Today we’d like to introduce you to Jillian Mills.
Hi Jillian, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started Heartlove Photography in 2008 while I was a college student and newlywed. After marrying a Marine and moving to a new city, I began volunteering to photograph military homecomings. I met families in parking lots and pavilions around base at all hours of the day and night, waiting for buses carrying hundreds of Marines home from combat deployments.
It was a crash course in emotional, fast-paced documentary photography in every lighting condition imaginable. No matter how stressful it was, photographing babies meeting their fathers for the first time felt like witnessing magic. At the time, I had no idea I was building a business that would become my career; I was simply in love with the humanity of it all and looking for every opportunity to create.
Seventeen years later, I specialize in newborn and family photography and create immersive experiences for children and families throughout Maryland.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a totally smooth road but no matter the challenges, I’m completely grateful for this work. Learning how to turn something that I love so much into a sustainable business continues to be an obstacle. When people started asking me to photograph pregnancies, birth, milestones, I was thrilled, but I struggled with the idea of charging money for something that felt so personal and meaningful. Everyone deserves to have their special moments recorded, to have their emotions validated and see themselves in a way that the outside world sees them.
I had to learn that running a business meant valuing not only the art itself while supporting the expertise and emotional energy behind it. Balancing creativity with the realities of entrepreneurship continues to be a struggle.
Even now, that’s probably the biggest challenge: preserving the heart behind the work while also treating it like the business.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I specialize in newborn, baby, and family photography in and around Baltimore + Annapolis, MD. My goal is to create something that feels magical in the moment and meaningful years later.
If you read reviews for Heartlove Photography, you’ll notice that people rarely talk only about the images they receive. They talk about feeling cared for, about how patient and calm the experience was and about the trust they placed in me with their children. If I can make someone feel welcome or accommodated before they ever have to ask, I’ve succeeded. Serving people well means making sure they feel like the whole experience is accessible.
Providing bereavement photography for families experiencing the loss of a baby has profoundly influenced the way I see this profession. It has reinforced my belief that photographs are far more than decorations on a wall.
Some families have invited me back to document nearly every chapter of their lives. While I love celebrating with families in joyful seasons, I’m most proud to be invited into the grief-filled spaces where I document the full spectrum of emotions that life brings. Those moments that don’t end up on Instagram are the most important work I do.
Maybe it’s cliché, but my heart truly is in this work. Whether I’m soothing a newborn, holding space for grieving parents or transforming my studio into a storybook world, I never forget that I’m being invited into some of the most meaningful moments of a person’s life.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
The resources that have had the biggest impact on me aren’t business books or photography podcasts—they’re the ones that have changed the way I understand connection and what it means to be human.
– Alua Arthur’s work, especially her book Briefly Perfectly Human and her death doula training, has shaped the way I think about mortality and how to be present for people during life’s most significant moments.
– Jessica Sharp’s Reiki training (Gentle Hands Reiki) changed my understanding of intuition, presence and the importance of creating environments where people feel safe and supported.
– And of course, everything Brene Brown – I can read and listen to her books and podcasts 100 times and still learn new things about the inner workings of shame, vulnerability and connection.
A lot of what I spend time listening too and reading is about understanding people more deeply. At the end of the day, photography is about witnessing and preserving the human experience.
Pricing:
- $250 studio sessions for baby milestones, headshots, pregnancy
- $450 studio newborn sessions
- $400 Stories with Santa
- $250 greenhouse family sessions
- $450 on-location family sessions
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.heartlovephotography.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heartlovephoto
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heartlovephoto
- Other: https://www.storieswithsantaclaus.com
