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Exciting News: Subscribe to My Substack and Podcast (and a giveaway)!

Exciting News: I’m Moving to Substack: Introducing Comfort & Joy Letters and Podcast

My website and archives will remain here, but my new writing will be published on Substack. I hope you’ll come along with me. Your support through the years has meant the world to me.

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Dear Loyal Readers,

I’m thrilled to announce that I’m moving my writing to Substack! After much thought (and lots of writing in notebooks last year) I’ve decided to take this leap as a way to better connect with you and grow our community.

Why Substack?

Substack is a platform designed to help writers to reach their readers. Substack allows me to continue to write long form, build community, and offer a more streamlined way to send posts directly to your inbox or the app without an algorithm getting in the way.

Moving to Substack opens up new possibilities for me to share more of my heart and vision with you (and meet more readers, too). As I write more memoir style posts, devotionals, and continue paying attention to the world through the lens of faith, I want to invite you to be a part of it. Whether you’re here for my creativity, my personal stories, or my reflections on life and God’s word, there’s more to come.

Why Your Support Matters

Your support on Substack means I can continue doing what I love—sharing stories, insights, and encouragement that resonates with you and other readers. By subscribing and engaging with my content, you’re helping me keep up my writing and encouraging my creative life. I appreciate each and every one of you who chooses to be a part of this new chapter.

What This Means for You

By subscribing on Substack for free, you’ll get access to all my weekly “Threads” posts delivered straight to your inbox, making it even easier to follow along. Paid subscribers will enjoy additional posts on the creative life as well as anything else I add to the site in the future.

Substack also allows me to better interact with you—whether it’s through comments, voice posts, community discussions, or even exclusive offers, the experience will be more personal and intentional than ever before, and I can’t wait to share it with you.

I Need You!

Ready to join me? Just click the button below to subscribe to my Substack newsletter and be part of this exciting new chapter!

To express my gratitude for your continued support, every new Substack subscriber (between now and Jan. 5 at midnight**) will be entered into a drawing to receive the gift box below with products from some of my favorite local stores and brands: Liberty Vintage Marketplace, Something Special Covington, Worn Jewelry, Vine & Branches, and a gift from me, too. A Winner will be notified by email on Jan. 6. I want to thank the vendors listed here for their confidence and support in my creative ventures.

Warmly,
Emily Cook

Here is a sample of what subscribers will receive on Wednesdays.

Threads Bonus Post: Begin with the End in Mind

Bonus Post for You:

As a writer, I’ve found writing great stories starts with me figuring out the ending and working backwards. That’s how I write and how I teach my students to write. When you know where the story is heading, the middle doesn’t get lost, and it keeps readers engaged. Without that clarity, the story can feel like it’s wandering, and that’s when people put the book down. But when you have the ending in mind, you can create something much richer.

This is how I approach Scripture—not as disconnected stories, but as a meta narrative, woven together by God Himself, with an ending so amazing and full of hope that it changes the way we see everything before it.

Let me share that ending with you: “God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.” (Revelation 21:4 KJV).

Can you picture it? A world where tears are gone, where sorrow is swallowed up by joy, and where God’s presence heals every hurt from the past. This is the future before us as believers—the final chapter that gives meaning to every page that came before in the whole of scripture and in our personal stories, too.

But to really grasp the fullness of that ending, we need to rewind all the way to the beginning. In Genesis, though tears aren’t directly mentioned, we can imagine them: Eve’s tears of regret after everything changed, Adam’s tears of sorrow over the separation from God, both of them walking out of the Garden, leaving behind a world now marked by pain and longing for what was. From that moment of rebellion, humanity’s story has been intertwined with tears—tears of loss, repentance, and longing.

And yet, even in those earliest chapters, the ending is already there, quietly promised. In the curse of the serpent, God made a way for us to get back to Him: “he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15 NIV). The Author, knowing the end from the beginning, plants a seed of hope right from the start. The story is not over.

Now, let’s fast forward to the heart of the story. The Messiah enters the scene. And we read: “For the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2 KJV). Here’s the pivotal moment. Jesus, fully aware of the ending, chooses to endure unimaginable suffering for the joy that awaited Him—the joy of redemption, the joy of everything being made new, the joy of seeing every tear wiped away.

