Today we’d like to introduce you to Mirelle Carmichael.
Hi Mirelle, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My name is Mirelle, and I’ve been a San Diego local for most of my life. I grew up in North County and attended Rancho Buena Vista High School before getting my BA in Psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. Photography was always my passion, so although I worked in the finance industry, I spent my weekends as a ‘second photographer’ at weddings, learning the craft and gaining firsthand experience. I also photographed lots of families and children and discovered a love for that as well.
After my daughter was born in 2009, I decided to pursue photography full-time. I knew that getting into professional photography at the time was risky, but still I found it attractive. It was a career in which I could follow my passion and create art for my choice of clientele, where I could take control of my own schedule with a growing family, have the opportunity to travel the world, and start a business with a fairly low startup cost with high-income potential. It was worth the risk, and I feel incredible lucky with where my career has taken me.
Over the past 12 years, I’ve had the honor of seeing my photography published in many print magazines and online publications around the world. I’ve been able to travel near and far to photograph destination events and weddings. I have worked with beloved artists, designers, and celebrities. My little sister has been on this journey with me since the beginning as my second photographer, and she has now elevated our work by offering cinematography. Because of my career, I’m able to follow my passion and create new art every week!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I found starting my own business to be incredibly intimidating, especially as a minority woman. I am the 1st generation daughter of Filipino immigrants, and up until I established my business, my career focus had been to make a steady income and to ‘play it safe’. When I started, I found it hard to network in the industry. I know firsthand how hard it is to stand out in a sea of artists, especially among a group of people who are already established. Not everyone was super welcoming to questions or inquiries about their art.
I felt a little embarrassed that I could not say I was a photographer that came from an art school or an art career. Therefore, I felt like I had much to prove. Even though my photography education isn’t technically formal, I’m proud to say I have been able to pull from other aspects of my education and work background in terms of successfully running my own business. In the beginning, I also felt a little lost in figuring out my style. Every photographer has a different approach and look to their craft, and it took a while to find my comfort zone. Once I got there though, it was smooth sailing.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a fine art wedding and portrait photographer based in San Diego. The majority of my work is in Southern California, but I also travel around the world for my clients. Professional photography has been my full-time job for 12 years!
To me, every wedding has an exclusive story, with fleeting moments and beauty that is enduring. My intention is to document an overall sense of celebration, moments of joy, and romantic imagery for each of my clients. My photographs are full of light, color, and emotion. My style is both journalistic and editorial – capturing unexpected moments while also composing beautiful portraits. I want my clients to treasure their photographs as family heirlooms.
My experience with medium format film is an appreciation and love for a fine art, timeless feel in photographs. I have learned to truly consider every image I take – to really look at the composition of a photo before I press the shutter. Shooting digital mixed with film editing allows me to truly capture a wedding from all angles at a pace that matches an event’s demands. In the end, my clients will have a collection of timeless, heirloom-quality photographs.
I’m proud to say my work is frequently published with many print magazines and online publications, including The Knot, Martha Stewart Weddings, Brides, Modern Luxury Weddings, Style Me Pretty, Magnolia Rouge, Destination I Do, and 100 Layer Cake.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Covid impacted the wedding industry in so many ways, but I feel that my clients were incredibly understanding during the year everything was shut down. The key was in everyone staying flexible and being in constant communication with each other. Luckily my job allows me to travel, so when a number of my clients moved their wedding dates and locations (some out of California), I was able to accommodate their plans.
During Covid, it was important to figure out other ways to create income since the majority of my 2020 weddings were put on hold until this year and next. I was fortunate to have contacts throughout Southern California that needed other kinds of photography shoots which could be social-distance friendly. I did lots of outdoor family photography, corporate photography, interior design photography, and editorial photography.
However, the most important lesson I learned due to the crisis was that time was something I could finally take advantage of. I used it to spend lots of time with my family and realized it was also a good time to revamp my website, update my logo, and fine-tune the administrative side of my business.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@mirellecarmichael.com
- Website: www.mirellecarmichael.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mirellecarmichaelphoto/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MirelleCarmichaelPhotography/
- Other: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/mirelle-carmichael-photography-san-diego/05e604f051c5e2e8.html
