Analog Photography Workshop | 35mm Black and White with Léa Thijs

Analog photography workshop in Lisbon for anyone who has ever been curious about shooting on film and wants to experience the full process from loading a camera to developing their own negatives in a darkroom. Led by Léa Thijs, a South African-Belgian documentary photographer based in Lisbon, this is a personal and deeply hands-on class with a maximum of two students, designed to give you genuine individual guidance at every stage. No prior experience needed, just curiosity and a willingness to get your hands into the process.

The class begins in a cosy café where Léa shows you how the camera works and how to load a roll of 35mm film. From there you take a 25-minute walk to her studio, passing through a park, a miradouro and the streets of Lisbon, shooting along the way with Léa guiding your approach, helping you create the effects you are looking for and sharing practical tips as you go. Creative techniques including double exposure and long exposure are available to explore, and if you are interested in street portraits Léa can share her approach to photographing people with confidence and respect. At the studio you learn to load your film into a development tank in complete darkness, then develop your black and white film using traditional chemicals in Léa’s well-ventilated darkroom. Your negatives are scanned and the digital files sent to you once dry, within 24 hours. You can collect your developed negatives in person or receive them by post.

What you’ll learn

📸 How to use a 35mm film camera and load a roll of black and white film

📸 How to shoot on film while walking through Lisbon’s streets, parks and viewpoints

📸 Creative techniques including double exposure and long exposure

📸 How to load film into a development tank in complete darkness

📸 How to develop black and white film using traditional darkroom chemicals

What’s included

🎞️ 35mm film camera and a roll of black and white film

🎞️ All darkroom materials, chemicals and safety equipment including gloves

🎞️ Full guided darkroom development session with Léa Thijs

🎞️ Your developed negatives to take home

🎞️ Digital scans of your images sent after drying

What you leave with

A roll of film shot on the streets of Lisbon, developed by your own hands, scanned and yours to keep, plus a complete understanding of the analog process from beginning to end.

I am Léa Thijs, a South African-Belgian creative based in Lisbon with a deep love for storytelling through photography. I trained as a documentary photographer and have spent years capturing everyday life and emotional narratives through analogue processes, drawing from both my South African roots and European influences. I teach these classes because I believe the analog process changes how you see, and two students at a time is the only way to teach it properly.

Please wear clothes that can get damaged as photographic chemicals can stain fabrics if spilled. For participants who are claustrophobic, film loading can be done using a changing bag in a lit room. Maximum two students per class.