make it happen

the photography, projects, and explorations of vanessa miller

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My current inspiration is this song.

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So I never posted about Europe, but I'm in Lake Tahoe now and it's awesome. I've been so lucky to travel so much this summer!

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Bye bye!

Windsor> Toronto PSA: If you fly out of Windsor get there five min before your flight. It's tiny... also say Hi to Matt, the security agent/fueler/baggage guy. He is nice. Actually say hi to everyone, they are all nice and they all kept me company for the three hours I was waiting there. In addition, Canadians hook people with walking cast boots up. Thank you Canada, I love you. Last thought before I board my long haul flight in Toronto. Toronto's airport is so beautiful. I'm love everything about this. I just need another glass of wine and my foot to heal and things will be perfect. Still, they are pretty dang good right now!

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Testing testing 1-2-3 I've got a new mirrorless camera with wifi capability and am about to head to Europe for three weeks. Look out for some long overdue updates!

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Behind the Scenes at Movement

Places that not very many people see. I’ve always been mesmerized by the people moving behind-the-scenes. Here are just a few shots that I was lucky enough to capture. Such a beautiful thing: so many people working towards one common goal, amazing musicians, and then 100,000 people coming to have the weekend of a lifetime. I will always be grateful for my experiences working at Movement. I hope to continue doing things like this and experiencing the friendship, thrill, and excitement of bringing all the pieces together for a long, long time to come.

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Adorable little Christmas Wedding

On December 13, 2014 (12-13-14), one of my oldest and most dear friends got to marry his one and only in a tiny and touching ceremony at the Dossin Great Lakes Museum on Belle Isle. Having gotten engaged only a few weeks before, this couple packed more heart and personality into a wedding then most that take years to plan. The brides love for all things Christmas and the grooms love for winter totally come through in every detail. It was an honor to be present and share in their adorable Christmas wedding. They plan to have a big party with friends and family this summer. 

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RedBull Creation Detroit 2014

A bit behind on sharing these, I figure better late than never... RedBull Creation and Maker Faire were a handful back to back this year. At the #RBcreation party we went through 9 kegs and had a two story fire breathing dragon attend. The Maker Faire Party we fired the Tesla Coil up at 4 in the morning and got an award for throwing a great party and still having people show up in the morning. You can't say that we at Omnicorp Detroit do not know how to have a good time. 

We eventually made it to the museum, banana daquris are allowed right?

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Soup 5 Year Anniversay

Soup's 5 year anniversary was held at Ford Field. Crazy to see how this project has grown and changed since we started it. Crazy that that amazing moment in time was that long ago. What a magical group of women, friends, and people. So many good things came out of it. Thanks to all who were there, the late night jams, the dinners, the hugs, the yoga, the friendship. Y'all know who you are. Congrats to Amy for keeping this thing moving a shaking.

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Go Home Bee You re Drunk

All I want for Christmas is... honey infused vodka? Ok, I know.. not exactly holiday themed... but this is what my husband and I made for our buddies this year. We bought a legit, for reals, honey comb from a local farm, soaked it in some vodka, added some extra raw honey and presto. Honey Infused Booze. I am not positive what this will be good with yet... the first time I had this, it was so delicious I just sipped it... I am not one who sips alcohol, not even amazing whiskey/bourbon... and with my whiskey lovin' husband and competitive drinking friends I have had some in my day. Any-who, I wanted to share because we had alot of fun making these, and it at least turned out awesome looking, still waiting on the verdict of how it tasted. Go Home Bee You're Drunk Honey Infused Vodka, bottles etched with our laser cutter up at our studio space Omnicorp Detroit!

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The Salton Sea

The Salton Sea is a salt lake in the middle of the desert that was created by accident by the engineers of the California Development Company in 1905. It is the largest lake in California, almost the size of Joshua Tree National Park, and was once expected to be the newest boom vacation town, like Palm springs. A great deal of the surrounding land had been sectioned off and sold to developers, infrastructure for the resort town was built and for awhile everything was going wonderfully. Eventually nature fought back and the sea began to experience terrible flooding which destroyed a deal of the newly built vacation amenities, and the water began to evaporate raising the salinity and killing off it's once abundant wildlife. As a result the land developers backed out, and all that is left of the one-time oasis, are a few hundred hardy people holding on, and a few artists groups. These photos are of the town Bombay Beach, a  small population, they were hosting a chili cook-off when we visited in November. The above photo is of the massive barriers that have been constructed to save the community from flooding. The only thing left on the sea side are the decomposing frames of destroyed structures.

It is expected that the Salton Sea will eventually reach or surpass the salinity of the Great Salt Lake in Utah, but for now it has settled into a cycle of dye-offs. In the summer heat the remaining fish have a difficult time getting oxygen and wash ashore by the thousands, the salt in the lake halts decomposition and their bodies feed massive alge blooms that become food for new generations of fish. As a result the beach is literally covered in fish and animal bones.

It was very surreal to be driving through the desert and stumble upon this seemingly endless sea with no trees, no greenery surrounding it.

Rusty equipment on the beach

An overview of Bombay Beach

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noel night 2014

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Playing around

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Joshua Tree

We arrived at the entrance to the park with only about two hours left of daylight. It was after we had driven from Palm springs to the Salton Sea and shot there and I was just feeling exhausted. The park is way bigger than I could have imagined, taking an hour and a half to drive across, it was breathtaking in the sunset. I never thought I'd end up in the Mojave desert, or right up next to a coyote, Joshua Tree is just such an incredible place, I'd love to go back and spend some more time. If you ever make it out, end the day with a beer or glass of wine and some mac 'n cheese at Pappy and Harrietts, you won't be disappointed!

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Out on the town...

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Finals from the Halloween shoot.

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Saw some ghosts at Omnicorp the other night... Or muybridge stopped by...

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So after a small hiatus from shooting and a couple of important life events my fashion team and I reunited. We've been loosely planning this halloween shoot, to just have fun for about 4 months and we did it up. All of us gathered yesterday morning, put the puzzle pieces together and headed out to Historic Elmwood Cemetery.  The real challenge with this shoot was how to photograph in a cemetery and not have it look like every other "fashion cemetery shoot". Our team dug deep, and gave ourselves the permission and the time to really explore what this meant. I feel like the images that resulted fully realized our goals and then some. They (this one specifically) are beautiful, timeless, and perhaps a bit unsettling. We weren't going for gore but that subtle offness which really comes across. All Manipulations were done in the camera, some of these were shot in my studio. Stay tuned for a few more from our adventures.

Hair: Erica Dubroy

Make-up: Hannah Price

Model: Jen Emmerling