2015 was a year of a lot of soul searching... which given that I had a baby last year, it makes total sense that I wanted to evaluate all aspects of my life. I came to some conclusions about the direction of my business and brand, what I wanted to be doing with my time, and what I did not. I attended another live workshop by my hero Sue Bryce and wrote some major, scary, but exciting decisions on paper... And this year, 2016, has been making them all come to life!!So I am being very cryptic but letting you know that the "Ashleigh Taylor" brand is being updated and the big unveiling is Monday! Yes, like as in 48 hours from now. I can't wait to show you what I am working on and share our new changes to the business with you. As always thanks to everyone who supports me-- I know some of you have been around for 7 years (the very beginning). You are very loved and appreciated and I hope you will go with me on this journey into Ashleigh Taylor 2.0 ...Here's a sneak peek of what's to come:
There is nothing I love more than capturing Mother-Daughter Portraits. These portraits are extra special because not only do I get to fufill my passion of making women feel beautiful and confident in front of the camera, but I also know that the work I am creating is so deeply meaningful. Your mom is your first female role model, she carried you in her womb and I now know, being a mom myself, that she continued to sacrifice her body for you for many years after you were born. Your mom teaches you so much and protects you and loves you fiercely. Seriously she is irreplaceable right? But the bittersweet thing is moms aren’t around to care for us forever, and one day a portrait with you and your mom looking amazing will literally be one of the most priceless possessions you have. The fact that I can freeze time for mothers and daughters, to snap their bond, to give them both confidence, and to make them look and feel fabulous and create a fun day they will always remember… That is epic to me! I love it with all my heart! So yeah… Mother Daughter shoots are my favorite!And they are the PERFECT gift too! So check out this recent shoot and then send me an email… I’d love to create the most unique and priceless gift you’ve ever given your mom in the new year!
It’s always an honor to photograph a fellow photographer, and that was especially the case with Lucia. I took some stunning glamour portraits of her solo and we finished the session with her husband and little son James joining in on the fun! I always like to ask my clients if they’d to bring any family in at the end of the session— it just makes perfect sense if you are already dolled up and feeling fabulous to get some photos with your loved ones as well. And while I am known for mother-daughter shoots, I definitely can photograph you with your hubby or son too! Hey, some of us (ME) only have sons not daughters and we should be left out of the fun should we?! Definitely not!Lucia’s session is the perfect example of how a personal glamour shoot can be about celebrating yourself and also about getting some lovely photos with your family too!And this is just the perfect time of year for that with the holidays approaching! Definitely drop me a note to see how we can get you some stunning new images and some great family shots for your holiday cards!!
Last year, in the midst of morning sickness a pregnancy, I shot this fabulous mother daughter glamour shoot but never got around to sharing it! So I thought better late than never right?!I love the story behind this shoot. I donated a $500 credit toward a boudoir shoot to the American Heart Association's Heart Beach Ball here in Santa Barbara. The Heart Beach Ball happens annually and is a big fundraiser from AHA! Sarah is on the board and attended the event, and bid on the shoot... AND WON! Woohoo! So this shoot we got to celebrate her and her journey and her charitable work for AHA. I had so much fun photographing her daughter Madison! Too cute!Sarah was floored by the photos and bought quite a few wall portraits to give as gifts to her husband and her daughter for Christmas. I love knowing that a huge canvas hangs in their house, as well as as some smaller shots on her husband's desk. I also love that she got Madison some images for her room-- how great is that for a young girl's self esteem to have gorgeous portraits of herself of the wall of her room! LOVE!Sarah loved everything so much she asked me to donate to Heart Beach Ball again... And I did! Can't wait to meet this year's lucky winner! :)
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I am SOOOO thrilled to be featured in the September issue of Denim+Grace Magazine-- a magazine for photographers! I have a cover story article featured about boudoir photography as the new feminist movement, AND they were even nice enough to include one of my images as the back cover photo as well! Soooo exciting!Photographer or not, the article is a great read and you can buy a copy HERE! Check out the highlights below as well! :) 
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Melanie is a beautiful, beautiful person. She is actually my yoga coach and she has helped me grow so much stronger (both physically and emotionally/mentally) in the past 1.5 years. She has profoundly changed my life and helped me move past many of my own fears, insecurities and supported me in going after my dreams in many ways. I could not be more grateful for her presence in my life.Melanie has been so generous to share her gifts with me, so I was really excited to have the opportunity to share my talents with her! It was really cool for me to do this glamour session for her too because I am so used to only seeing her in lululemon clothes, ready to work out! So it was really awesome to see this softer, super girly side to her. I was also super honored that she was generous enough to let me film and share her story in video format. So below please watch the behind the scenes video of her shoot and then check out some of my fave shots from the session!Melanie's Glamour Shoot from Ashleigh Henning on Vimeo.
