Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Miller.
Hi Sam, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began getting serious with photography and content creation when I enrolled in a vocational program at Porter County Career Center through my high school in Valparaiso, IN. My teacher Mr. Phelps was key in getting me going with the basics and the most important thing of all, getting a camera in my hand. A couple of years after graduating from high school, I decided to move to Chicago. I lived in a town west of Downtown called Wicker Park. The new landscape of the city kept me busy exploring and shooting. Chicago is such a photogenic city with the most beautiful skyline. My photography skills improved so much in the short time that I lived there that I decided to open my first online print shop. I worked tirelessly on my website and made it perfect for my launch. I didn’t know much about running an online shop and unfortunately the results showed. I didn’t sell much, but I learned a lot from the experience that ended up benefitting me later when I relaunched my site this year. After ten months of living in Chicago, I decided to move back to Missouri to live with my parents and brother. I go into further detail why I moved in the next question.
After putting my life and career on hold in Missouri, my brother inspired me and my parents supported me in the decision to move out to California. My girlfriend had already been living there for six months and we’d always planned to live there together one day. I packed up my sedan with all my belongings and drove from Missouri to California. 1800 miles across the country. I made few stops, but one memorable spot along the drive was the Grand Canyon. I found a perfect spot to capture it when a storm rolled in. All the other tourists cleared out, but I took shelter under a tree and waiting because every landscape photographer knows some of the most majestic sights are right after a storm. And lone behold a rainbow appeared right over the canyon. One of my favorite photos I’ve ever captured on a trip moving across the country. What a memorable moment. I made another stop in Colorado to pick up my friend from high school. The two of us hiked and camped in Medicine Bow, Wyoming where I captured the majestic photo of the peak as well as the shot of me at the top! I’ve lived in California for 1.5 years and have taken every opportunity to travel and explore the beauty of the state and there is still so much to see/capture! One of my favorite locations is Alabama Hills where I captured the snow blowing off the peak of the gorgeous Mount Whitney.
A few months after living in LA I decided to try again with my online shop. I redesigned the entire website and relaunched with all my photos from my trip and from my travels in California. My launch day was a huge success and business has been steady since. Two of my best sellers on the site are the Milky Way photos I included. I’ve always enjoyed night photography, but it wasn’t until I switched out my Canon for a Sony that my Milky Way photos stepped up big time. The two photos I included are the best Milky Way shots I’ve ever taken. I also love the fact that I am featured in both photos. The photo with the tent was captured at Red Rock Canyon. A great spot to go camping! The other photo was taken on a new moon at Death Valley. It was the middle of the night and it was still over 100 degrees!
As much as I love shooting landscapes, I wanted to explore new forms of photography. My girlfriend, Kennedy and I decided to try product photography, she has a great creative eye for styling the photos and is an experienced model. The two of us make the perfect team. We did our first shoot for our friend Rochelle who is an aesthetician, Kennedy modeled while I snapped photos. Rochelle was able to redesign her entire website, create brochures and has a cohesive social media platform all from that one shoot. We’ve done lots of work within the beauty industry but are looking forward to branching out in the product photography world.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely has not been a smooth road. When I moved to Chicago was when I really began being serious about photography and less than a year of being there my 20 years old brother got in a terrible car accident. He was in a coma for over 40 days and suffered from a traumatic brain injury and stroke. A couple of weeks after his accident, I knew I needed to be with him and my family full time. I moved from Chicago to Missouri; where my parents moved after I graduated from high school. During my time there, I focused all my energy on my brother getting better. We had no idea what to expect when he woke up from is coma. All we knew was that we needed to be positive and that we could never give up on him. I spent my entire time there helping him. I helped him eat, do therapy, learn how to communicate, practice reading and more. I barely took any photos in the eight months that I was there.
Less than a year after his accident, he had made so much progress. More than anyone had even expected and he has never given up. Everyday he has the best attitude, even though it’s been two years and he still can’t walk or read yet, he is grateful for everyday he is alive. Seeing him with that perspective on the world gave me the courage to do something for myself and move to California. My brother knew it would be best for me, he was supportive and encouraging. I still talk to him on FaceTime everyday so it’s as if we aren’t even that far apart. It’s very challenging relocating to a new state when all your clients are on the other side of the country. To this day, I still have ups and downs, my photography business is not exactly where I want it to be, but that’s the journey. I look forward to a the day when my business is booming, but in the meantime I am hustling and enjoying my life the way it is right now.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a landscape and product photographer. I am new to the product photography world but look forward to growing my portfolio. I specialize in landscape photography. I’ve been shooting landscapes for six years and have experience in all environments. My favorite photos I take are when it looks like you can step right into the image because of the depth and composition. I am most proud of the custom work I have done. One of my favorite pieces is a photo I took for my bedroom. I wanted to do a photo across three square canvases. Once I found the composition, I went to that location almost ten times to get the perfect photo under the right conditions.
What sets me apart from others is that I love trying new things. That is why I have been loving product photography! I am always up for a challenge and I love spending time researching and learning in order to get better. Outside of photography, I love trying new things in my personal life as well! I am always looking for fun ways to get active, whether thats hiking, walking dogs, or playing tennis! I just started playing tennis recently and I can’t get enough of it. I am proud of what I have learned so far as a photographer and having my own print shop, but I have so much more to accomplish and learn. It’s important to celebrate all your accomplishments, but to remind yourself there is always more to learn in your field of interest and especially in life!
We love surprises, fun facts and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
When I am not working my photography business, I am doing something else I love, hiking with a group of 9 dogs! I work for Dog Gone Fitness a dog walking company in LA. Each morning I pick up my crew of dogs and we hit the trails. It is such a good way to start my day and also a job where I make money but truly enjoy myself. Growing up, I thought I had to have a desk job that I hated just to pay the bills, but my brother’s accident taught me that life is short and you can’t waste time being anything but happy. People spend the majority of their lives working, so I decided if I am going to work it better be doing something I truly love. Walking dogs started out as a way to pay the bills, but I love hanging out with pups plus I get to hike at the same time. Dogs and hiking, two of my favorite things combined and you know I am snapping photos of the dogs along the way. My advice to anyone is that you don’t need to have your life planned out or know exactly what’s going to be around the next corner. You need to enjoy life in the moment and make choices that are going to benefit you now and those choices will hopefully lead to a fulfilling future.
Contact Info:
- Email: samcmillerphoto@gmail.com
- Website: samcmillerphoto.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/samcmillerphotography/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sam.miller.501
- Yelp: https://biz.yelp.com/home/KqAhr0iecrF2MIiHH18p-A
Image Credits
Sam C. Miller
