This week is going to be wild and crazy as I have quite a few sessions. Inquiries and bookings have picked up tremendously and I couldn’t be more pleased. I have been so anxious to get outdoors for photo shoots again. The weather looks like it is going to be wonderful all week and I can’t wait to meet and photograph (and play with!) my new clients!

This week I received a client’s fabulous Premium Custom Album and just had to share images of it with you. I am so in love with this product! This gorgeous 9×9 album comes with a custom image cover, 30 pages that are an incredible 2mm thick, and is a true layflat design with a 2-page spread, allowing for images to stretch across the 9×18 spread unbroken. The album is created using state of the art quality photographic printing with a luster coating and is delivered in a beautiful presentation box. These albums are incredibly gorgeous and as soon as you hold one you know that you are holding a piece of fine art, built to last generations and to cherish always! Here are some images from the latest album delivery.

There are two great new programs at Ashley Ward Photography! I am happy to announce this first new program to document all of your baby’s changes in the first year. Book 3 sessions within one year and your third is session fee free!! Just pay for the prints and products you want from that session! All 3 sessions must be booked within a year. You are welcome to combine images from all 3 sessions for a first year custom album or storybook, using a collection or a la carte pricing. You pay for your sessions and products as you go to keep things simple, convenient and flexible. This program may also be used to document other important times in your life!

The second reward is a “preferred client” session fee rate! Starting this year, complete a session and purchase any package and next year your session fee is $175! If you complete 2 sessions this year and purchase a package, your session fees next year are $150!!!

Thanks for visiting and check back in with me soon for more product highlights, previews, and exciting news:)

Oh baby! She’s 7 months old…..and just as adorable as she can be! Notice the different ways that she is holding her mouth? That’s the teething….and I love that we captured so many faces because it is great documentation of that age. This will be something so fun to look back on when she gets older.

This lucky little girl was a great pleasure to photograph. Her momma and I had a great time dressing her up and getting these images. She could hardly have been a better subject:) And this is an especially difficult blog post because I want to put almost every one of the images here to share! But then there wouldn’t be any surprises for our proofing session! I am going to post a little more than usual since it was so tough making a decision and I haven’t posted a session with this age for a while:)

Mom, have 35 unique friends or family members leave a comment on this post along with an email address and you can choose a 5×7 or set of wallets with the image of your choice on me! Get 60 comments for a free 8×10!! I look forward to seeing yall again at the proofing:)

Hope you had a Happy St. Patty’s Day! Hasn’t it been just gorgeous lately! The magnolias and camelias and bradford pears and daffodils throughout the old city neighborhood that we live in has been such a welcome site. I am a person who seems to stay perpetually cold. I don’t think I completely thaw out till late April or early May! But just knowing that those long lazy days of summer are coming has me restless with anticipation! I am looking forward to getting out so much more and shooting away instead of being huddled up indoors:)

Apparently I am not the only one restless to get outdoors and to create a record of childhood and family harmony…..I have had 4 bookings in the last 3 days! I will be very busy starting tomorrow. I can probably take 1 more session some time over the next 4 weeks or so, but am now booking for sessions after April 21 through the end of the year, with limited sessions available in May and July at this time. If you are planning for Spring or Summer sessions, now is the time to get with me on a date:)

Last week I was a speaker at the 5th anniversary meeting of the Sumter Digital Camera Club. It was an honor and I loved sharing with other photographers in this way! I couldn’t have asked for a more wonderful audience and if any of you who attended read this….thank you again for having me and welcoming me. What a great group of people and a wonderful resource for photographers of all skill level!

Tonight I will answer just a couple of questions that I was asked last Thursday evening as a speaker:)
Q: How did you know you wanted to be a child photographer?
A: It sounds cliche now, but I decided I wanted to be a child photographer after having my daughter. I spent so much time photographing her and documenting her growth and development and personality and I loved every second of it. I started sharing the images with friends as well as photographing their children and they loved them. After quite some time of seeing that friends loved the images as much as I did and speaking with a couple of professionals who believed in me, I began my own photography business and am so happy and grateful to be where I am today. I get to witness and document the bonds and relationships that are what life is all about and what gives the world such beauty. How great is that!

Q: Are you self-taught?
A: OK – trick question! I know what they meant and I did not go to school for photography. So in that sense, I am self-taught. But I have had, and will continue to have, many WONDERFUL “teachers” in my life. I continue to pursue the best in training and experiences. I don’t consider myself to be “self-taught” although technically, I am.

Q: Are you available for mentoring?
A: No, at this time I am not. Running my business and balancing that with my home and family life keeps me pretty busy. I cannot say what the future will bring, but for now, I just don’t have the time for this.

Q: What advice would you give brand new photographers?
A: Get to know your camera. Read your manual. Practice, practice, practice. Learn to shoot in manual mode. Practice. Put your stuff out there for others to critique. And LISTEN. Practice. Try to give back along the way. Join an online photo sharing community or group and share with others. Practice. Don’t go into business until you can give clients consistent quality results every time. Keep practicing and learning. Find an area of focus. When/if you go into business, don’t undercharge – it’s a sure way to burnout and going out of business. Keep growing and practicing and learning.
That’s just what comes to mind now:)

Well, I debated on sharing this, but here goes! My artistic expression found it’s way to my look last night. Thank you to Claire of Moda Salon for seeing me through my nervous-nellie behavior and giving me the color in my hair that I have wanted for about 2 years now! It’s fun and funky and just what I needed:) Now all I need is a new headshot! And I am including a shot from the salon last night so you will recognize me when I come to your session:)

Well, I have been all over the place tonight. Just one more thing tonight. If you are on facebook, go add yourself to my fans. I am starting to share more little things over there. It’s easier not to have to share in such big chunks sometimes:)

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More new session stuff coming soon!

****UPDATE**** Another August booking this morning means I have limited availability for August as well:)

Hey there, everyone! It’s been a while since the last post. You may have read in a previous post that my husband recently had foot surgery. We spent this weekend at the hospital due to some post surgery complications. He was released today and we are glad to have him home. But it has been a pretty crazy month for all of us and we are looking forward to having Daddy healed and healthy. Being down this long is pretty rough for him. And we are all ready to get back to all of our normal routines:)

I am so excited to announce that I will be speaking at a meeting of the Sumter Digital Photo Club this Thursday evening! It is their 5 year anniversary meeting! I was so honored to be asked to speak and I plan on talking a little about my business and how I got started. I’ll also share my views on creative uses of natural light in location portrait photography. If you are a Sumter area photographer – novice to professional – come on out and meet some new people and have a good time. Check out all the pertinent information here. And say hello if you were referred from my blog:)

If you haven’t become a fan of Ashley Ward Photography on Facebook yet, do that here! I will be announcing a promotion with limited availability soon and plan to give all the details to my fans on Facebook first.

I’ll have more new proofings and faq posts coming soon too so yall come back now, ya hear?