Nine years ago, Miller quit his job running nonprofits, packed up his family, and moved to Washington to pursue photography. Now he has nine works in the Smithsonian permanent collection. He has a stall at Eastern Market on Sundays, and his work can be seen at SLMphoto.com. What’s your favorite picture of yours?
I don’t usually share this, but the one I like best is a shot in Beijing called “Broken China.” I’m looking down at a person who is begging for money. All you can see is her hair and a jar of coins. I like it because it’s so compositionally interesting, and it reflects my interest in the human condition. The fact that I ran nonprofits for years made me sensitive to the needs of others, and my pictures reflect that. My pictures may not sell as well as those of artists who photograph the monuments, but the people who buy my work are interested in how people around the world relate.
What type of camera do you use?
A Nikon F5 and D300. I also teach photography, and once in a while someone will come into my class with a $10,000 camera and think the camera makes the picture, and it really doesn’t. … Oftentimes it’s an impediment from real growth because people are more fixated on getting the latest technology and not on learning how to see.
You work in almost exclusively black and white. Why?
Black and white pictures don’t work unless they’re compositionally strong. A color picture can work because it seduces you with its color. Black and white is out there naked.
Which photographer do you love?
I am really impressed with David Alan Harvey. He’s a consummate street photographer.
– Caitlin Byrnes
