Aware that her photography skills weren’t good enough to launch a business, she took up a one-year photography course at the University of the Arts London. There was one problem: She was not financially prepared. School fees and expenses came up to $50,000. She took a loan of $40,000 from her uncle, and took on part-time jobs such as waitressing and babysitting to cover other costs.
After returning to Singapore, she set out to grow her photography experience and portfolio. When she learnt that Groupon (now known as Fave) was selling family photography packages, she negotiated a deal. She successfully sold 500 vouchers at $15 each, and used the profits to set up Ashley Low Photography in 2011.
During her first year in business, she started doing newborn photography – and fell in love with it instantly: “At my first shoot, I was shocked by how small a one-week-old baby was. But I saw how creative I could get, and became excited about the possibilities.”
She turned it into her niche and became one of the pioneers of newborn photography in Singapore. In 2016, she was named Master Photographer by the Master Photographers Association in the UK.
