Testimonials

I’m so happy that I signed up for this class! Y o u  a r e  a m a z i n g. The talent you have is enormous, my respect grew for all food photographers, lovers, bloggers, eaters over these past weeks! I’ve taking a few classes here in Bloom and yours tops my list. The best gift you can give me is pouring out all your secrets and details of what you do and me taking those and attempting to apply them through my eyes….. so I tried and will keep trying. ~ Ginger Lobb

You are amazing. I enjoyed every minute of this. I follow you on Instagram and loved getting snippets of your shoots on locations, but seeing this was so great. You have a brilliant mind, and your organization is remarkable. I think it’s one thing to be an incredible talent, but then another to be able to teach and share.~ Mary Ann Harden

I made the decision to take Gina’s Food Narratives Workshop after admiring her images for so long.  I had been photographing food for several years and knew it was time to up my game and really make my images sing. What drew me most to Gina’s images is what draws me to exceptional photography images in general; connection. Whether Gina is photographing food, still life/action unfolding, chefs/ restauranteurs/ makers or locations, she never fails to make the connection with her subjects and in turn, the viewer. I took a leap of faith that someone with the gift of being able to make and capture such connection from behind her lens would be able to articulate and teach me how she does it. Gina did not disappoint. In fact, I found myself in awe with each detail-packed lesson Gina put forth during the workshop; chock full of beautiful images, explanations, diagrams and some amazing videos where we were able to actually watch her work. Gina gave such thoughtful, insightful comments on each assignment her students completed that I learned from every image posted as well as my own and couldn’t wait for the next lesson to arrive. In making the decision to participate in Gina’s course, I truly made an investment in my personal and professional growth. I now look at the way I photograph things with a fresh set of eyes and a plan of action which I had not done before. I highly recommend Gina’s class and look forward to employing the many techniques and ideas she shared with us in my work each day. ~ Christina Nuzzo

I have found the class truly inspiring and, Gina,you are so encouraging. I agree with someone else who said it has been a bright spot in their day for the past couple weeks and I don’t want it to end. My only wish is that it was a 4 week workshop so I had more time to digest and practice each assignment. I wanted to do my best work because I know how valuable your feedback is. I really enjoyed the workshop, it gave me so much to think about and explore.  I really appreciate all your feedback as well, you are a great teacher and mentor. I think anyone can set up a class but not everyone is gifted at teaching, and you certainly are. Thank you for all your nurturing and support, it meant a lot to me over the past few weeks. ~ Jen

First of all, I have to say how impressed I was with this class and with you as a teacher. I have taken many online photography classes in the past, but this was my first here at Bloom. On the very first day, I knew this class would be different than any other I have taken. Your declaration that we each have a unique story within us, and that our art needs to be a direct extension of that spoke to me on so many levels. This is what I believe deeply about photography, and what I have, unfortunately, not always found in other workshops. There was no “right vs. wrong” in this workshop. I felt that you respected us as individuals and as artists, and I appreciate that greatly. As you know, I could tell all of this on day 2, which is why I upgraded to an active participation seat. ~ Jessica Zeamer

Oh, Gina! I cannot thank you enough of this AMAZING workshop. I can wholeheartedly say, this was the best workshop I have taken yet! ~ Brittany Graham

I met Gina online a couple years ago and have been a passionate fan ever since. Not only is she an amazing person but such a talented photographer and storyteller. I have long been wanting the opportunity to work with her and learn from her, so I was over the moon that she decided to teach an online class! ~ Thea Coughlin

The course focused on natural light, simple styling and storytelling and was an absolute joy to be a part of. I went from posting one or two beauty shots on my blog to learning and understanding how to create a food narrative from start to finish. I can’t BELIEVE how much personal attention I got, and I’m sure everyone else got, from you on my posts. Learning is my one true passion – food photography lies within that realm – and after years of feeling alone, having someone with your experience provide detailed and personal feedback was absolutely amazing. If you ever have the chance to learn from Gina – I urge you to do so!! ~ Kelly Neil

