It’s officially 2022 and I’m beyond excited to dive into another year of following my dreams as a full-time photographer. The year 2021 was definitely one for the books for about 1 million reasons, but most importantly, it was the year I finally stepped into my power and decided to stop dulling my shine.
It’s always been a fear of mine to be seen in such a big way, but after creating a business plan and getting clear on all of my goals, it became evident to me that in order to succeed, I’d need to go all in. Quitting my job to go full-time was step one, but after that, it felt like steps 2-100 came rushing in to be addressed at once. I was quickly overwhelmed with the idea of juggling it all on my own and knew it was time to enlist the help of a professional. Que, my new lifeline, Sarah of Aligned Artists.
I’ve known Sarah since high school, where we met in a Fashion Marketing class. In our twenties, Sarah and I worked closely together in the photography world, and we second-shot almost every wedding we worked for each other. Her passion for photography morphed, over time, into a love for marketing and helping other businesses succeed. When I came to her tired, overwhelmed, and in need of someone who understood what I needed, Sarah didn’t hesitate to roll up her sleeves and whip me into shape. I enlisted her services for social media management, content creation, promotion management, blog writing, submissions, and press relations. She had a tall order to fill, and boy, did she deliver- more on that soon!
After I locked in the marketing help I needed, my next order of business was a facelift for my business. Branding was something I had a strained relationship with over the years prior; I knew it was important, but I just couldn’t lock down what I liked. Launching your own business as a broke twenty-something had its perks, but an abundance of money to make it look legit just wasn’t a thing. So, we winged it like our eyeliner and made due with what we had… for EIGHT YEARS. Needless to say, it was time to bite the bullet and invest in a branding professional to help me hone in on my brand, what it represents, and what it looks like.
Nikita Banana Company rocked out the most amazing, true-to-me branding I could have ever asked for. She combined my love for astrology, adventure, and my favorite tone of teal, and what came as the result made my eyes sparkle and well up with joy. “There it is,” I thought,” the dream business I’ve been building all along”. I’ve realized how much more “mine” my business feels, now that we’ve created a brand to reflect my personality, and my only regret is not making the investment sooner. New branding, who dis?!
Once my branding was complete, Nikita Banana Company got to work on my website. After years of trying to build my own site, it was time to invest in the page I had always dreamt of. Scrolling through my site is still something that feels surreal. Each feature is interactive, each page is customized, each text box is filled with words from my soul, and it really just came together so nicely. I’ve never been SO PROUD to show off my work before, and I can’t thank Nichole of Nikita Banana Company enough. Peep my fancy new home page in the video above, and feel free to visit www.ashleydortonphotograhy.com to poke around some more!
In April, I was asked by a group of talented vendors to participate in a gorgeous styled shoot, titled “The Botanical Bridal Brunch”. We all worked together to bring our A-Game to the table, and the result was something like out of a magazine (literally). Sarah submitted our entry to Virginia Bride Magazine, after scouring the internet for the best-fit publication. We heard back from their Publisher, Angeline, that our shoot was accepted, and it feels like things have been a whirlwind ever since.
Published In: Virginia Bride Magazine Event, Venu: Avonlea Farms, Photography: Ashley Dorton Photography, Event Coordinating: JLM Design & Events, Calligraphy & Decor: Winding Roads, Traveling Bar: The Sugar Cube Bar, Florist: Poppin’ Peonies Floral, Sweet Treats: 5th House Treats, Bridal Cake: Jae’s Cakes, Hair Design: Hair By Brittany, Makeup Artist: Haley Rose Beauty, Videographer: Iceberg Media, Model: Skylar Hill, Model: Savanna Peay, Model: Kristin Stephens, Model: Sarah Crockett, Model: Anne Cabell Bauersachs
Virginia Bride Magazine turned out to be the perfect fit for me in more ways than just one. Angeline extended an offer that I never saw coming- she asked to do a LIVE interview with me about my business to share on their YouTube platform. I was nervous AF but eternally grateful for the opportunity to talk about what I love most with one of Virginia’s big-wigs in the wedding industry. Public speaking hasn’t ever been my thing, but I’m truly proud that I showed up and did it scared. How freaking cool?!
At the end of my interview with Angeline, she extended a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to host a booth at The Richmond Greater Virginia Bridal Show. Blown away by my luck, I was quick to jump on the chance to participate in the event. With less than 30 days to prepare, Sarah and I worked hard to create a booth that really spoke to my ideal customer. On the day of the show, I felt so thankful for the strange string of events that had gotten me there. The show was a huge success; I met a ton of new brides and rubbed elbows with some extremely talented vendors, but most importantly, my confidence as a business owner had reached an all-time high.
