We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Bailey Sullivan. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Bailey below.
Bailey, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?
My name is Bailey Sullivan. I am a student at Bartlett High School, and a photographer working for Three Chickadees Photography.
I have always been surrounded by photography for as long as I can remember. My mom was a photographer for the Navy, even before I was born. She was always taking pictures of me and my siblings, and I was always curious to experience what it would be like on the other side of the lens.
However, I never really pursued that curiosity. That is, until I enrolled in a photography course at Bartlett High. This class gave me the opportunity and confidence to begin my photography journey, using just the camera on my phone. My teacher, Ms. Tutor, taught me the fundamentals of photography, and I’m so lucky to have a teacher who recognized my potential and pushed me to keep taking pictures.
The biggest lesson I learned from this course is a very simple one: practice makes perfect.
It took me a long time to realize the value of practicing and honing my skills. While I was taking Ms. Tutor’s photography class, she gave us assignments based on whatever lesson we were learning that week. For example, when she taught my class about perspective, she told us to take 5 photos from a worms-eye or birds-eye view.
She gave my class these assignments on a pretty regular basis, which meant I was constantly practicing and constantly improving small things about my photography. Plus, since I was taking these photos for a grade, I didn’t feel like I was wasting time I could spend on doing homework. The photos were my homework.
When I was assigned a project, I would spend an entire afternoon walking around my neighborhood and my yard, looking for shots for the project. As a byproduct, I took some of my best work on these walks.
This year, however, I did not take that photography class, and I saw a noticeable decline in my photography output. I was taking less photos, and I was worried that would lead to a decrease in the quality of my work. So, I started giving myself homework. I told myself I was going to take 5 shots that I was proud of by the end of the week. This gave me consistency, and I got back into the routine of taking photos.
Through this experience I learned the value of practice. Even if it seems a little cliché, it cannot be understated how much practice really does make perfect.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am a photographer and student. I work for Three Chickadees Photography as an assistant photographer. What sets me apart from others is my ability to see photography as an art-form and a business at the same time. I am the most proud of having the ability to capture a special moment, whether it’s weddings or military ceremonies. I love being able to preserve the most important parts of someone’s life, and ensuring that they have those memories to access for years to come.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
I believe the best way a society can support its artists is through federal funding.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
I love being able to capture a moment authentically. I hold tremendous value in taking pictures of everyday life, because life is always changing. Being able to pause that change is surreal, even looking back at pictures from a decade ago is very interesting, because so many little things have changed in that short period of time.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.threechickadeesphotography.com
- Instagram: @sparklebailey_
