Growing up riding horses in the Mojave Desert of California basically set the pattern of my life: mountains, desert, horses, wildlife, hiking, the outdoors and photography.
My husband, Bill, and I live and ranch outside Valentine, Texas (population 127), at the base of the Sierra Vieja Mountains. The Millers bought the ranch in 1925 and the family strives to be good stewards of the land. We raise Hereford and Angus cattle and Quarter Horses. We breed our horses to have a good mind and be cattle savvy . They know how to get around in the rocks, mountains and in the tabosa flats. (And they're pretty to boot!)
Teaching school for 27 years helped me finance my passion for delving deeper into photography. Since I started showing horses in the fourth grade, I've had cameras and took pictures, but in the 1980s I grew more serious about my photography. However, because we have lived in small towns and had to mail the film in to be processed, it was normally a two week wait to see the pictures which was frustrating! Now digital cameras let me go wild with trying new shots, different angles and techniques. The immediate feedback of the digital era is amazing (as is the freedom to delete what didn't work!).
I have attended photography workshops, studied on my own and networked with other photographers to learn my craft. Many of my subjects are from our ranch and in the Big Bend region. Photography has made me more aware of composition, details, colors and light values. The ability to get the picture that makes people "feel" and to capture that moment in time which might never happen again is part of my creative passion.
Out natural world and the native species that populate it, trail rides, cattle works, (have horse and will travel), ropings, senior graduation pictures, weddings, portraits . . . please call me and let's see what we can create together.
Jill D. Miller 432-238-0525 rimrockphotography@ymail.com