Photo by Chloe Elaine Photography 
Photo by Chloe Elaine Photography
After all the Virginia Bride excitement subsided, I was able to take a trip in the name of education to Waco, Texas. This was my second year attending The Reset Conference, and it was everything my heart needed it to be. My travel buddy and favorite second-shooter, Chloe came along with me, and we enjoyed ourselves to the very fullest. I imagine I’ll be posting a blog about the entire trip sometime during my down season, but for now, just know it was the exact “Reset” I needed. From creating lasting industry friendships to creating some kick-ass art while learning some of the top tricks of the trade from the industry’s biggest names, this trip was certainly one for the books. Oh, and I also met my idol, Katelyn James. *Faints*
After Reset, I put my nose to the grindstone and rocked out a ton of weddings. Little did I know, my marketing director had something amazing up her sleeve. After covertly nominating me, Sarah surprised me during a session to tell me I was chosen to be recognized by NBC12 News and Mexico Restaurant Rva for an “Acts of Kindness” segment, featuring the story behind all of my charitable efforts. I can’t express how amazing it felt to be recognized for the project I held so near and dear to my heart- my dream of giving back a portion of my earnings to 12 different local charities. Never in a million years did I imagine I would be recognized for loving the members of my community, but it truly put into perspective the reason WHY I was working so hard; to make a difference while doing what I love.
Once October rolled around, I found myself knee-deep in inspiration. Halloween is my all-time favorite holiday and I have a deep interest in all things occult and metaphysical. My thought was to gather a group of bad-ass women and photograph them in my father’s cornfield for a Styled Shoot, called The Coven. After recruiting the help of Brittany of Hair by Brittany, Constance of Sugar and Smoke, and my Marketing Director, Sarah, we realized this shoot was worthy of much more than just a few glorified posts; this fun project was publication-worthy.
Luckily, Laura, the publisher of Witches Magazine thought so too! She offered me the COVER of the magazine for one of my images, and I just about died. I felt an emotion there isn’t a word for yet, but it was made up of shock, gratitude, excitement, and the ultimate pride. My literal dreams were coming true in very short order, and I was officially adding “internationally-published photographer” to my resume. *Faints again*
Photographer: Ashley Dorton of Ashley Dorton Photography, Hair & Makeup: Brittany Keener of Hair By Brittany, Jewelry: Constance Thomas of Sugar and Smoke, Models: Constance Thomas, Laura Beth Green, Ashley Ledford, Kaylyn Robinson, Kristia Rose
Once December rolled around, your girl was beyond excited to get her holiday spirit on. My most-popular mini sessions of the year always take place a few weeks prior to Christmas, and we were lucky enough to have the REAL Santa from Stony Point and Short Pump join us again. During one of his breaks, Santa mentioned he had never tried Starbucks before. Yes folks, so sad. I decided to fix that, captured it all on camera, and we posted it on social media.
We took a leap of faith and asked for all of you to tag Starbucks in the comments, to see if they’d repost. When I say ya’ll showed up, YA’LL SHOWED UP. My phone notifications must not have stopped for a whole week, due to so many people tagging, sharing, and commenting. I’m still waiting on my call from Starbucks (lol), but the entire experience was made so magical by all of you. It was so amazing to have all of your support around the holidays.
Now, one would think this would be more than enough “good news” packed into a single year for one to take in, but to my astonishment, there was another huge surprise in store for me. Back somewhere in-between The Coven Styled Shoot and surviving the busiest year in the history of my industry, I received an email notifying me that I was a multi-category winner of Richmond Bride Magazine’s A-List Awards. I’m still sworn to secrecy on which awards I took home until they go live with their online announcement in February, but for now, let’s just say HOLY SMOKES!!!
To end the year on such a high note was beyond exhilarating. I’m so thankful to my Marketing Director for recognizing the amazing opportunity to nominate me for this award and to all of my faithful followers and past clients for sending in their votes to make it a reality. While I truly feel like the luckiest girl in the world, I understand that it actually had very little to do with luck at all. This year was mine for the taking from the very beginning; not because of fate, luck, or even Sarah. It was mine from the beginning because I showed up and pushed full-speed ahead towards my dreams without ever looking back. I worked hard, loved harder, and was rewarded for it over and over and over again.
To everyone who has followed me along this incredible NINE-YEAR journey, your support means the world to me. To those of you who haven’t met me yet, I hope I’ve inspired you in some way. To the talented vendors who worked their magic with me this year, I wish you all the most success in 2022.
And to myself, I’m so incredibly proud of you. For 2021 and forevermore.
Xo,
Ashley
love. Love. LOVE. ALL OF THIS ♥️♥️ && love you and Reagan. Cheers to what the future holds🥂