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Lauren is a beautiful woman inside and out. She is a daughter, sister, chef, nutritionist, holistic expert and inspiring young business woman. She hired me to take photos for her ahhhh-mazing new website and we just had so much fun taking them! It was seriously an all out girly fest full of sequins, silk, color and jewels! What could be better? Seriously, no one deserves this shoot more as Lauren does so much to empower and inspire women to live happier & healthier lives. This shoot celebrates all her beauty, gifts and talents and I was happy to give to her some of the same feelings of confidence and beauty that she brings to her clients.I also made a little behind the scenes film of Lauren's shoot! Please check it out and then see some of my favorite images from the shoot below!
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Last week I blogged about Rita & Marilyn's Mother-Daughter Glamour Session. That day was so special to my heart because it was so fun to help two amazing women feel beautiful, sexy, confident and empowered. It was also quite meaningful to document their bond and relationship and I know the photographs will be something they will cherish for the rest of their lives, especially as their family grows.And while the joint pictures were so beautiful and sentimental, I think the solo shots are really special and meaningful as well. Because seriously, how amazing is it to have a beautiful photo of yourself you can be proud of every time you see it?!A lot of the moms in my mother daughter shoots feel particularly self conscious. They worry they won't look young, beautiful, or skinny. They love watching their daughters shine and they secretly want to shine as well. But they are afraid. Afraid they just can't look good.But that's where they are wrong. I look at moms and see a beautiful woman, with a gorgeous inner light, and an elegant sophistication and sensuality only time and life experience can bring! I love helping to style and pose moms to bring all this out and make them shine so bright it.Marilyn was so fun to photograph because she has such style and sophistication and the most beautiful, warm, genuine soul. She's a mom, a business owner, a super creative person and a single gal looking for fun! We laughed, and just had such a blast during the shoot! And as the shoot went on I saw her nerves fade and her have so much fun-- maybe more fun than Rita was having if that's possible! I am pretty sure she could have shot two more hours, if getting hungry for lunch wasn't an issue for all of us! LOL! I just adore these photos of Marilyn. She has such a glow and beauty that can't be matched. Look below and you will see what I mean!
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A few days ago I blogged about Rita & Marilyn's Mother-Daughter Glamour Session. It was a gorgeous and fun filled day of bonding, love, and feminine energy! Today I am excited to share Rita's solo images for the shoot! I've photographed Rita several times before, but WOW, girl keeps getting more and more beautiful! It was funny because at the shoot she was tired and said I was giving her a pilates-esque work out with all the poses. But when she saw the pictures she was blown away and admitted all the contorting was totally worth it! hehehe!Rita had an amazing wardrobe and set of accessories to play with and each outfit was so fun to shoot too! Sequins, tulle, lace and more sequins... YES she is a girl after my own heart! Check out all her beauty below!
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I seriously LOVE LOVE LOVE Mother/Daughter Glamour sessions. They are just too fun, too sweet and too beautiful.You may remember my bride, Rita. Rita saw some of my glamour work and decided she wanted to do a shoot so she could have some gorgeous photos of herself alone that weren't bridal. She also told me her mother-in-law, Marilyn, might be interested too. And I said, well YES then bring her to your shoot! That way the two of them could have some fun , girly bonding time and get some gorgeous photos together, and also cheer each other on during the individual photos. And that is exactly what happened.These two had so a blast dressing up, sharing jewelry and accessories, cheering each other on, blowing fan air in each others hair and just being carefree together.I made sure they felt pampered and each got equal individual time and some amazing photos together they can cherish forever, especially as their family grows! In the end they each got a beautiful folio box full of magazine quality matted portraits and were so ecstatic. It was honestly a perfect shoot in every way, and I only wish all mothers-daughters would do a shoot like this!!Below check out Marilyn & Rita's joint images. Soon I will blog their individuals!
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Meet Lisa. Lisa is a mother, a business owner and a true love guru! She is the owner/matchmaker at Santa Barbara MatchMaking and has helped so many people find love, happiness and meaningful relationships! What an amazing job and contribution to the world! Lisa was so fun to photograph because she radiated joy and positive energy. Just look at her big smile. You can't help but smile back when you see it! I so loved photographing her! Now it's your turn to enjoy the images... :)
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Meet Farideh! Farideh is an amazingly fun, sweet and crazy stylish woman! She is a wife, mother and believe it or not a NEW GRANDMOTHER too! Can you believe it? She's the most beautiful grandma I've ever seen! She looks just like Sandra Bullock, doesn't she? Farideh had so much fun at the glam shoot because she really does love to dress up and be girly. And while the shoot was not out of her comfort zone, like it is for most of my clients, I could tell it was till an empowering and fun experience for her. You can see it in the photos-- she's having the time of her life! I know one day her little grandbaby will look at these photos and cherish them! How cool to have such beautiful portraits of your grandma! Portraits like this are such a multi-layered gift because they are for you of course, but also for all the people who love you and want to remember you. Such a special treasure! And I of course had so much fun taking these pictures too! Check them out!
