By Mike Tedesco, Pro Photo Community

As a six-year old, Peter Read Miller could be found running around with his Brownie camera taking pictures of anything. "I was into pictures of people more than anything and hadn't been into sports much at that point," said Miller. But when his dad took him to his first college football all-star game in Chicago, he happily took along his camera to see what he could capture. "My dad knew one of the coaches, so we were able to go to the Northwestern University campus and stand on the sidelines during practices. I specifically remember photographing Howard "Hopalong" Cassidy, the 1955 Heisman Trophy winner, who was on that team." It was there that Miller got his first taste of photographing college football.

Although Peter has always loved to take pictures, at the University of Southern California (USC) he earned a degree in economics. "I always worked in the newspaper and yearbook departments to earn some extra money." After USC, he decided to pursue a graduate degree in public finance from the University of Pennsylvania, where he also worked on the yearbook and continued his interest in photography. While the experience in Pennsylvania was great, Peter felt he needed to head in a different direction and be involved something where he could work with people more.

"Believe it or not, I went back to Los Angeles and was a road manager for a band. That job was all about logistics and people. I had to interact with so many different personalities; it was a great experience for what I do now." At the same time, Peter began taking pictures on the side for the USC athletic department. "Back at that time, photography was not the cool thing to do. It was one step away from having a slide rule hanging from your belt, but I still loved it." Miller was getting paid to shoot plays for the yearbooks, and would also sell prints to the individual teams and departments.

Peter's first full-time client was for NFL Creative Services. "I had been trying to get access to NFL games, but didn't have the credentials that really warranted access. I actually took a program from a Los Angeles Rams game, and contacted the print production company who happened to be located in Los Angeles." Miller located the editor's name and contacted him directly. "It was one of those great moments. The editor's wife was getting her master's degree at USC and they had seen my pictures from the games and they liked my work." Based on that, Peter was hired. "I almost fell out of my chair," said Miller.

Over the years, Miller has made a name for himself in the world of sports photography, but not just in the action realm. He has also done extensive work on the portrait side. "I love to create an image that tells the reader something about the person. I try to convey their emotions and thoughts." Peter takes this same philosophy to the action. "I try to bring something extra to the images. Instead of just taking 'the picture,' I try to go beyond the action and capture the essence of the scene, the play, or the athlete." One of Miller's more recent angles on shooting football is to go with a wider angle lens and get down on the field with a right-angle finder where he can set the scene.

So what drives Peter's passion for photography? "It's something different every day. There's always a new challenge or element, and photography is interpretive, which allows me to put my own thoughts and feelings into an image."

Miller began shooting digital when Sports Illustrated introduced digital cameras into their workflow in the fall of 2003. "In the beginning, it wasn't so much of a workflow efficiency improvement, but it was the quality of the images at the higher ISO's that initiated the permanent move away from film." From the staff photographers' perspective, the convenience of digital was great. "With film, we were managing all different types of film, from 100 chrome to 800 neg. With digital, we shoot everything on the compact flash cards and ship them to the office in New York, where the editors are processing the images."

It isn't all positives for the digital revolution, however. With the advent of digital photography, Peter has realized the need for more knowledge and experience with technology and computers. Also, he has realized that most consumers own a digital camera and have experienced the immediacy of the results. "People have become more demanding for faster turnarounds," says Miller.

So what does Peter have to say to an up-and-coming sports photographer? "It's a tough business and it's getting even more difficult, but there will always be jobs for dedicated, passionate people. It is important to take any opportunity you can to shoot. Do whatever it takes to get the experience whether it is on your own or as an assistant/apprentice."