We recently connected with Sydney Harris and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sydney , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
I had just turned fifteen when I started taking dancing seriously, leaving school with a tutu and a dream. When I had begun homeschooling to pursue ballet full time, I was determined it would be my career for the rest of my life. Each day, I got up at the crack of dawn. I still remember my mom driving me to the studio every day. I would get there at 7am and leave at 10pm, and do it all over the next day. Often, I would come home with blood-stained pointe shoes and battered feet, but it didn’t matter to me. I did all of the ballet kid things- summer intensives, YAGP, Nutcracker (I was the Rat King). I was just starting to get pretty good, and my dreams looked quite reachable.
An injury eventually forced me to step away from dance entirely. Just a few years after starting the program, I ended up needing hip surgeries that I knew would set me back too far and end my career as a ballet dancer. I could still dance after the surgeries, but never to the level I was at. A lot of soul searching was happening during this time. Ballet was my plan A, and I had no plan B. During my recovery period is when I found photography.
I started with photographing my dancer friends, then gradually built up to portraiture over the years. I took lessons with a local photographer in my area who helped me get to where I am today, running a business. Through this process is how I fell in love with visual communication. Whether through photography, video, motion media, editorial design, or creative direction, I loved the idea of storytelling in a visually beautiful way. I am now heading into my junior year at the Savannah College of Art and Design majoring in Fashion Marketing and minoring in Art Direction and Business. I use photography all the time at SCAD for a range of different projects. It’s really great to work on drastically different projects so I can develop and experiment with my style and taste- it’s been a lot of exploration so far.
Through the many different ventures I have experienced in my life, I have learned that life changes in a split second, and you have to adapt. Right now, I am excited to pursue my degree in fashion marketing, and I am even more excited to see where it can take me.
Sydney , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am obsessed with conceptual thinking. At the core of everything I do is the belief that the most powerful ideas are often invisible. My purpose is to unearth them through beautiful visuals. My approach is centered around translating abstract concepts into captivating storytelling. I speak what the eyes collect. I am always searching for inspiration and experimenting with any type of artistic mediums I can get my hands on to enhance and progress my craft. At the moment, I am largely inspired by Architectural Digest India, Slim Aarons- a socialite photographer from the 50s, and Georges Hobeika- a Lebanese fashion designer. In my free time, you’ll likely find me scrolling on Pinterest, painting very mediocrely, or making mood boards on Adobe Indesign- constantly nurturing the evergrowing visual garden inside my brain. This translates into everything I create, from photography, editorial design, art direction, or any other project I’ve gotten myself into. I am a huge camera nerd and I always have at least two on me at all times. My go-to’s are my Canon point and shoot, and Canon AE-1 film camera, which I’m still trying to figure out. Film is something I have decided to throw myself at in the past few months. With my cameras always in hand, I’m constantly looking for new perspectives and stories to capture. Currently, I am 19 years old and from North Carolina, but I am eager to be thoroughly well traveled by the time I’m 25. We’ll see where life takes me!
After injuries ended my dance career, I needed a creative outlet and found myself drawn to photography. When I started, I didn’t have a clue in the world what I was doing. I started seriously developing my skills about a month after picking up my first camera. Photography clicked for me in a way that felt natural. I found myself drawn to certain compositions and spent countless hours getting comfortable with my camera. I experimented with dance photography which eventually evolved into my current focus on portraiture.
When it came time for college, I was debating whether to go or pursue an online degree and focus on my business. In retrospect, I am so glad that I found SCAD. Attending the Savannah College of Art and Design allowed me to progress my creative identity in ways I had never thought possible. Initially, I enrolled as a fashion photography major, extremely interested in editorial photography. I liked the glitz and glamour of the fashion world. As time went on, I became increasingly interested in the broader aspects of visual communication. It was in my sophomore year that I decided to switch my major to Fashion Marketing. Switching my major forced me to rethink the entire creative process of my photography workflow. Experiencing set days meant weeks of preparation with extensive mood boards and shot lists. The challenge was maintaining clear project focus while effectively conveying the thematic elements, something that I was not used to in portrait photography back home. Photography is still a large part of what I do at SCAD, but it is a smaller part of the bigger picture, and allows me to mesh my photography style and eye for editorial/physical design. This entire creative path, from discovering photography to pursuing it professionally, has only been possible because of my parents, who have supported me through every dream. The journey from injury to growth as a creative has shaped both my technical skill and entire approach to storytelling. Sometimes the best adventures are the ones we never see coming.
