Sharing today some dreamy coastal cowgirl photos from an aesthetic styled shoot in Santa Barbara! I was lucky enough to attend the wonderful Snapshot photography conference this summer and I couldn’t be more pleased with imagery I captured!
Coastal Cowgirl Photoshoot
This was one of my favorite sessions during the whole conference – this coastal cowgirl photoshoot really brought the California vibes!
We battled unseasonable clouds all day, with blue skies coming and going! But don’t worry – even if you have overcast skies on the day of your senior photoshoot, your photographer can bring back a lot of the sun’s glow during editing!
When I told my husband I writing a coastal cowgirl blog he was like, “what’s that?” Light and airy cowgirl vibes with more beach and less fields!
Not to go completely off-track here, but as a former plant biologist I have a soft spot for the ice plant that my model is posing in! Yes, it’s horribly invasive, but there’s something lovely about how tenacious a beach plant can be, growing in even the hardest of conditions with very little soil or organic matter next to its roots!
Ice plant was introduced to California years ago as a means of stabilizing sand with its root structure. You’ll find it all up and down the coast, particularly in areas where there’s roads or train tracks right next to the sand. It has cute pink, yellow, and white flowers, and dies every damn time I try to bring some home and give it nice soil in a pot to grow in. The photo location backdrop with the ocean, palm trees, and ice plant are very California and absolutely a perfect match to our coastal cowgirl model!
Coastal Cowgirl Aesthetic
To get that coastal cowgirl aesthetic look to blend with the beautiful backdrop of palm trees and ice plant, educators LK Photoshoots and Poetic Poppy Photography combined a chunky charm necklace and bracelets with a see-through cowboy hat, a handkerchief top (which is also a beautiful nod to early ’00s fashion back in style!), and bleached blue jeans.
Photos from this session were taken at the amazing Snapshot Photography Conference in Santa Barbara. I had an amazing time and wholeheartedly recommend this workshop.
WORKSHOP | Snapshot Photography Conference
EDUCATORS | LK Photoshoots, Poetic Poppy Photography, Rebekah Seupule
MODEL | Ashleigh Powers
HAIR & MAKEUP | Alonda Anaya, Artistry by Meggs
Kristen Hazelton is an award-winning Oak Park, IL (West Chicagoland) and Livermore, CA (San Francisco East Bay Area) graduating senior, and family photographer. She occasionally photographs in San Diego, CA, Tucson, AZ, and Seattle, WA. You can inquire about your own photoshoot here!
