Member Profile: Claire Millar

About me:

Do you consider yourself a Professional/Semi-Pro/Amateur/Beginner photographer?

I'm in my third year of business as a wedding photographer.

Who are you?

I'm Claire, I'm 40 and live just north of Glasgow in Scotland (basically as close as I can get to the hills without fully departing the city!). I'm a keen hiker and general lover of the great outdoors - days off outside of winter are generally spent up a hill or in tents! After living in New Zealand for a few years I fell into a career in Hospitality Event Sales & Marketing, before moving home in 2019 and launching my own wedding photography business in late 2021.

Your Photography Journey

I've always been drawn to photography and in fact, studied it full-time when I first left school - twice! Just to make me feel really old, my first qualification was in film photography. When it became clear digital was taking over, I returned to college to learn this too. I always had a camera in hand, documenting travels and hiking adventures (and working the odd paid club or gig photography shift), but I never really put my qualifications to use, and essentially became a bit of a rusty hobby photographer while my life went in a different direction over the years. When the pandemic hit, I found TSOP online during lockdown. Even though I had some prior knowledge, I started with the Beginners course - it was amazing how many bad habits I'd picked up over the years, and really helped me brush up on everything I had learned years ago. I followed it up with the Lightroom course, which was an absolute game changer - I had no prior knowledge of Lightroom at all, and had been using very basic Photoshop knowledge to edit. If you do nothing else, start with these two! I loved the monthly themes and would complete them during lockdown daily walks - all of this combined meant I regained confidence and my passion for photography. I started selling successfully my prints online, and from there moved into wedding photography.

What is the most valuable thing you’ve learned from TSOP?

I've found the most value so far in the Lightroom course, and the monthly briefs - but there's a lot of new courses available I'm very excited to try, so I'm excited to see where those lead. It's also an incredible space to watch others learn - seeing the brilliant progress of other members is a great motivator to keep improving and shows what's possible with practice.

What is your preferred genre?

I shoot natural, documentary-style wedding photography. Wedding days are super fast-paced, hectic, and full of hundreds of gorgeous little moments. I love being there to capture them, knowing that the bride and groom will always get to see the bits they missed....that being said, it can be challenging! In a fast-paced day I'm always trying to look for frames, lines or lighting that make the candid shots a little bit more special. Weddings tend to demand you adapt to a myriad of non-ideal lighting situations (from bridal prep under fluorescent strips to dancefloor shots in front of flashing green and blue lighting racks), so a big part of this journey for me has been getting comfortable with using flash, toggling camera settings for quick changes in lighting to ensure I never miss moments, and learning which lenses I prefer for certain moments throughout the day. Couples shots are always a lovely breather and give me a chance to be a little more creative as I'm in full control of posing the couple for a small part of the day.

What inspires you to create photography?

I think at the core of it I'm just incredibly sentimental! Candid event photography takes you back into a moment, and I do think that's something really special.

Who are some other photographers you’re inspired by?

I really admire Simon Murphy's work - particularly his street photography project, "Govanhill". It documents the residents of Govanhill (a traditionally maligned area of Glasgow where I myself used to live, and have a huge amount of affection for) on black and white film using a medium format camera. In terms of wedding photography, I'm always in awe of the work of Scottish Elopement photographers, The Caryls.

My favourite photograph:

My favourite photo that I’ve taken ©*Claire Millar*

What is your favourite photograph that you’ve taken?

It would be so hard for me to choose a favourite photograph - I really love photographs that show little interactions that often only make sense when viewed as part of a series or wider gallery. However - this image is definitely in the running. This particular bride had her "maids of dishonour" dress in white, while she dressed in black - but by this point in proceedings, she was in her pyjamas and fully committed to the dancefloor. As a snapshot of a high-energy dancefloor moment between a group of close female pals, I've always had a soft spot for it.

What’s next for Claire?

2024 is going to be an interesting year - it's my busiest year in business so far, with only a handful of dates left - I'm incredibly excited to be shooting so regularly and for the impact, this will have on my business, my skills and my learning. I'm slowly working on the TSOP Pro Landscape course - my print sales have taken a backseat to my wedding photography business, so I plan to combine my outdoor time with some photography this year and brush up on my landscapes for some new material.

Conclusion

When I first signed up to TSOP I would never have guessed that a few years later I'd be running my own photography business. It really is a great space for giving you the tools and the confidence to advance. It has been a steep learning curve and a lot of initial late nights, but I'm now at the stage where I've dropped to 2 days per week in what was formerly my full-time job, with photography generating the rest of my income. My only regret is not having the confidence to do it a little sooner!

Where can people follow you?

FB: Claire Millar Photography.

Insta @claire_millar_photography

web www.clairemillarphotography.com