then what is the light doing and then I’ll start interpreting that scene, and that’s where the camera settings come in.”
He continues, “When people first come to the school, they seem to put a lot of pressure on themselves. They get a new camera and they think that photography is easy. I find I need to reinforce with students that it’s not about the results; it’s about the process. Once you start seeing the world through a photographer’s eyes, you start to see the world on a deeper level.”
And like the industry, the school is also evolving, as it is launching a brand-new course entitled Documentary Photography and The Photo Essay. “I wanted to offer a pathway for people who were interested in photography as more than a hobby but also as a way to encourage the storytelling behind photography to help them become more involved in their community. It’s like photographing with a purpose. We intend to kick it off with our final intake for the year in September.”
The commercial photography landscape is highly competitive. For an aspiring photographer, I asked Daniel what advice he would give. He responds directly, “First up is certainly a portfolio, as no one cares about degrees or certificates. Secondly, a social media presence and ideally a website. And finally, that old chestnut, networking. You need to get out there.”
Ultimately, Daniel and Wendy’s enduring success comes down to a simple, unyielding focus on the craft itself. In an era of instant, throwaway imagery, Sydney Photographic Workshops continues to prove that real storytelling requires moving past the gear and learning how to truly see the world.
If you are ready to step into the frame, discover your creative force and find your unique visual voice, their brand-new Documentary Photography and The Photo Essay courses might be for you.
For more information, visit sydneyphotographicworkshops.com.au
