Put pots on raised garden bed with strip shade timber behind and paint in a grey colour

If the fence is doing its job, you don't need screening shrubs, only tall, multistemmed ones, or small trees with their heads beginning where the fence leaves off, and not occupying the space for agapanthus beneath.

A full bed of evergreen groundcover plants, with bulbs of all seasons will keep it neat after the first two years of filling the bed. You might give the bed edge some scalloping as it heads toward the terrace beyond, as you have enough straight lines already.

Do you have crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia indica) or even the magnificent southern magnolia (grandiflora), or little M. stellata might be more appropriate. The more brilliant flowers of crape myrtle might be more exciting, with already so much white, though. I am sure you have plenty to choose from.

Then sit back and enjoy the view (in your seclusion).

Because of the narrowness of the area, there is only room for the screening plant. And I would keep the edges straight - curved edging is cottagey, and would look totally our of place here. Your house is not a cottage.

I don't like the suggestion of trees with trunks visible. It is a colourbond fence at the look of it. I hide these - there's nothing special about them I'm sorry.

And views are in the eye of the beholder. If it isn't on par with the best view that you've ever seen, then make your own view within your garden. You'll be far happier in the long run. And if you have plants of varying height so that the bottom corner is shorter in order to show the rooftops of neighbouring houses as a 'view', then the design within the garden will be spoilt.

I know that there are those who think that lily pillies are common, but a plant that grows well in its position is far better than struggling to grow some uncommon plant that is a failure to thrive. I would aim for a lily pilly that is at least 3 metres tall. Consider Acmena 'Sublime' which doesn't get psyllid and doesn't need to be hedged if you don't want to. And I would run this plant the full length and around from the corner along the bottom fenceline. Your plants also would do better if the garden beds were 1.5 metres wide with the plant placed in the middle of the bed. Plants don't do well in narrow beds unless managed by a professional who knows what they are doing.

As for the dwarf magnolias - these plants are dwarves of the Magnolia grandiflora which can get to 100 feet tall in maturity. So as a dwarf form, they still get up to 50 feet tall when they mature. The labels don't give a precise indication of height at maturity and are deceiving to novices. So don't go there is my advice. They also have bad root systems for so close to the house. You would also never be able to keep your lawn alive as they plants grow as they are water guzzlers as they get bigger. Nobody considers how plants behave once they are planted, but the care varies enormously with different plants.

Hi, I see that your yard is partly shaded, perhaps you have a two storey house next door. The grass is never going to look good, I can see a worn track leading to the garden setting. Why not consider paving the area using two different sized blocks for interest leaving gaps between them then fill the gaps with a river pebbles or mini Mondo grass for a softer more natural look. Clumping bamboo grows tall giving you that privacy you are looking for but doesn't take up much space and is low maintenance if you're not a gardener, you could underplant this with small semi shade loving plants for additional colour see your local nursery for help.