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Meet Mara. Mara is a wife, a yogi, a Zumba instructor and an Austinite (someone from Austin TX). She used to live in Santa Barbara, and that's how I was lucky enough to meet and photograph her. I had so much fun getting to know Mara at our shoot and photograph her. She really loved getting all dolled up and the whole prep part of the shoot! Which just goes to show that having hair & make up done not only helps because it looks nice in photos, but it actually is a fun experience in itself and helps you relax into the shoot. She also had fun posing for me and letting her personality shine. I am so excited to share these gorgeous images of her! Enjoy!
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We first opened our special Valentine's Day all inclusive mini-sessions up to our facebook fans and the response has been crazy! Now there are only 2 spots left on Saturday 2/1/14. Rarely do we do mini-sessions like these, but for Valentine's Day? Well it just makes sense! Who wouldn't want to give their love the gift of sexy? Or heck, maybe you're single. Valentine's Day can be rough on single gals (trust me I've BEEN THERE) so what better time to remember what a sexy fox you are and celebrate your fabulousness?! Am I right ladies!!Check out the flyer below for some info...
Our full boudoir folio can be seen here!Interested in snagging one of the last TWO spots? Email info@ashleightaylorphotography.com for more details!
Nanette, beautiful Nanette. She is an amazing officiant of weddings here in Santa Barbara and an all around wonderful spirit to be around. Nanette isn't that into getting glam every day. She told me before her shoot she had no idea what to wear or what kind of hair & make up she would like. It was a whole new world for-- to do this who girly glam thing. Which actually really excited me! I knew I could take her through a transformation and help her feel beautiful in a whole new way. The whole shoot we giggled. She kept saying "Oh my god" every time she looked in the mirror! She could hardly believe that very glamorous reflection. But she was having fun and she was willing to try anything. And her eyes. Her eyes just radiated. You can see so much of her beautiful soul in these pictures. Because she just went with it, let her guard down and let me see her beauty. And I happily captured.These images were taken 6 months ago, and yet they are still some of my favorite all time favorite images. When I look at these pictures I see a beautiful woman, embracing her femininity, and baring her soul. Pictures this beautiful are something to be cherished forever.
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You may remember the lovely Carolyn & Prescott's wedding that I photographed two years ago. It was an amazing celebration and I was so overjoyed to photograph the wedding of two such adorable and loving people. Carolyn has been so awesome to keep in touch and support my work over the last couple years. And I was BEYOND honored & excited when she told me her & Prescott are expecting a baby boy and that she wanted me to take some gorgeous maternity photos for them! I think there is nothing more special than following my clients through their major life milestones and documenting it all for them. Amazing!We started their session in my downtown Santa Barbara studio to give Carolyn some signature Ashleigh Taylor glamour style portraits. Then we headed about ten minutes to the Mesa so they could have a few outdoors in nature photos! I can't get over how gorgeous the whole thing was and how glowing and beautiful Carolyn is!I can't wait to meet the little Mr. Lawson soon! Congrats Carolyn & Prescott! I know all three of you will cherish these photos forever!
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Kelly is such a beautiful woman inside & out. She is a mom, a business owner, and just a super sweet, caring individual. It was my pleasure to capture these gorgeous glam photos for her! We did everything from a professional look (which she could use for business purposes) to more fun casual/every day glam to a fancy gown! It was so fun to photograph the many sides of her personality! I just adore these images and think they showcase just how versatile a glam sesh can be! It doesn't have to be all fancy looks, but it doesn't have to be all business or casual either. We can get a ton of variety so you have a folio that is a true reflection of you! Fun! Check out these gorgeousssss images below!PS- doesn't Kelly look like Courtney Cox?!
