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

Ashley, appreciate you joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

First and foremost , I think success can look different for everyone based off their own personal goals and dreams and what they wish to accomplish. To share my view of success, I think I’ll take you back to the beginning.

Growing up, I was always the artsy girl and my walls were filled with photos from those disposable cameras. Who remembers those? After high school , I really wanted to persue my passion for photography , but when I got started twelve years ago , it was really hard to “make it” as a photographer full time, or I should say it seemed much harder than it was now being we live in such a social media based world.

Getting started , I purchased my first “big girl camera” and began offering free photo shoots to close family and friends while I worked in retail full time . Those first years were full of trial and error . And to be honest, I was winging it, but I loved it so I just kept practicing and working for free.

After I realized this hobby / passion of mine was something I wanted to do more of , I enrolled into a photography program at central lakes college. I attended college for about a year but as life does, a little curveball happened , or a huge blessing , I became a mother.

At the age of 21, I became a mom to the most beautiful little girl. I owe where I am today , to my daughter . As a single mother and knowing I needed to provide for us , I took a huge leap of faith and decided to open a studio in my hometown and go public with my business . It was the best decision. That year, my photography hobby turned into a full blown career . I was able to step away from my retail job and do photography full time.

Over the course of the next 10+ years, I’ve built that little dream business , from the ground up to be everything I could ask for and more . I often have to pinch myself that I can wake up and go to work and love what I do and make a living doing it . Not many people can always say that.

As of 2021, i decided to use my platform and following to be an advocate for women in business , domestic abuse survivors , working moms , and be a person in the community that is doing what I can do make it a better place.

After reflecting and thinking back to even this past year , I would say is when I’ve felt the most “successful”. It’s not a dollar amount , it’s not how many clients I have or the following I have, but the difference I’ve been able to make just from taking that leap of faith 12 years ago ! If you asked me then if I thought that I’d be here now, id say you’re crazy.

I’m now a wife , mother of three , and a woman who is driven to keep doing more. My work is not done here and is not limited to just photography.

My advice to success would be to just DO IT. Do it scared . Do it tired. Take the risk . Chase your dreams. Don’t limit yourself to a life you think you have to have. Work for the life you deserve.

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?

I touched base on most of my story in the previous question , but, I’m a central mn based photographer . I’ve been in the industry for 12+ years . I photograph families , seniors , newborns , weddings , etc !

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I would actually say, which may be an unpopular opinion , but it would have been to lean on people in the photography community more. Community over competition. It’s amazing the amount of creative , inspiring , successful people there are in this industry . And back when I started , I was afraid to open up and ask questions. Questions that could have opened up new doors or friendships in the community .

I’m so thankful for the extremely talented circle of creatives turned friends that I have now where we can all often come together and help each other out and give each other new ideas .

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

My biggest advice would be to just be your true genuine self . You can connect with WAY more people . People who can relate to your story. Find your niche . Everyone has their own things that make them special . For instance , to grow my following , I shared personal stories of things in my life I overcame with domestic violence , being a young single mother , depression , etc ! Now, this may not be everyone , and that’s okay! Maybe you love clothing and want to use your space to share outfits , like an influencer , maybe you’re super into knitting and want to show people what you make . These are random examples of course . But my biggest advice would be to just be yourself and be authentic. Share your work, put yourself out there , and do it often . Show up.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.ashleythielphoto.com
• Instagram: Www.instagram.com/ashleythielphoto
• Facebook: Www.facebook.com/ashleythielphoto

Image Credits
My headshot is done by Margaux Alice photography The other images I submitted are by myself , Ashley thiel photo.