New York born, California based Ashleigh Castro is a Latinx queer photographer specializing in portrait, performance, family, street and agricultural photography. She works in film and digital mediums and received a BA in Fine Art Photography with a minor in Journalism from San Francisco State University. Ashleigh’s dedication to the darkroom and printmaking as well as a tenure in a photolab shows skill and talent that many in modern photography have forgotten. Ashleigh’s photographs transcend time through the use of film and vintage technique.

The artist lets the camera guide her. Her work is primarily environmental portraiture that focuses on capturing people in their element, excelling in performance photography. By the age of 23, she was known as a “rockographer” for her skill in documentation and agility within a crowd of concertgoers. Receiving her first camera at age 13, Ashleigh found inspiration in album cover art and liner notes.

Her adventures with musicians led to countless live show photographs, a position at SFBAM and SF Sonic as a writer/photographer as well as producing two official music videos: one for Pamela Parker’s “Light Your Fire” and another for Katdelic’s “Hate Got To Move.” She has also built a strong portfolio as assistant videographer for Vau De Vire Society covering events like Edwardian Ball and Lagunitas Beer Circus.

Ashleigh added agricultural subjects to her workflow when she started working for DOPE Magazine as a content coordinator, writer and photographer. Her ability to work with entertainers, advocates, business owners and legacy farmers allowed many of her photographs to be published. One example is a photo of hers making the cover of SF Weekly December 2020 for their story Highly Inclusive: LGBTQ+ in the Bay Area.

Currently, Ashleigh continues to photograph her muses: artists, friends and clients. She opts to use film photography for her personal work, though is equipped to work in either digital or film depending on the scope of the project. Ashleigh is known as an expert in all things music photography.