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We all remember that classic scene from Pretty Woman, right? Where Julia Roberts gets denied and shamed out of a posh Beverly Hills store because they don't think she is the type of woman who can and should be in their store? If you don't remember here is the clip: Well today I kinda had my own "Pretty Woman" experience... Or shall we say NOT-so-pretty-woman experience.I had heard of a lingerie store in town that I did not knew existed. I am always looking for the BEST lingerie stores to refer my boudoir clients to. In a dream world, there would be a store here in town with great selection and helpful sales people who I could collaborate with, so I know if I refer my clients to them, my clients will have a great shopping experience and leave with just the right items for a shoot. I just wanted to check the store out and see what they had, maybe introduce myself but it was mostly a stop-in-see-what-you-got outing. Was I dressed up? No. I was in the middle of a busy day. This morning I threw on a (what I think is) cute romper from Forever21 and I haven't changed since. Was I in make up? No. The fact is despite having a love of glamour, I am also a no-muss-no-fuss kind of gal, and most days I don't bother with make up. The clerk asked why I was there and looking for and I explained what I do, showed her one of my cards with photos on it, and explained I was just checking out the store's selection. That's when it happened.She told me **I** was actually the one in need of make over and I should be practicing what I preach. According to her, I was not made up nice enough to be introducing myself to another business and looked like I was 8 year old the way I was dressed. According to her, I should also have taken the time to wear make up, because it's not polished to introduce yourself to a business without wearing make up. She said I should know better. And maybe I should have.BUT WHEN IS IT OKAY TO TELL A WOMAN SHE IS NOT GLAMOROUS ENOUGH?The whole experience got me thinking about my shoots and why I do what I do. To be clear, I do not shoot glamour and boudoir because I think every woman needs to dress and look her best on a daily basis. No, quite the opposite. I understand that women have a lot on their plate. We are employees, business owners, volunteers, mothers, daughters, sisters, friends, wives, girlfriends, lovers, caretakers and more. There are days we don't put make up on, eat lunch till three, or ever get out of the yoga clothes (yoga clothes I should add that we never actually got around to doing yoga in that day). I understand that. For most modern women, every day is not a red carpet experience.And yet, I believe that is what most of us our longing for. For one special day to be made to feel beautiful. To be celebrated. To be dressed up as close to a Hollywood starlet as possible. And to have a magazine worthy photograph taken of us to remember the whole experience by. So when we have that day where we aren't feeling enough, or someone has cut us down, we can look back at that picture and remember that fabulous woman is in there all the time. And that you are beautiful and should never forget that.So that's why I do what I do. Maybe a glamour/boudoir shoot seems superficial on the surface. But it is truly about empowering the inner beauty. It is truly about celebrating who you are. And it is truly about loving yourself-- loving yourself dressed up and loving yourself dressed down.I want to give every woman this experience. I want to give every woman this powerful message. And I never ever ever want to make another woman feel the way the employee at the lingerie store made feel today.Here is a picture of me today after the whole experience. Yup, it's a selfie. Trying to smile through the salty tears I had just shed. Trying to remember that I am beautiful and stylish and sophisticated and mature no matter what anyone else thinks or says. I am showing it to you to keep it real. This is who I am. I am not a glamour girl 24/7 and I am definitely not perfect. Most days I am just Ashleigh, trying to conquer the day, and trying to take the best care of my clients, friends, family and cats the best I can. That's who I am. And that is beautiful.
PS- after this whole thing happened, the friend I was with contacted the actual store owner and told her what went down. The owner was EXTREMELY nice and personally called me to apologize for her employee and affirmed that she owns a lingerie store to also help women feel beautiful and was really upset that this happened in her store. I truly appreciate that kind of customer service and try my very best to give that same care and service to my clients as well.
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I am super excited to share the behind the scenes video of Lauren's Glamour Photo Shoot, which she did to get some photos for her new website! This 2 minute video will give you a little glimpse into what it is actually like to be photographed by me, and also it shares Lauren's story and her experience during the photo shoot. I just adore Lauren and I am so over the moon with how this video turned out! Watch below and stay tuned for the full blog post on her session soon!Lauren's Glamour Shoot with Ashleigh Taylor Photography from Ashleigh Henning on Vimeo.
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Sunday was our official Grand Opening party for our new studio space in Downtown Santa Barbara! Even though I have been doing boudoir and glamour shoots in the space since mid-July, it was so nice to finally be able to open it up and invite our friends, family, clients and colleagues to see and experience it! The reaction was overwhelming and I am so thankful for everyone's support and love! I truly never thought I'd have a space, and it is a huge accomplishment... and also-- not gonna lie-- a little bit daring of an adventure! But I truly believe it's only UP from here! Because I know that this space allows me to serve women better... to help empower them to see themselves as beautiful... and to do that by taking gorgeous, sexy, glamorous photos! YAY!Check out pics from the event below. HUGE thanks to Nicole Chapman of Hint Of Chic for designing and planning ad providing the florals. Thanks to Page of Absolutely Fabulous Hair + Make Up who I share the space with! Thanks to Veronique Coleccion for providing lingerie to display, and Coast 2 Coast for providing our jewelry display! Thanks to Chocolat Calibressan + Kay's Candy Cart for providing some of the goodie bag treats! And thanks to my hubby and in-laws for helping with set up and manning the sign in area! So appreciative of everyone's support!!!Our studio is located in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara-- 1129 State Street-- right by Peet's Coffee, Anthropologie, Paper Source, and CorePower Yoga! The historic building features a gorgeous courtyard and architectural details... head up the stairs to our private, by appoint only, suite!
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