Amber Ascher is a photographer working with 19th-century processes to create one-of-a-kind portraits that exist outside of time. Her work centers on wetplate collodion: a slow, hands-on method that invites stillness, presence, and imperfection. She’s drawn to this medium not only for its aesthetic richness but because it mirrors the way she moves through the world—sensitive, intentional, and attuned to what lies beneath the surface.

As a late-diagnosed autistic woman, Ascher approaches her art and work as a form of unmasking—a way of reconnecting with her true self, and creating space for others to do the same. She believes every portrait is a quiet collaboration built on trust, and her sessions are shaped by care, curiosity, and a deep respect for authenticity.

Immersed in the historic roots of wetplate photography, Amber studied traditional techniques directly from one of the foremost living practititioners of the medium, John E. Coffer, in the summer of 2023 in Dundee, NY. Once home, she built a darkroom in her basement and has been practicing and sharing her love for shooting wetplate since in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and around the Midwest.