This is how I read Scripture and approach life: with the end in mind and victory in view. When we know the story ends in joy, we can better understand the purpose behind the pain, the beauty of enduring hardships, and the thread of hope running through each chapter. As a writer, I’m amazed how God’s story unfolds—each piece marching toward the grand finale.

So as I write through the Chronological Bible this year, I’m going to keep the end in mind. I hope you’ll join me in reading through the Bible, too, but if not these posts will still add encouragement to your everyday by looking at the bigger picture. I think you’ll greatly benefit in spiritual and personal growth. I sure hope I do.

The tears of Genesis will one day be wiped away in Revelation. And in the pages between, we will see God’s faithfulness in every season, and I hope in our own lives, too. The story of redemption is the one we are invited to live.

Warmly,
Emily Cook

**Contest Rules:
This giveaway is not sponsored, endorsed, or administered by Instagram, WordPress, Threads, or Substack. Open to U.S. residents aged 18+. Void where prohibited. By entering, you confirm you’re 18+, live in the U.S.

**Beware of scammers. Please do not respond to anything unusual. Emily will personally contact the winner on 1/6/25.

Thank you for supporting my writing and my fav local businesses! Let’s spread comfort and joy into the new year!

More than Dirt: Athletic Fields Change Towns

There are some moments in life that you can’t recognize as extraordinary until you gain enough perspective with age. I wish there were a way to know you were experiencing something transformative while you were in it, but for some reason, nostalgia is the key that opens our eyes to the magic of it all.

For me those moments have often shown up where I least expected them, in the ordinary days of my life. Ironically for a person who is not an athlete, some of those magical memories took place at a baseball field.

Twenty-eight years ago as a Freshmen in High School, I became a quiet observer of a team of boys who would become my High School buddies (and one of them my husband). Over the course of those three years, I had a front row seat to watch a game turn them from immature guys to influential men.

I was there to witness my friends become State Champions in 1999 as Seniors.
Click to make it full screen.

After the State Championship trophy had been brought home, Jimmy Naifeh, our then Tennessee Speaker of the House said in a proclamation that Coach Alan Pavette “molded the Charger team of great individual talent into a diamond quality team who stuck together through thick and thin. He described them as great athletes, true champions, peerless sportsmen, and gentlemen.”

He was right.

One of the great joys of my life was that I was “in the room [or stands] where it happened” and that I’ve had the opportunity to watch these gentlemen mine their own “diamonds in the rough” into adulthood, one of them being investing their time, money, and energy into a new school in our community that has now flourished to the point where it needs it’s own baseball field.

Former Charger Baseball State Champions Zach Cook, Gene Coltrane, Drew Glass, and William Allen Wooten are all invested in Eagle Athletics at TCA as coaches, mentors, and disciple makers.

Our Field of Dreams

Years ago, the Rose family had a vision for a field of dirt that they dreamed of becoming a church campus and a Christian School. I have seen God answer prayer after prayer to make the vision they cast a reality through financial gifts being given as well as hands and feet showing up to serve the students who would fill the desks of our young school.

As a photographer I documented the ground breaking of our Upper School Building in 2018 and witnessed a second groundbreaking just last year to expand our building that is bursting at the seams. It opens this August.

I have the privilege of serving at our school as the Art Teacher for Pre-K through High School students so I get to see first hand the evidence of the dividends that are being gained from the investments people have made throughout the years. God is at work changing lives and growing disciples for His Kingdom!

Thursday night we had our groundbreaking for our new athletic fields. Dirt work is being completed with the hopes of practice fields being ready by next season. We have raised $500,000 towards the cause, but have big needs to make this “Field of Dreams” a reality. That’s where you come in.

As a community, we have always invested in our future through our teams because we believe in the power of sports. Not only is community built and bonds formed by rallying behind a team, but youth sports also produce leaders who will one day remember their roots and the cycle of giving back continues.

