Meet Laura McCloud {Young Creatives}
Laura Ashley Photography
Who Are You? I’m Laura Ashley, a wedding & portrait photographer in love with all things pink, earl gray tea, reading and pink peonies! I’m based out of the southern town of Richmond, VA. I’m eighteen years old but I do believe I’m an old soul stuck in a young body!
If you could travel anywhere in the world where would it be? There’s no question about this one, I would totally choose to travel to England! I’ve loved all things British since becoming a fan of British literature at a young age, and I feel like it would be so cool to travel there and see all of the centuries-old historical sights! Plus I adored Harry Potter growing up and that being set there so that adds to my love of England!
What do you do? What’s your creative passion? I LOVE all of the creative arts, and have dabbled in many! I truly found my passion though in photography, specifically shooting wedding & portraits! I adore capturing memories for my sweet clients, it’s my favorite thing to do!
Laura Ashley Photography
What are three words you’d use to describe yourself? This is seriously hard for me! I’m an indecisive human being, and only using three words is rather difficult to describe myself! Here it goes: I’m a dreamer, compassionate, and a lover of life. I am also a super happy, laughing person!
How did you discover your creative passion? I discovered my creative passion on a complete whim. At the age of 13 I had my head set on taking a beginner photography course while still shooting with a tiny little point-and-shoot, and God fully provided the funds for me to be able to take it! From there I learned a lot under the supervision of an amazing teacher and started shooting manual. A year later I photographed my first wedding at the age of 14 and the rest is history!
What is your favorite part about what you do? My favorite part about what I do is capturing memories that will be cherished for years to come and building relationships with my sweet couples I work with! It’s such a joy to walk with them through the engagement process, helping as much as I can to make their life easier all the way through them getting married, and then years later even taking maternity and family photos for them! I truly love every part of my job!
What is your wildest dream?
One of my wildest dreams is to one day travel. A lot! I would love to travel through multiple cities in the U.S., and also foreign countries (with my camera in hand!) Also, I would adore the opportunity of potentially doing some missions work with my photography to help spread the gospel to other countries, and to share those photographs with our culture to shed more light on what is happening outside of where we live. That’s my one crazy dream right there! Let’s see if God makes it happen!
What is one piece of advice you wish you’d been given five years ago? I’d probably tell myself to be more confident. Don’t give up on any of your dreams because other people think you’re not good enough!
What’s the hardest thing you’ve been through and how have you grown from it? The hardest thing I’ve been through is not believing in myself. I’ve always struggled with this and still do to some extent! We all compare ourselves to others every day, and in doing that I have always struggled with no believing I’d ever “get there”, whether it be shooting a wedding somewhere specific or anything! I’ve started to learn though that you have to believe in yourself first before anything and trust what you know!
Who is your biggest inspiration and why? What have they taught you that has made an impact? Would it be cliche to say Jesus here? Haha! But seriously, reading God’s word is definitely my biggest inspiration! Apart from that, I love the stories of Paul in the Bible and also find my greatest personal inspiration in my parents. They have taught me to never give up and always pursue what God has for my life! I wouldn’t be who I am today without them.
What is you favorite Bible verse?
My favorite Bible verse is Ephesians 2:1-10. That verse has helped influence me in so many ways, to help me realize that I am nothing without Jesus. He did all of the work, and He wants me to use my life to worship Him.
Yay, thank you so much for the feature! <3
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this blog post about you, Laura! You have grown into a very talented young woman. Your photography is incredible and the possibilities are endless for you and your career! “The best is yet to come!”