New Far West Texas show:

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113 S Main St, Lockhart, TX

ABOUT ASHLEY

Ashley Garmon is a fine art photographer living in Austin, Texas. Trained in the art of film photography, she began shooting digitally in 2006 but soon became disillusioned by the exaggerated sharpness and brightness characteristic of the format. Though she continues to work digitally in part, she ultimately returned her focus to film photography to create more quiet, contemplative images that embrace the medium’s idiosyncrasies.

Ashley currently works with fairly primitive cameras like the Holga, a plastic toy film camera that is cheaply constructed and mechanically simple. With a fixed f-stop and shutter speed, Holgas give photographers the ability to read the light before taking each picture. Their convex-concave lenses produce soft-edged, dreamlike images with natural distortions, evidence of light leaks, and other imperfections.

“I love the Holga because you do multiple exposures on one piece of film. With manual advance and multiple exposures, I can control how many times the image is exposed to light. There is nothing precious about the equipment. It’s all about the process.”

 Ashely's art emerges from the union the camera’s mechanical eccentricities, chance conditions (light, motion, heat) that impact her subject, and physical or chemical manipulation of film. She uses photographic techniques including multiple exposures, intentionally heating film before shooting, exposing light onto negatives while in-camera, and altering the process of traditional film development. Her artwork does not include any digital manipulation. The end result for the viewer is captured on a single film negative. 

 Ashley balances meticulous planning with a willingness to embrace the unexpected:
“I have an idea in my mind before I pursue it, and I work on these ideas for many years. I will wait for the right clouds, the right light. Chasing The Suns was a dream I had, and that inspired a whole series. I try to replicate what I envision, and there are always surprises. I never know how pink a light leak will turn out. If the film sits in the camera for a long time, more light spills in. I can never predict the outcomes.”

Prior to focusing exclusively on fine art photography, Ashley founded and led a premiere wedding photography company in Texas, Ashley Garmon Photographers. The company photographed weddings throughout the United States and beyond in places including the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, and Mexico from 1998-2022. As part of festival photography teams, she also photographed music festivals for over a decade including Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Fun Fun Fun Fest, and Sound on Sound Fest.
 

CAN'T DECIDE?

Want to give an Ashley Garmon print for a gift and can't decide which one? Purchase a gift card! Gift cards are now available by clicking on the gray square to the left. Pick the value then check out then click purchase. On the next page, step 2, GIFT CARD DELIVERY, you will be given the option to enter the recipient's email. Purchasing this digital gift card creates a unique code. The gift card recipient can enter this code at checkout to subtract the gift card value from their order total.

This gift card is nonrefundable and never expires.