My name is Ally Avil and I am from Southern California! I've been taking pictures for as long as I can remember, whether it was my Dad trusting a five year old to hold the expensive camera I would one day inherit or using my cell phone or Nintendo DS. I now use a Canon EOS Rebel T7.
While I can admit photography isn't my main career or hobby (I'm working on becoming an educator currently), it's something incredibly important to me and has been a way for me to connect with my Dad. I like to capture what I can and especially when I travel which I've done a lot of. I've lived and been to multiple states and countries and I'm only able to remember a lot of it because of the photos my Dad has taken.
Besides photography, I have many other creative hobbies. Music is my biggest passion and I like to compose my own music when I can.
I do not use AI.
Most of my experience started in high school. I'd do it as a hobby but I'd also take photos for the schools marching band. Rather than marching parades I got to walk alongside the band and take photos for everyone, capturing memories and getting material for yearbooks and such. After high school I did more photography for the marching band in Fall 2021.
 When I transferred to UC Santa Barbara for school, I got hired by the Veteran's and Military Services as a marketing intern. I worked as a marketing intern for two years and it was one of the most enjoyable jobs I have had. I took photos for events, promotional material, did some editing, and helped set up a newsletter and website for the department! I also got to work on creating my own graphics and stickers.
Outside work, I was briefly in UC Santa Barbara's Gaming/Esports club and I did photography for the players and teams for thumbnails, promotional materials, and event reasons. During my fourth year of college I took graduation photos for a handful of people!