I will never forget the sacrifice she did when she gave up a chance to see Prince in concert; her husband bought the tickets as a surprise unbeknownst to her! She went to all the trouble to resell them so she can honor her commitment to shoot a wedding with me. It will be a beautiful and sad day when she can no longer assist or second shoot with me. She will be too busy with her own photography journey. Thank you Jessica, for all the help, inspiration, commitment, and laughter you have showed me.

Written by Ashton Boni

This NYE I’m going to the Philippines. I’ve been photographing NYE parties for the past 7 years, this year I’m going to take a brake form the party mayhem. Hopefully it will be a quite NYE in the Philippines.

This past year has been a fantastic adventure full of hard work, travel and new friends. I had a life changing trip to the Philippines, and Colombia. I created a new blog called Maganda Filipino, and it has blown up far beyond my expectations (I have more than 9000 followers to date). I moved back to the Bay Area. And I’m happily un-married. I hope your 2013 will be amazing, full of success, and happiness. Happy new year!

Photos by Ashton Boni

I must have examined that camera inside and out. I didn’t have a manual so I just guessed what things did. In hindsight I didn’t know an f-stop from a bus stop, and I learned quickly what I didn’t know. I decided to take the photography class that they offered in school. Everything went great till I went into the darkroom to develop film. I HATED IT! It was a lonely and scary place for me; a place I knew was going to keep me from pursuing this hobby. Because of that room I dropped the class. I don’t know to this day what I did with the camera. Knowing me, I must have thrown it away right along with my Betamax and 8 track player.

Fast forward 28 years. My ex-wife and I were rummaging through her parents attic when, to my amazement, I see a lens peering through a pile of miscellaneous wires. To my amazement it was a Minolta SRT201! The same model as what I had, only with a much better lens; 50mm f1.2. I couldn’t believe it! I found out Stephanie’s father owned it, and shot all the photos what were in most of her family’s photo albums. She told me he hadn’t touched it in over 20 years. I humbly asked permission to play around with it. I instantly fell in love with it again. Knowing what I know now and understanding how to work a bus stop…I mean f-stop, it was a joy to work with again. Fast forward to last Christmas and guess what they gave me!?

Since then I’ve given her (the camera, not my ex-wife) a CLA (clean, lubed, and adjusted) and as of yesterday I just finished changing the leatherette (outer leather covering) to a hot Indian kid skin goat leather. Isn’t she sexy?! I’m going to call her Juliana ☺

Written by Ashton Boni

Advantage

• Your gaining lots of experience by booking many clients because you have the cheapest offer or you’re willing to deliver your service for free
• People shouldn’t be complaining so much on the quality of work that you produce because they didn’t really pay much for it.
• You have little overhead because you’re not spending money on everything it takes to run a business
• You still have a day job besides photography. It means that your avoiding the pressure of merely relying on your skills as a photographer to put food on the table.

Disadvantage

• There’s less fulfillment doing a craft that you love, knowing that people hires you not because you are good or the best, but because your service is affordable.
• It is highly probable that your clients don’t truly value the efforts of a seasoned photographer. If they did they would be paying for it.
• The clients that you’re getting now will NOT be the clients that will be hiring you when you get better.
• The longer you choose to stay in this category, the HARDER it will be to rise above it.

Advantage

• Because you have established your reputation, therefore, making more income from your photography, there are LESS arguments with your spouse/girlfriend/life partner about money.
• You’re getting that feeling that you might have a CHANCE of making a living as a photographer
• You don’t have to give your time, and talent way (at least you shouldn’t be)

Disadvantage

• You now have to compete with ALL kinds of the photographers in your area, including the cheapest and the working types.
• Anticipate spending more on investments like, SEO, advertising and social media and other strategies that will push you to the next level.
• You’re getting that feeling that you might have a CHANCE of making a living as a photographer (You think I’m kidding)

Advantage

• Your getting national or global recognition for your talent
• You have something the rest of us wants
• You should be making top dollar for your skills, because they’re paying for your name as well.

