Aly Elliott is a photographer who, in addition to her fine art portrait business, also exhibits her art in galleries and museums. Her latest passion project provides a unique offering to families who have lost children. It is called Hiraeth (pronounced heer-eyeth), a Welsh word that means homesickness for a place that no longer exists. In it, Aly uses digitally painted photographs to create representations of children who have passed away with composites of their siblings. She recently sat down with host Nikki Closser on The Portrait System Podcast to talk about the series and her Bloomington, Indiana portrait business. 

Bloomington, Indiana is a college town with 80,000 people where 50,000 of them are students. These demographics give the town a small-town feel while having a diverse population, including many international people. Aly has had her business there for twelve years, in a little studio on the town square. Being in the heart of town has enabled Aly to build relationships with other business owners in the community and be visible for locals and visitors alike.  

Her current sales average is just over $5,000 for her classical portraits in newborn, maternity, families, and more. Aly is known for wall art that brings conceptual ideas into storytelling on the composite level. She says, “I’ve always tried to do something at every single session that I’ve never done before.” Her clients tend to give her carte blanche, and she loves the challenge of creating fine art for them that brings in elements that are important to them, like their hobbies. 

Her project Hireath came from a deeply personal place. When Aly was pregnant with her most recent child, she was struck with the inspiration to create an image of all of her children together, including her child who had passed away at birth. She created the image by photographing her children on a staircase, leaving a space for her child who had passed away. Then, she created an image of her daughter by composting the images of her other children together. After completing the family portrait, she was inspired to turn it into a series by creating similar portraits for other families who had lost children. The project has taken her across the country where she has heard the stories and heartbreak of other parents and created beautiful images for them commemorating their children who have passed. You can view the portraits along with their stories here. 

To learn more about Aly Elliott and her work, you can find her on YouTube, Instagram, and on her website.  

The Portrait System Podcast helps portrait photographers navigate the world of photography, business, money, and much more. Hosted by Nikki Closser, the podcast is powered by The Portrait System, a comprehensive, online educational platform that teaches all aspects of running a successful portrait photography studio.    

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