At the moment, I am running my business Sydney Harris Photography. It is something I run part-time mainly for high school seniors, but I also book families and dancers in my area. My style is bright, fun, and luxe casual. I like to think of myself as the athleisure of photography: easygoing and accessible, while still creating something that feels elevated. This approach actually comes from my own experience. I was so nervous about getting senior photos done that I ended up cancelling them entirely and never got any photos at all. It is something I regret, and so I wanted to create a business that was for people who don’t like being in front of a camera, by someone who feels the same way. My sessions are low pressure, easy, and lighthearted—I guide you through everything so you never feel awkward or unsure. My dance experience taught me how to help people feel comfortable in their bodies, which translates perfectly to helping clients feel natural and confident during shoots. I hope for every client to feel warmly welcomed and exactly like themselves. You can expect a streamlined process when working with me. From the booking experience to session day, everything is relaxed, easy, and reliable. This business has been such a fulfilling learning opportunity for me, and a great way to integrate myself into my community in the NC triangle. I am also in the process of polishing By Sydney Elizabeth, my personal creative platform to give my projects a home. The website is inclusive of school projects and personal projects consisting of mock campaigns and editorial design projects.
I’m really proud of how this business has shaped me as a person. The process of owning a business is something I think all teens should experience in some capacity. It helps you understand people on a different level, from both a humanistic and analytical standpoint. Understanding target markets, segmentation, consumer personas, etc. was a large part of understanding how to grow my business. Owning a business allowed me to develop great time management skills- which was incredible for college, budgeting and financial management skills, web and UX design skills, as well as SEO and data analysis knowledge. Beyond the technical skills, most importantly, it taught me about working towards an end goal while consistently pushing growth strategies. I would drive between Savannah, GA and Raleigh, NC almost every weekend in my spring quarter of freshman year at SCAD. To see my business grow exponentially as a result of my hard work and sacrifice of typical college social activities made it all worth it. I remember that was the year I turned 18, and it was my best business year to date, which was an incredibly proud moment for me.
In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?
In my opinion, everyone needs to start crafting more. If you have the time and resources, pick up a hobby that you’ve never tried before, even if you’re bad at it. The crux of being truly creative is getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. Being able to put yourself in positions where you have no idea what to do is healthy, and often rewarding. It will also give you perspective. I remember when I tried knitting for the first time, about twenty minutes in, I understood why it is a good idea to invest in good quality knitwear, made by artists being paid fair wages. I think people sometimes underestimate the time and effort that goes into handmade work. When budget allows, supporting artists and makers can be really meaningful. So, I urge people to pick up a hobby and really work at it. They’ll quickly understand why art is so valuable. Lean into human made goods and recognize why it is so much more special.
When I watched my first Wes Anderson movie, Fantastic Mr. Fox. I was so in awe of the artistry in that movie and found myself falling down the Wes Anderson rabbit hole and finding a love for experimenting with stop motion and motion media (something I’ve been diving into fairly recently). Always keep an open mind and stay curious. This is how you develop key aspects of your personal style. If you feel yourself wondering about something, go research it. Write an essay for yourself, read books about it, watch YouTube videos on it. This curiosity will lead you to other things that may interest you. Keep digesting and wondering about art. There is no right answer, which is the best part- art can be whatever you want. The more you take in, the more perspective you gain.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
Something that has significantly impacted my artistic philosophy is art history. For a class that a lot of people might find boring, I think it is extremely valuable. Being able to study art throughout history gives direct insight into the humanity of artisans and how it relates to modern day society. Focusing on the visual culture of the past helps you develop yourself in the present by giving your art meaningful context. I have taken two classes so far on art history from a global point of view, and another course specifically on Asian Art. It is really important to take art history courses from a non-Eurocentric standpoint in order to understand art history as a whole. For me, it has expanded the way in which I analyze, view, and contextualize art as a whole, and that carries over directly into my personal work. I am able to apply pottery references to painting practices, apply compositional principles from paintings to photography- everything is connected, it’s your job to put the pieces together how you see fit.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.bysydneyelizabeth.com, www.sydneyharrisphoto.com
- Instagram: @syd__harris, @sydneyharrisphoto
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sydney-e-harris
Image Credits
Sydney Harris