Disadvantage

• If the world changes it’s feelings on your style then your back down to a working photographer or God forbid back to being a cheap photographer.
• You have to work harder than everybody else to stay in the spot light.
• You have something the rest of us want so you have to constantly protect your place in this industry which will cost you more time, effort, and money.

Having to mull over the pros and cons of these stages and categories, you will have a better picture of the steps that photographers take in order to reach the goal that they have set for themselves. Therefore, allowing you to make smarter choices along the way. You should take pride in all of the images that you have created from start to present, even those that are amateur-ish that currently make you cringe and you have to remind yourself, they are all part of the photographic journey that may have served as a catalyst in creating sets of exceptional photographs and help keep your feet on the ground. Whatever phase you’re in right now, there’s one very important thing that you have to keep in mind – you have to savor every bit of your journey. This will keep you sane in the middle of all the photographic chaos, exhaustion and occasional let-downs. So continue to soar and live the photographer’s dream.

Written by Ashton Boni

The shoot began with a boudoir layout with Crystal. She wanted to surprise her husband with some loving photos of herself. They have two young children; I personally know how that could test any relationship. I could tell she was nervous all week from her email conversations. I reassured her that I would do everything in my power to make her look beautiful. I don’t think she realized how little I had to do to accomplish that, she’s already naturally beautiful. She said her eyes were the body part that her husband loves the most. I can see why, Jess and I both agreed on how striking and captivating they were.

Next came Estella. She too wanted to surprise her boyfriend with beautiful photos of herself. She has such striking features that were easy to complement with some simple lighting scenarios. Her face and body truly generates a “heat” that I’m sure her boyfriend appreciates and loves to see. I’ve been wanting to use some light fixtures I bought at Ikea, and I think they suited her perfectly. She says her boyfriend loves the Spanish soccer team that won this year’s world cup, so we created a cute and sexy tribute for him.

Seeing Adrianne, Amit, and Nyan was such a joy. I photographed their wedding last year, and now she wanted to do a maternity shoot. I’m always down for any opportunity to see this beautiful couple again. She belongs to a Brazilian dance troupe, and brought several beautiful dance costumes that she uses for her troupe with her. They were so rich in color, Brazilian heritage, and tradition. It didn’t take much to find the right light and composition to make them shine.

My assistant Jessica was the first to show up. The last time I saw here was 30 years ago in high school. As the minutes got closer to her arrival time I began to get anxious. Questions like, “Will we get along?”, “Will she understand what I want her to do”, “Is she going to hate me for what I put her through?” were looming in the back of my brain. The moment I saw her shadow as she entered the side gate and heard the familiar timbre of her voice when she said, “hello”, all those doubts went away. She was such a joy to work with and to be around. We laughed and joked all day about all the silly things we grew up with: RG&B, her B210, her stereo, her chicken hat, my sitting in the park drawing, Kramer vs. Kramer, her AE-1, and, of course, photography.

She was everything I expected and more! She struggled a bit but it never stopped her. The moment I handed her my camera I stopped for a moment to figure out what I really saw; I saw myself. I saw my own determination and will. I saw a curiosity that was in me a long time ago and still in me today. I saw a reflection of a person who once they picked up a camera, dissolved into the moment and forgot about the deadlines, the bills, and worries this world imposes on us.

She has no idea the breathtaking places her camera is going to take her. She has no idea how hard her struggle will be to become a great photographer. She has no idea how powerful a photograph can be, and how one image can change the world as well as herself. She has no idea how much this profession will consume your life. She has no idea how proud she’s going to feel when she takes that image that will never be recreated again. She has no idea how her camera can find long lost friends, even after 30 years. Thank you Jess, for letting me see the footsteps of where I’ve been, and how much farther I have to go.

Written by Ashton Boni