Conversations with Trinity Harrison-Clark

Today we’d like to introduce you to Trinity Harrison-Clark.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My story really begins with my family. I grew up in a mixed family, having ancestry from the Blackfeet and Cherokee Nations, as well as early enslaved Africans and early white settlers. I was very lucky to have such a diverse family, it wasn’t until I was much older I realized that this wasn’t normal for everyone.

My grandfather, Cherokee, and Black would always invite me into the garden with him. We would pick blackberries, tend to the sunflowers, and walk down to the river together. My grandmother, White, would often invite me into her art studio. Inside her art studio you were surrounded by her paintings of nature, the outdoors is her inspiration. My mother started traveling with me on road trips. From the time I was 2 years old, I was traveling across the country.

I always found myself drawn to the outdoors, my curiosity could not be contained and I found my own artistic inspiration captured through a camera. I documented small shadows dancing in the forests through the leaves, my family walking together, the flow of the river downstream. It all mesmerized me.

I started pursuing photography more seriously breaking into the wedding industry out of college, only to find the traditional weddings just never sat quite right with me. I started booking engagements and families that would let me capture their small, intimate love in the outdoors. It was then I knew I had to start finding couples that were as equally excited about the outdoors and experiencing something unique on their wedding day.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I struggled a lot with shame and intimidation from a young age. I often withheld myself from living fully into who I was and my calling.

For the first 7 years I was photographing, I never showed any of my work to others. I loved photography but I was stuck in this never-ending cycle of comparison. I feared that it wasn’t good or that I was a fraud. And the shame continued to stop me, for the next 4 years from actually pursuing photography as a full-time profession, not just a “side hustle”.

I went through a lot of personal development through photography, it has truly changed me for the better. I’ve taken more terrible pictures than I can count but it was all a part of the process.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Adventurous outdoor elopements are my freaking favorite. In the last few years, elopements have become a very popular option for those seeking something other than a traditional wedding day. They allow for couples to actually spend time together and with their closest people on their wedding day. They’re small, intentional, stress-free, and I love everything about that.

However, enjoying the outdoors + having easy access to parks is not universal. Both the conservation + outdoor recreation movements are predominately and disproportionately white spaces. The wedding industry has been called out time after time for the lack of representation, not just in diversity of skin tone, but diversity in wedding celebrations, and body size too.

I’m advocating we change the narrative.

I believe couples no matter their ethnicity or culture should be able to enjoy an intentional elopement wedding day that is authentically them. When I was looking at inspiration for my wedding, I could not find another couple that looked like us having an elopement. Sure, there was plenty of Pinterest inspiration of what an elopement could look like, but no one that looked like me.

On top of that, I could see how quickly elopements were deteriorating the environment. With certain photographs going viral through social media, and many couples wanting to have that exact location for their day, it was taking a toll on the land itself.

I specialize in elopements for black, indigenous, Asian, Latinx, White, and Interracial couples. I love getting to help my couples, who maybe grew up in “nature deprived” areas, experience the outdoors. Seeing how they come alive together is the greatest joy, and makes “work” feel like a dream.

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I find myself very fortunate to have had the family I did, to grow up with a diverse community around me and people that invited me into the outdoors with them from a young age.

I know for a fact if it wasn’t for them I wouldn’t be the person I am today nor in the role that I am. They have allowed me the opportunity to now spread the joy I find in the outdoors with others, making it a more equitable place for all to feel safe and enjoy.

Pricing:

• Elopement Weddings start at $1,500.
• Adventurous Portrait Sessions begin at $300.

Contact Info:

• Email: trinity@trinitymichelle.com
• Website: TrinityMichelle.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/trinitymphoto
• Facebook: facebook.com/trintymphoto
• Other: https://goo.gl/maps/ezzUNihnjLUzkTaK9

Image Credits
Trinity Michelle Photography