My Story

I’m Ieashia (with an i), the photographer behind the lens of ISJ Photography.

And I love my job!

My passion for photography started when I was a child.

My granddad was a keen photographer. He sat me on his knee and showed me how to use his 35mm camera: how to put in the film, and explained how important it is to capture the right moment! He’d say,

“There are only 27 shots, so we don't want to waste any!”

After my grandad inspired me to love amateur photography throughout childhood, at 18 I decided to make it my profession. So, I studied Digital Photography at London Southbank University and am proud to say that I graduated with a BA (Hons) degree.

Learning my trade properly gave me a respect and reverence for the magic of photography, which clients tell me comes across in the moments I preserve for them.

You can look at your well-worn husband of 20 years like you’re newly in love and engaged or just married again. You can look at your grumpy teenager like they’re that precious little baby again. You can look at a family portrait with a loved one who is no longer with us again and feel their presence.

Any moment you want to preserve, you can have.

After I graduated, I worked as a photographer for magazines, night clubs, fashion and even TV events.

I wanted to travel, so combined that with my photography skills and passion, and worked as a cruise ship photographer from 2014 to 2015. Cruise ships was where I really found my feet, my flow and the type of photography I wanted to pursue.

On ships, I also found a real love for makeup. I have always enjoyed makeup, and my favourite part of any night out was always getting ready, putting my makeup on with friends while dancing about to my favourite songs.

I brought this love and skill into my photography work on ships, by doing the cruise guest’s makeup for them before their photo shoots. Seeing how it transformed their presence, postures and confidence in front of the camera was amazing, and so rewarding.

I then trained to become a makeup artist so I could bring both aspects together in one business. I offer my makeup artistry skills available with all types of photo shoots (except for babies, of course. They are perfection already) in case you’d like a little extra confidence and sparkle on your shoot day.

Cruise ships were also where I found my amazing husband Zoran.

He was a handsome hairdresser on the ship, from Macedonia, and we fell in love right away. We sailed the seven seas together for two years and then decided to take our adventures back to land so we could eventually start our own family.

We moved to Essex in 2015 and I’ve been running ISJ Photography ever since. Zoran and I also run our own makeup and hair company, Krstev Kreates, together. We offer packages for hair and makeup, specialising in weddings. We are available for all types of packages with this if you like too, such as engagement, maternity and family portraits (again, just not the babies).

We got married in Macedonia in September 2017, and on Valentine’s Day in 2020 our adorable baby boy Reggie arrived.

I am a visual storyteller and I would love to tell your story.

Looking back at precious photos like this gives you the closest we can get to having a time machine, and it brings happy memories flooding back anytime you want them to. I’ve worked as a professional photographer since 2010. I’ve worked hard to earn the skills and keen eye to capture moments that I have now. I didn’t just pick up a camera and call myself a photographer after being passable at editing photos of my baby on Instagram.

Being a photographer is what I’ve always done. My favourite thing is to snap the pivotal moments when families come together: when couples commit to each other, when new babies are born and when whole new families want to take portraits to encompass new members.

I work with a very relaxed approach, always making sure my clients feel 100% comfortable at their photo shoot. Check out my testimonials to see what my happy clients say.

I have my own recently-renovated home studio, so it is a completely private, relaxed, secluded and Covid-safe haven to have your portraits taken in.

I’ll candidly capture you and your family, showcasing the very best of you, your relationships, your commitment to each other, your beginnings, your family – and most of all, your love.