There is a Dick’s Sporting Goods ad that I stop to take in every time it airs. Its so relevant to the spirit behind what we are trying to accomplish at Tipton Christian Academy with academics and with athletics. Inspired by their words, I applied it to our teams.

Teams Change People
A team is a people you can’t live without. Teams strengthen each other teaching that no one person can do everything on their own. It takes us all to achieve success. Teams teach humility as you have to do your best while trusting that your teammate is doing the same, not for their own glory, but for the good of the team.

When one player is in a slump, athletically or in life, teammates lift each other up. Coaches speak life lessons over players as game time scenarios relate to real life. Coaches build character into young men and women modeling what it’s like to be a leader.

Starting a school, athletic program, and individual teams from scratch has taken a sense of entitlement away from all of us and put the emphasis on the power of teamwork and serving. Our students are building character by learning what it takes to create something from the ground up even if they don’t get to fully enjoy it while they are in school. It is teaching them and all of us how to give forward.

Fields Change Towns
When a field is built, people gather as a community offering a sense of hometown pride. Having active athletic fields retains our current athletic students and attracts new athletes advancing the mission and the vision of our founders to create open doors to point the next generation to Jesus.

Having opportunities for discipleship thorough athletics will reverberate for many years to come just as we have done with academics at TCA. We are doing eternal work on our campus planting seeds of faith which will hopefully outlive us all.

Seasons Change Futures
When a student finds their place on a team they often have the bonus of built in friendships they’ll have their whole life. They discover gifts they didn’t know they had and opportunities will open up for students to receive scholarships for their abilities, progressing them to who God wants them to be. Sports fields allow us the blessing of advancing a student towards a brighter future.

Sports Change Lives
As evidenced my my earlier story about the 1999 State Championship team, I’m not sure where they would each be without their parents who invested time and money into their athletics, Baltzer Field where they were able to develop as players as well as a team, and Coach Allen Pavette who grew them from mischievous boys to State Champions.

I have seen the arc of the life of these former baseball players and I know that all of it mattered.

How Can You Make a Difference Today in the Life of an Eagle Athlete?

Pray and believe that God will provide what we need to complete the fields so that we can further the mission of Tipton Christian Academy.

Give. This is a list of items that we need for our Baseball and Softball complex. If you would like to donate any amount, contact me at ecook@tiptonchristianacademy.com and I will point you in the right direction.

Encourage. If you know of anyone who is passionate about Middle School and High School sports or interested in supporting small town communities (such as corporate sponsors), please share this post with them or share on social media.

A Vision

Eagles pitching coach, Zach Cook, encouraging son, Jonah Cook, as he takes First Base.

Field of Dreams Takes Flight

Imagine the sun reflecting off of the outfield. You can smell the freshly cut grass and hamburgers on the grill. Kids are lined up for popcorn and cokes at the concessions stand. You hear two old friends chattering behind you. The crack of the bat echoes through clean, cool, Spring air. Cheers from the student section call out to players as you listen from your lawn chair sitting behind home plate.

A TCA Eagle steps up to bat, his eyes set with determination. He takes a swing, sending the ball soaring over the fence. You rise to your feet as you hear a roar from the stands. In that moment, he’s not just playing a game, he’s chasing a dream – the dream of victory, of teamwork, of pushing his personal limits moving towards the future.

This is the promise of our new fields. It’s not just about a place to play a game. It’s about creating a space where dreams take flight, where potential is nurtured, and where the echoes of cheers from past generations inspire the next wave of competetors. It’s where disciples for Christ will be made and the game will be played to glorify Him.

With your help, we can make this vision a reality. Every contribution, big or small, brings us closer to building a field that reflects the spirit of our community – a place where hard work, dedication, and a love for the game can flourish. Together, let’s create a legacy that inspires future generations to chase their dreams, on and off the field.

Creatively,
Emily Cook

The views expressed in the content of this blog is solely that of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s employer, company, institution or other associated parties.

Making it Past Quitter’s Day

Did you make it past Quitter’s Day? They say the second Friday in January is statistically when people give up their resolutions (or Goals as I’d rather call them). If you’ve still kept up with yours, congrats! Making it past day 21 solidifies a habit! If not, make today, February 1 a fresh start!

