We recently connected with Ashley Harris and have shared our conversation below.

Ashley , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I’ve had a camera in my hand since elementary school days, my first camera was a Canon PowerShot SD900. I didn’t bother with a manual at that age, and it definitely wasn’t the era of YouTube University yet, haha. By experimenting with camera settings and finding ways to capture light reflecting off the world around me, I fell in love with photographing raw, candid moments. Memories can be fleeting, but something tangible like a photograph never loses the essence of that particular moment. There weren’t any obstacles back then, and truly when I reflect on this question, I recognize the only obstacles *mainly* faced are from what I’ve imposed on myself. I’m grateful to have reached a point of self-awareness where I no longer tolerate environments built on fear instead of faith. That kind of energy stifles the craft.

To anyone reading this: reflect on your current roadblocks — are they truly external, or self-imposed?

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m a 3x magazine-published Creative Director, Video Editor, Photographer, and Marketing Strategist (aka a bit of a Swiss army knife when it comes to social content and storytelling). I’ve been capturing organic moments and helping brands tell their why for a decade now!

After graduating from Humber College in Toronto, I started building a cross-border career, earning early recognition from outlets like THE FADER, Billboard, People Magazine, and Hip Hop Canada. One of the most pivotal shifts came in 2017, when I began working weekly with my first music industry mentor, !llmind the Producer. That chapter completely transformed how I approached both creative projects and networking — creating so closely with an innovator like !llmind was such a gift to my fresh-out-of-college self, haha. I highly recommend anyone reading this to go checkout one of our best pieces of work, the BLAPCAM 100th Episode, on YouTube. When my work with !llmind began slowing down in early 2020, he knew my skillset would be a perfect fit for a team like Nipsey Hussle’s old crew, 1500 or Nothin’. He introduced me to Larrance Dopson — and I genuinely remember that day like it was yesterday. I had been speaking “living in LA” into existence for years, and that trip, I happened to be there on a one-way ticket (not knowing a global pandemic was right around the corner). I had no idea that walking into the 1500 Sound Academy in March 2020 would unlock the next chapter of my career. From there, I took a leap of faith, trusting in the divine timing of it all. I left home in Canada, in the middle of the pandemic to officially move to Los Angeles and join The 1500 Sound Academy’s Media Production team, as a Creative Director and Editor. Since then, I’ve collaborated with names like Ashanti, Wiz Khalifa, TOBi, Baron Davis, Mayor Butts of Inglewood, Saweetie, The Isley Brothers, on the brand/label side, I’ve worked with Sony Music, Death Row Records, Roseville Music Group, Redbull, White Claw, RBC (Royal Bank of Canada), Well.ca, Red Swan Pizza, and more. At the core of it all, I am very community centred with a natural knack in human behaviour. :)

P.s Gratitude in advance, to anyone that takes the time to read this! May you continue being in service of your craft, too.

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

“You can’t NFT me looking at you, in real life right now -”
Much love to all the clients I helped create NFT teaser videos for — but honestly, Tyler, the Creator summed up my thoughts perfectly in that Converse interview from 2022. What he said then, still hits now lol.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I can’t think of any specific videos or essays that fed my entrepreneurial side, but I’ve got an ever-growing book list!
Some personal faves, others passed down from creative mentors include: The Tao of Wu, The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding, The Creative Act by Rick Rubin, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fck*, Ghandi’s 14 Principles to Guide and Inspire Modern Leaders, Make Your Bed, Big Magic, Psychotherapy East and West by Alan Watts… And for any poetic, entrepreneurial women reading this, Women Who Run with the Wolves is a must.

I also try to tune into Jay Shetty’s podcast weekly. It’s always gems on gems!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ashleyharriscaptures.com/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-harris-captures/

Image Credits

Ferdi, Shane Sak, Sian McMullen, and James Fiske for various BTS snaps over the years!