Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashton Herrington.
Hi Ashton; thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, you could tell our readers some of your backstories.
Growing up, I always loved to take pictures, even if most of the time, it was a picture of my cat with a cheap disposable camera. In high school, I received my first digital camera and took photos for my school’s yearbook and “senior photos” for my friends. I went to John Brown University and graduated with a B.S. in Photography. I started photographing weddings and some much better senior photos then, but I fell in love with the film. I spent as much time as possible in the dark room, and it lets me be creative and pursue some entertaining portrait ideas! A year after I graduated college, I went full-time with my photography business, and it’s been my career ever since. I love photographing weddings, portraits, and family shoots, and as my business grew, I also accepted a teaching position at the same university I attended. Teaching students how to run their businesses and get started in photography. Over the summer, my husband and I moved to Jacksonville from Bentonville, Arkansas. As we’ve settled into our new home in Avondale, I’ve continued to travel back to Arkansas to photograph weddings, and I’ve started growing my business here too!
We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Part of the reason I was excited to teach a business class at John Brown University was that I learned most of it the hard way. Learning how to manage taxes, set up a business account, communicate with clients, use social media, and a dozen other important things were exhausting and took time to learn. Making mistakes is easy, and trying to do it all at once can burn you out. Being a portrait and wedding photographer is especially hard on my social life. Most people I know are free on the weekends, but most of the year, I’m not. Sometimes I get so busy that it gets hard to take breaks, and between editing photos and photographing weddings, I’ll end up working 7 days a week. It can be hard to balance that and ensure I get some time off to rest and recharge.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I focus on weddings, couples, family sessions, and portraits. I love bright colors, flowers, vintage cars, and blue skies, so my work is colorful, happy, and fun! In every session, it’s my goal to bring out who people are and show them how happy they are when doing things they love to do. Some of my favorite sessions have couples eating ice cream while walking through the park together or having someone take their dog for a walk during their portrait session. I want to capture you just as you are. Capturing people with natural poses and their real smiles makes my photos more authentic, making them more fun!
Let’s end by discussing what matters most to you and why.
Authenticity. I use photography to help preserve memories for myself and my clients. I want people to see a photo and see how it was and remember how they felt when it was taken. When I was very young, I lost my dad and my grandfather, but I still have photos of them. Those photos remind me of who they were, what they were like, and how I felt about them. My favorite photo of my dad is one of him wearing some silly 3D glasses as a joke. Now that social media is everywhere; many people try to hide anything they think is a flaw or even hide who they are. I try to capture people with natural poses and real smiles and use minimal editing so that people can remember this time in their life – how happy they felt, how fun it was, and who they are – because that’s a photo they’ll take the treasure for years to come.
Pricing:
- All my prices are on my website! Ashtonrailphotography.com
Contact Info:
- Website: ashtonrailphotography.com
- Instagram: @ashtonrailphotography
- Facebook: @ashtonrailphotography
