Meet Michelle Carmona | Portrait and Travel Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Michelle Carmona and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Michelle, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
Growing up, I was not the best at expressing myself through words. It didn’t help that I was a very timid kid that struggled to make friends or even just ask my teachers questions during class. It was rather difficult as my parents expressed their love though their actions. Photography was my escape, my way of expressing how I felt, it was my comfort. My career has connected me with a wide range of people with amazing stories. From olympian athletes, to cowboys, to the old man down the street who spends his days out front of a coffee shop smoking a cigar in one hand and feeding dogs that walk by in the other.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
My goal is to be a storyteller. I want the viewer to fell as if they are in that moment that the image is taken and make up their own story of what led to that moment or the moments after the image was taken. I started looking for inspiration within the history books and studying the work of artist from all genres of art and learning about their process. Before I could get good at what I do, I had to come the the realization that there will always be someone better than me and that there will be people who will push you to fail because they see your talent. Then to strive to be better, I surrounded myself with I wanted to be like and this pushed my motives on how to be successful.

As for how I got to where I am today, it took me a while to find my niche in photography. When I first started, I was dipping my hand into everything. It wasn’t till post college that I realized I quite enjoy portraits and the travel/ landscape part of my work. I found that what sets me apart from other portrait photographers is that I look to the subjects personality and how they present themselves before I decide on the environment and lighting that I want to put them in. Now, I spend my free time reaching out to people and brands that I want to work with such as Zach Bryan, Colter Wall , and American Hat Co. With that comes challenges, being that often times I many not get a response back. Which could be for many reasons, but it keeps me going because as least I tried rather than just wishing.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Being an outdoor person, I found the many bike paths around Dallas to be exciting as it is something I could do with my dog and of course on Friends of the Katy Trail path there are a few places you could stop on to grab a bite to eat or drink such as the Katy Trail Ice House. The Stock Yards is another incredible place to check out especially if you’re interested in checking out the rodeo, and going out to the bars afterwards. A TikTok hype that is worth checking out is Chris and John Vietnamese Street Food. Be sure to arrive early as there is always a line already forming before the doors even open in the mornings. It is a Mexican and Vietnamese fusion of food with my favorite dish being the Pho burrito.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There has been many people that have influenced who I have become and the success that I have. Loria Crews and Chris Vigardt, I don’t think I can even express how grateful I am to have had them as as my high school art teachers. They started my career and pushed me to be the greatest that I could be. Then there is John Warner, a photographer and art director that I had met my last year of college. We worked on countless projects together and learned so much from each other. And of course, my parents who kept me grounded, and have helped me find the tools I need in life to further my career.

Website: www.michellecarmona.com

Instagram: @lifeofmishy

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-carmona-11ba93193/