We recently connected with Michelle Thigpen and have shared our conversation below.
Michelle, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
“Living with fear stops us from taking risks, and if you do not go out on a branch, you’re never going to get the best fruit.” This quote from Sarah Parish shows that taking a risk is a major key to getting us through life, and this view of overcoming that fear may look different to everyone. In my opinion, a risk requires going out on a limb and taking a stab at a certain predicament where the probability of failing miserably is higher than the odds of taking a win. As an amateur, the first major business risk I went for dealt with signing up to be a videographer to create a recap for a pop-up shop hosted by the Cali-DMV clothing brand MEAO (my eyes are open). During that time, I was a recent college graduate. Nevertheless, even though my major was in production, I was only hands-on with a camera a few times, and most of my time was spent writing articles and creative directing. On the other hand, with the knowledge I have now, calling myself an aspiring videographer and showing up to their event to “make a movie-like visual” was extremely foolish. But, despite my limited background and entry-level experience, I had confidence and was determined to let the world know that I am here to show my new-found talent!
I arrived at the event early in order to set up and not embarrass myself in front of people who could have had more experience than I did. I spent the whole day there holding my camera stabilizer incorrectly and out of balance, looking back all I can do is laugh. I made sure throughout the entire time there no one noticed any of my imperfections, I walked around with a smile on my face the entire time. Once I arrived home that night, a knot developed in my throat thinking about editing and performing any other post-ops. It was Inevitable, I couldn’t avoid it. I had a huge vision for the video but only amateur-level knowledge of editing. Over the course of the next two weeks following that event, every day once I got off work I spent 8 hours strictly editing. Then, during the weekends, I would spend 13-18 hours editing and watching “how to” youtube videos ALL DAY LONG.
When the final product was finished, I was nothing less than proud of myself. It was my best work yet which came a very long way! Of course, the people I worked with at the time didn’t really care for it all too much, lol! For this reason, it never got posted on their page and was eventually deleted from mine. However, The video created great attention towards my business and helped me to receive two bookings. This allowed me to gain trusting and paying clients, as well as a deeper level of confidence to continue working and improving my craft.
“Tab” As a result of these risks I learned that being a business owner runs much deeper than what is seen by the public eye. I hope people can learn from the adventures I took and attempt to take risks. While finding growth, you will always have to be willing to put yourself in positions that may be “uncomfortable” or outside of your norm. As you persistently try new things you may immediately understand at first glance. Now, fast forward to my present day, it has been a year and a half since then. I am still going day by day with the same approach to taking risks, keeping the same heart as when I first set out on this journey.
So, cheers to that first risk for MISS CHELLE VISUALS, which led me to take risks each time I pick up a camera. With greater risk comes even greater rewards, beautiful outcomes, and new clients!
If you’re reading this article…This is your sign to bet on yourself! Take the risk every single time. Just make sure you do it wholeheartedly.
Forever and Always,
Miss Chelle Visuals
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
My name is Michelle Thigpen. I am a 24-year-old Cinematographer, Producer, Editor, and Owner of MissChelleVisuals. I launched my business in June of 2021. However, I broke into the industry by working as a production assistant and editor for two years before launching my business. To be completely honest, I always planned on working in front of the camera, being an anchor and MC, and branding myself to eventually go on to become a renowned public speaker and philanthropist. Everything changed, for the lack of better terms, overnight.
One day, I was helping out as a PA on the set for a series of fashion DC Fashion Week interviews, and I noticed that the cameraman/interviewer relied on me heavily to bring the interview to life. The questions he prepared were almost a bit off-brand, and it seemed like he was disengaged during the whole experience if you ask me. This sent me into the highest mode of care and concern for a perfect delivery of this project.
From then on, I realized I had a mission and that the arts are more than a hobby, they’re a certain passion of mine. Second, I felt the need to document and deliver the most beautiful form of people, their stories, and what life tells, all through the lens of my Sony camera. Starting my business was surprisingly low stress and a blissful experience. This is owed to the fact that I owned a previous UX/UI design business. I have always juggled many high-stress projects simultaneously. So, learning the body of my camera, how to maximize its capabilities, and a laundry list of other things to make someone look good have been a bit stressful. It has been ultimately so rewarding,
The hard work that my mentors Ricky “PapaKPhotos” Carnegie “CarnegieCaptures” and other friends and family have pushed me to do has severely given me a run for my money. Some nights I cried and edited till 5 am, and funny enough, I still do, but this has built the foundation for me to create a standard where my clients love the work that I do from now and forever on.
I am focusing most of my efforts on my branding services for those of you that own any business that needs visuals, let’s work! I of course still do event recaps, including but not limited to birthdays, engagements, and other milestones, and music videos. My Instagram tag is @MissChelleVisuals, and my booking site is https://MissChelleVisualscheduling.as.me/.
It just keeps getting better and better,
Michelle Thigpen
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
Success is a product of viral content. For me, this was the most difficult falsehood to let go of, but so glad I did.
Honestly, when I first started my only goal was to learn everything about videography. I thought that just knowledge of a camera, networking, and a natural eye for production was the recipe.
I didn’t realize that posting quality niche content consistently was more effective than aiming to post a viral video every one to two months with all of my energy and time. When I first began my video journey, I would spend about 3-5 weeks in post-production for a basic 1-minute recap.
Soon after struggling to edit a video and getting minimal viewership, something had to change. I had to realign with my “why?”. My journey soon taught me that networking means nothing if you’re not meeting people with similar values. Having a team so that you can plan out what the next six months look like for your business is crucial. Also, rolling out quick-turn videos and reels is a group effort! You will have to sacrifice more if it is mostly your project, but there are ways to distribute responsibilities so you won’t face such emotional rollercoasters.
In this industry, you must lean into big-picture thinkers and like-minded individuals. They’re the only people that will lift you up.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
Equipment rentals and Mentorship! As a new artist, I bought every piece of equipment I thought I would need. It turned out that a lot of these were items that wouldn’t be useful for curating the branding that I would like to produce. Such as harsh LED lights vs aperture lights with soft boxes. There are so many resources in the DMV that allow you to rent equipment anywhere from one hour to two weeks. You just have to find them! Shameless plug, Spencer Grundler, and Service Photo are two of my faves!
As I look back, these are things I would have learned a lot sooner if I had had a mentor. I was a student in the game, but my only teacher was the hard knocks of life. My first and still one of my current mentors @papakphotos was introduced to me by fate and my photographer friend @GetBoxed. Eugene @GetBoxed took me on a trip to NY to capture a bit of B Roll and shadow his team’s creative genius. I had no idea that I was working alongside someone who would change my life as a videographer and completely change the course of my career. Since October of 2021, I have added an array of skills to my producer toolbelt and met so many other great creatives. I owe a good amount of this growth to mentorship
Contact Info:
- Website: https://misschellevisualscheduling.as.me/schedule.php
- Instagram: MissChelleVisuals
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-thigpen/