We were lucky to catch up with Ashley Bootier recently and have shared our conversation below.

Ashley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you take vacations? How do you keep things going – any advice for entrepreneurs who feel like they can’t step away from their business for a short vacation?

Yes, I take a few vacations a year. My family is from TN and still lives there so we go to visit them and our friends each year about 2-4 times. My family really enjoys time with our daughter, and my husband and I love traveling together. My husband and I take about one trip a year together to bond and spend some much needed quality time together. We love our air b&b in gatlinburg. We thoroughly enjoy disconnecting in the no service area and just being with nature. Hiking in the smokies is one of our favorites and then grilling out at our cabin in the evenings. We love the fresh air. Last year, we got to visit CO for the first time in the Rockies. That was incredible. This year, we got to explore California, Sequoia and Death Valley. We live in an incredible country full of incredible things and I just love seeing it all. I crave it honestly! And I’m always looking forward to our next trip together.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi friends! My name is Ashley Bootier. I am the owner of Ashley Bootier Photography and primarily serve families in Palm Beach County, Martin and Saint lucie county as a family photographer. I specialize in family and first birthday portraits. I am married (7 years) and a mom! This is what truly inspired me to learn as much as I could about photography. My husband and I adopted our daughter in 2019 at 5 days old. During that year, I thoroughly enjoyed watching her play and taking pictures of her with my camera. I’ve always loved photography but I found a course on shooting and editing that year by Amy and Jordan and decided to take the plunge. Before I knew it, I had 25 free sessions for mommy and me booked in a week to practice. I am beyond grateful for those moms who got me started. The more I practiced, the more I just loved it even more. I learned about mini sessions and started providing those for very cheap. When I was more comfortable with my images, I created my LLC. Ever since, each year I have seen more and more growth. This year, my christmas minis sold out in a week! I couldn’t believe it, I was so happy with my success. I have learned so much since started and I truly believe my images have improved just as much over the years. I’ve invested in posing and business courses which have helped me improve so much! I am grateful for Amy and Jordan and their courses and inspiration towards my new career. My daughter is now 3.5 years old and we just found out she is autistic. I have many struggles as a stay at home mom, but being able to step away into my element each weekend for what I love to do is so amazing. I couldn’t thank the families that keep rebooking me each year enough. It makes me so happy that they love my work and value it so much that they want more. Thank you.

I try to be the most personable person and flexible as I can be. As a mom, I understand how crazy our schedules get and try my best to work with you. I have been told a lot how thankful my families are for my being so flexible. I grew up in Knoxville,TN and went to MTSU near Nashville, TN. I met my husband in 2011 and we were married in 2015. In 2017, we started our adoption journey and in 2018 found out we were moving to South Florida. We packed our house up in 30 days and moved – it was so quick! It took me so long to adjust to FL life. It is extremely different from TN. But I think through photography, I have met so many people and am so thankful for that. I do love the beach, but I think I prefer a caribbean beach to a florida beach. I have loved Rascal Flatts since they started in 1999, I go total fangirl. I absolutely love cars and to be more specific, the 1965 ford mustang convertible is a total dream of mine.

What sets me apart from others is that I only take about 5-6 sessions a month and only on weekends. I don’t have a studio and much more prefer outdoor scenery and natural light. I have a quick turnaround time since I only take a few sessions a month. Right now, I am happy with this speed of progress since I am a stay at home mom and stay very busy on a daily basis. However, I definitely would like to dive deeper once my daughter is in school and I have more time to spend on my business. I do have big goals for the future.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

My goal for the future is to expand and be able to take more sessions during the week/month or year. I’d like for my client base to really grow. Since my husband and I have adopted, I have meant a ton of people in the foster/adoption community. The one thing that I’d love to offer in the future are family portrait sessions for families who have adopted in the past or are even fostering, who maybe can’t set aside money for photos or don’t have the time/means to do so. I’d love to be able to provide that for them. I know what a roller coaster it is to adopt. And fostercare is so much tougher with so much more trauma. To be able to provide these families with memories would be a dream and I can’t wait to start doing it.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of what I do is getting the messages, reviews or phone calls about how much my families have loved their photos. I get pictures of them on their walls, and when they want to rebook, it gives me so much happiness. Growing a business is hard and especially at the pace that I go, I often just want to give up. The positive comments and rebookings are what give me hope that my work is appreciated and I can keep doing what I love.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://ashleybootierphoto.wixsite.com/photography
• Instagram: Ashley bootier photography
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100063761671402

Image Credits
Ashley Bootier Photography Nancy C.