Tessa Barton - InstaStyle: curate your life, create stunning photos, elevate your Instagram influence

To my first muse, Sophie Rose

My sister taught me to feel the fear and do it anyway.

You were the sun, I was the storm, and together we made the perfect day.

I am Tezza, a six-foot-tall girl from the mountains of Salt Lake City, Utah, who grew up in a home surrounded by artists. I was taught not just to dream, but to achieve my dreams. I grew up playing in bands with my siblings, writing music, entering art contests, teaching art classes, and making messes. On top of all this, I was fortunate enough to be able to travel from a very young age. My mind has always been full of ideas, constantly seeing the world with new eyes and wanting to share my vision. I remember when I was 16 years old, I couldnt put down my drawing pad as I sketched different collections in hopes of one day becoming a fashion designer. The next thing I knew, my parents let me run off to live in New York City to attend a summer program at Parsons School of Design. It was in this little 16-year-old moment I discovered myself: a girl who loved to create something out of nothing, who wanted to freeze moments of time and give everyone else even just a second of the joy I felt from being there. I picked up a camera, and the rest was history.

From there I started my own photography business, asking everyone I knew if I could shoot photos of them. I remember I would pull over onto the side of the road when I saw someone cool or interesting, asking them if I could photograph their face, because wow, it just made me feel something.

I got my bachelor of fine arts from the University of Utah with an emphasis in photography. I started reaching out to fashion brands all over the world hoping we could share a vision and work together. If there is one thing I learned early on in life, its that you cant wait around for what you want to come to you; you have to go and get it. Ask questions, be curious, be embarrassed, and be rememberedthis is how youll grow.

Ill never forget when Instagram rolled out. I was in college, and all of my art friends just couldnt handle that now everyone was calling themselves photographers because of this little app. I remember thinking, No, no, nothis is amazing . Everyone is seeing the world in a new way, and I want to be a part of it. As I began to share on this appmostly embarrassing selfies that, yes, if you scroll deep down on my feed, still exista universe opened up. The world went from the unknown to the attainable right inside my pocket. I started making like-minded friends from all over the place and was constantly inspired and pushing myself. Of course, since fashion was always deep in my veins, you know I was sharing my outfits, too (mostly just for me, but hey, sharing for yourself should be the point!).

As I slowly started to gain a following, it wasnt the satisfaction of the number that was funit was the opportunity to connect with so many people in so little time. Of course, talking about this makes me feel like an ancient grandma who is talking about when phone books first came out or something, but I promise you it was magic. For years, Instagram was a hobby in my pocket, but also a way to help me run my photography business. As people began to gain an interest in my personal life, I would share more of myself.

Life started to fly by as I then got married to the man who is now my business partner, and of course still the love of my life. We moved to NYC with pretty much no plans other than to make it doing what we loved. I had no idea Instagram would be the forefront of my business, or even that I could turn my lifestyle into an actual business, but let me tell you, there is nothing more fun, more exhausting, and more exhilarating. If I had known then what I know nowwell, lets just say I could have saved a lot of time.

InstaStyle is a book to inspire you to follow your dreamsto create, start a business, and share the greatest parts of your life. Please know there is no perfect formula to this game. What I write in here is from personal experience, asking questions, and learning from others. There are a million ways to succeed; I just hope this gets you there a little quicker, and if nothing else, helps you take beautiful pictures.

Lets get grammin.

Tezza (a.k.a. Tessa Barton)