Before this workshop I hadn’t spent very much time taking photos of food, mostly because taking good photos of food is harder than it looks. Gina did a great job breaking down the process, providing all the important details and inspiration. The class is rich with information, much of it can be carried over into any genre of photography. Gina is a gifted teacher who truly cares about each student. I felt truly uplifted during this class. Her CCs are so thoughtfully written. I had many aha moments in this class and it revealed a lot of my strengths and weaknesses. It gave me inspiration to focus on my strengths and patience to let my weaknesses build into strengths over time. I highly recommend this class, even if you aren’t into food photography, this class is a great way to build your photography skills overall. ~ Jen Dwyer

You are a good teacher and are excellent at drawing people in and encouraging them along the way.  Your videos were amazing.  They were a joy and delight to watch.  It was easy to see that you put your heart and passion and lots of time :) into this class, it was just lovely. ~ Jeanie Webster

Taking and participating in this class was one of the most difficult creative challenges for me in a long time. Gina Weathersby is a skilled teacher who kindly pushed me over my creative precipice and into bottomless expanse of possibilities. In spite of all my personal issues, I think her class was absolutely amazing. Reading the content is great; watching her do what she does is invaluable and completely charming. I’m a “show me” learner so when I watched her work through the process in the videos, I was so enlightened. Gina is genuinely encouraging, a complete professional and filled with so much photography knowledge. I did feel like I learned so much more than I knew before, and I enjoyed the learning as well. ~ Margo Madison

As a food photographer I am always seeking opportunities to learn, improve, and grow in my profession. When I heard there would be a food photography workshop on the Bloom Forum and that my good friend and colleague, Gina, would be teaching it, I immediately signed up. I have been an admirer of Gina’s work for a long time and have seen her blossom tremendously over the years. I was confident I would be able to learn a lot from her.

Gina’s class “Food Photography Narratives: Natural Light, Simple Styling & Storytelling” promised everything in the title, but delivered much more. It covered multiple topics related to photographing food — from choosing props to selecting modifiers to figuring out how to “find the light.” The workshop encompassed every aspect that a photographer should consider when delving into food photography. Yes, the technical side of photography is touched on in depth, but more importantly (to me) Gina went beyond the basics — she developed a course on how to create and capture images that “speak” and tell a story.

The format of the class took a bit to get used to but by the end of the first day or two I was able to navigate threads comfortably and with relative ease. Material from each lesson was carefully explained and supported with beautiful visual samples, either from Gina’s portfolio or other photographers’ body of work. It was great to see the variety of styles used to illustrate key points in the lessons. I appreciated the fact that the lessons did not read like a textbook — dry or boring. You clearly hear Gina’s voice in everything she writes; it’s like she is right there with you! In addition, I found the short videos to be great supplements; in the video where Gina takes us through her prop room, we could share in her thought process and understand why she chose the props that she did.

After each lesson (a wealth of information in itself), Gina presented students with an exercise to practice at home, applying the concepts from the lesson and therefore reinforcing what we’d read and learned. Each lesson was set up to be a building block for the final project at the end of the workshop. It was helpful to see other students’ work and hear how they approached their shoots; you never know when you can pick up a tip or two from others’ experiences.

Had I not known Gina prior to the course, I would’ve discovered fairly quickly after the first day how passionate she is about her craft. Her love for food photography shone through and her enthusiasm, attention to detail, and willingness to share made an environment rich for learning. Gina’s daily involvement and genuine approach made this an enjoyable class to be a part of because it felt like a true student-teacher interaction. She answered questions in a timely manner, gave thoughtful and constructive critique to each and every student in the class, offered suggestions on how to improve a shot or do something differently, and oftentimes just provided encouragement for a job well done. She simply wants you to succeed. Sometimes it takes another “eye” to make you take a harder look at your own work, and that’s what I needed.

I would highly recommend Gina and her food photography course; she inspires you to be a better, more intuitive food photographer. Her workshop is the complete package and worth every penny! ~ Athena Plichta