Meet Derek Miller

 

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Derek Miller a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Derek, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I have cancer. I was diagnosed about a year ago. I still don’t know how to tell people I have cancer because it doesn’t fit in a casual conversation:
“How are you doing?”
“Good. I have cancer.”

People are resilient. We always have been. We always will be. Challenges make us more resilient. I’m guessing you’ve heard the phrase, “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” I’m not sure if this statement fits with cancer either. There isn’t a cure for my type of cancer. It won’t change what I do, until it does. I’ll keep taking my family on trips, I’ll do my best at work, I’ll continue to be creative, and I won’t let cancer stop me, until it does. I have good days and I have bad days.

My cancer has taught me to enjoy the good days. I look forward to the good days. Although the bad days are rare, I can get through them and I appreciate the good days even more now. This is resilience.

I have diabetes. I was diagnosed 35 years ago. It’s easy to tell people I am a diabetic. When I was a kid my friends were fascinated with watching me give myself a shot. They had front-row seats and I didn’t mind showing them how brave I was while poking myself with a needle. I am active. I eat well. I have no health complications due to diabetes. This is resilience.

I love being creative and I don’t let my cancer or diabetes stop me from doing what I love.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

When I was 11 or 12 years old my parents gave me a Pentax K1000 film camera and a box of expired film. The camera didn’t include an instruction manual. This was before Google existed. I quickly figured out what NOT to do with my first roll of film. I wrote my camera settings on a Post-It Note attached to the back of the camera. The second roll looked much better.

I love photography. I still have the K1000 and still use it occasionally. It sits prominently on display with many other cameras I’ve collected over the years, and I use every one of them.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I’ve always loved learning. I don’t mind asking questions. And I don’t give up.

People who enjoy learning (and trying) new things can be very successful in a creative field. I’ve seen others who like to explore creativity and don’t mind watching a few YouTube videos or search Google to help them learn. I grew up before Google and YouTube were around so I didn’t mind figuring things out on my own. I’ve taken complex cameras apart to figure out how they work. This makes me a better photographer by better understanding the process. We now have so many resources to learn about new skills and techniques.

If you don’t understand a technique, ask for help. In the creative industry there are lots of people who enjoy helping others. Look for an internship or apprenticeship. Volunteer your time to be an assistant and ask questions. This is a great way to learn and improve your own skills.

Don’t give up. Do what you love because you love it, not because a customer loves it. It’s easier to do work you’re passionate about. This is where your skills, techniques, talents, and passion come together. Don’t give up and you’ll achieve success.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I’m always looking for people to collaborate with. I love creating a themed photo shoot with other photographers, models, HMUAs, and other creative people. I learn from these and hopefully they learn a thing or two from me.

A few years ago I collaborated with a husband and wife who own a dove release company. Yep, you read this right. People hire them to bring doves to an event and they release the doves at a certain point during the event. They attend weddings, parties, and photo shoots. We had a bride and groom posing for the camera and the couple released a dozen doves behind the couple while I took photographs. The doves flew home and were prepared for another even the following day.

I love working with aspiring models because they follow directions well and have creative concepts in mind. Creative energy is important when working with other people. This makes the work much more fun. If you want to collaborate with me, visit my website and send me a message.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Riley Allen

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