We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ashley Isbell a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Ashley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
Earning a full-time living wage while starting and running your own business is definitely a struggle. I started my company while I was in college, so I definitely didn’t have a financial backbone that allowed me to jump into full-time after! I actually worked multiple jobs, mainly at a local steakhouse, Folk’s Folly, until I could pay off my student loans (which I did in 18 months!) and lived at home until I could afford to break free. I moved to Nashville for a little bit, which didn’t work out. I was working a job in Nashville while also trying to break into the wedding scene there, and driving back and forth from Memphis every weekend for work here was not fun. I moved back to Memphis in late 2017, and resumed working at Folk’s Folly to help ease the financial burden of an unsteady income! When the pandemic hit in 2020, I was living with my parents after a recent and extended trip to Australia. I met my husband during the pandemic, and then when we moved to Collierville, I decided to hang up my Folk’s Folly job, as it was a pretty far drive at that point!
I definitely think that if you’re starting your own business, you need to look at the costs and not just the “fun” side of it. Licenses, insurance, startup and maintaining costs, equipement, etc. are not cheap! I think educating yourself and finding a mentor in the field you want to get into are key in realizing some things that you may not have thought of before you started your business.
Ashley, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Ashley Isbell, I am a full-time wedding, portrait, and event photographer in my 11th year in “official” business. I studied photojournalism at the University of Memphis and Florence University of the Arts. I live in Collierville with my husband. I’m also a stepmom to three amazing kids, and have 2 dogs and a cat!
As a teenager in the MySpace era, selfies were all over the place. I saved up for quite some time to afford my first “professional” camera– a Canon Rebel t2i, which I then proceeded to use to take “better” selfies.
When I was 16, my sister passed away at the age of 15, and I was in charge of going through the photos and making copies to use on the photo memorial poster boards. Back then, most of our childhood photos were printed from Walgreens, and I realized how few photos we had of her. I think my passion for photography really started there. In my senior year of high school, I became the photographer for the school newspaper and took the photography class and really enjoyed making art and capturing moments in time. When it came time to pick a major for college, I chose to do photojournalism at the University of Memphis, where I could study both the artistic side of photography as well as tell stories through journalism.
I studied abroad for a semester in Florence, Italy, focusing primarily on photography– stories, landscapes, fashion, people: I loved it all. Aftrer my semester abroad, I began working as an intern for Southern Bride magazine, where I was privvy to all things wedding for a couple of years. During that time, someone asked me to photograph their wedding– after all, I worked for a wedding magazine and also was a photo major.
Well, Southern Bride actually published the photos from my first wedding in their next issue, which was incredible. However, now I had to name my photography “business” for the photo credit! I didn’t want to use my name, as my maiden name is long and hard to pronounce. Plus, if I ever got married, it wouldn’t be my name anymore! Instead, I went with something more catchy– Smash Studios Photography. When playing volleyball my sophomore year, I was a left side hitter. One game, I smacked the ball into the face of an opposing team member, and gave her a nose bleed. My teammates began calling me “Smashley”, and one of them actually went out to my 2002 Taurus and wrote SMASH on my back window (in car paint). 8 years later, it became my photography monikor!
As I mentioned, I am a wedding, portrait, and event photographer. I photograph babies, boudoir, families, puppies, events, seniors, headshots, you name it! I think every photographer has their own unique style and personality. I think that my personality is really what makes my business unqiue– I am very personable and sociaable– my husband says I could probably talk to a brick wall. I think that providing not only a service, but an experience, is something extremely important to me. I like to say that I want you to have your photos and all of the professionalism that comes with that, but the personality of a friend that you would want to grab a coffee or glass of wine with after. Especially with weddings, I am with the bride MORE than the groom is on the wedding day. You want to have a photographer that doesn’t make you feel like another transaction. You want a photographer that makes you feel comfortable, and that is me!
I also strive for a sense of community and giving back. I was the Collierville Library Spotlight business of the month in September, and also had a grand opening/ribbon cutting with the Collierville Chamber of Commerce that month. I have hosted a free teen photography class at the library as well as $20 headshot days both at the Library and Chamber of Commerce. I have sponsored the Crosswind Elementary PTA since 2021, and have also previously sponsored the West Collierville Middle School cheer team and the Collierville Arts Ballet. I ran a fundraiser every year from 2019-2024 to raise money for the Memphis Animal Shelter and buy them dire supplies, and I was nominated for Small Business of the Year at the Collierville Chamber of Commerce in 2025.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I will be the first to say that I am not the best at social media– my husband always has to remind me to post! I think that providing a clean and consistent edit to my photos— as in, I don’t change my editing style to fit trends– helps clients see a professional representation with also the creativity of your photos. I think also not overdoing it helps too! I will absolutely congratulate someone on social media that has gotten engaged, or announces their pregnancy, etc. but I won’t send them a personal message offering my services. I want to engage without demanding attention. Also, working with amazing vendors who repost and engage their followers with your work definitely helps. Fostering those vendor relations has definitely brought more people to my page! I am currently at 10,000 followers!
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
My personality and professionalism have definitely helped with my reputation! I have great vendor relationships, which leads to word of mouth or vendor referrals, and I am always going to be team CLIENT, whether that be a bride, a family, or a high school senior. I want you to have the best experience while also getting the photos you want. I have gained a lot of families since our oldest started kindergarten, simply because I have made such a presence at the school and with teachers and parents there. I also have a wonderful support system with my parents, my sister, and my husband, so I get a lot of referrals due to them!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.smashstudiosphoto.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smashstudiosphoto
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smashstudiosphoto
- Other: https://www.pinterest.com/smashstudiosphoto/
Image Credits
Smash Studios Photography– all images