This post contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a commission should you chose to sign up for a program or make a purchase using my link. It’s okay – I love all of these companies anyways, and you will too! **As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.**

I set three daily goals and one big umbrella word (excellence) for this year to keep me on track. I did fall short of my walking goal in Jan. because of the snowpocalypse and the torrential downpour week that followed, but I have walked every pretty day that was available to walk.

I kept up my daily writing practice and have enjoyed reading through my book list and discovering some new titles. I’ve given up my youtube habit and night time TV in place of these things. I also started a commonplace book to capture what I’m learning or quotes I hear throughout the day.

What I’m learning about doing a little reading and a little writing each day, a long discipline in the same direction, I’m getting more done and learning more in the process. It’s keeping me focused and really making me feel like my brain is growing every day for the first time in a long time. I’m less worried about the algorithm or whether someone is liking my posts or even reading them at all and more focused on building something brick by brick, post by post. It feels like growth.

Here is what I’ve been writing towards this month:

ICYMI

Talking about deciding my next right thing.

A-Z of Photography: Aperture

A to Z of Photography: Always Dreamed of Being a Photographer

Starting a Common Place Book

A to Z of Photography: Azaleas

A to Z of Photography: Advertising

A to Z of Photography: Babies

How are you looking to grow creatively in 2024? I’d love to encourage you!

A to Z of Photography: Azaleas

Before I even set both feet out of the car and onto the pavement, the white house with the picket fence had our name written all over it. “Mama!” I can still feel the butterflies in my stomach, “This is the one!” The ground to my red balloon ideas, she reminded me not to get my hopes up, “We haven’t even smelled it or jumped on the floors, Emily.” I held my breath and hoped that when we walked through those doors the foundation was sound and there wasn’t any damp smell.

Surrounded by the most ideallic picket fence, I could picture my whole life there before me. I’d get married across the street at the Methodist Church, we’d take our pictures here, then I’d start my business in the cutest most well lit and landscaped courtyard I’d ever seen. It’s like God drew a picture of a gift for me and plopped it right there on the corner where he knew I’d be starting my life as a young wife in just 3 short months.

I could see a swing on the front porch as a place to pose children and babies for photos with their families and having the square within walking distance was icing on the cake for even more locations to add variety to photo sessions.

Before I left that day I signed a deposit check to secure it before Zach had even seen it in person. This was our house and I’m so thankful it was.

That setting provided the backdrop for most of my photo sessions over the next decade. The leading lines, good light, and mature plants that stopped me in my tracks that day would turn out to provide the best foreground, middle ground, and background of at least 1,000 photo shoots.

Location, Location, Location

Obviously everyone can’t and may not want an outdoor photo studio at their home. I was in the mindset of starting a family and wanted to be as close to home as possible so I could be at the dinner table when my husband got home from work. This set up was ideal for us at the time.

When I look for other locations to shoot, I have my eye out for a few things that make or break a session. I wanted to share them with you so you can start looking for these things.

5 Things I Look for When Scouting Locations for Photo Shoots

Shady, but with plenty of available light. Trees are great, but forests, not so much. The shadier the location, the earlier in the day you have to shoot.

2. Scenery that marks the seasons. In the Winter I shoot indoors or urban landscapes. In the Spring, I want to catch things blooming (azaleas in mid April, Buttercups/Fruit Trees in early March). In the Summer, I look for water and big green pastures as well as urban landscapes or sunflowers in late July. In the Fall, I watch the cotton and the foliage like a hawk (cotton usually peaks in late Sept/early Oct and the leaves are most colorful around Halloween-Nov 15.

3. Leading Lines like shrubbery, fencing, tree lines, bridges, etc. that add perspective to the picture and draw attention to the subject.

4. Character that will add texture, interest, and variety to the session like brick, wood elements, patina colored surfaces, worn paint or even natural textures like evergreen trees, rocks, and water features.

5. Foreground, middle ground, and background areas that add depth and a painterly look to images. I look for areas that have greenery, a space for the subject to sit, and a scenic background.

Ready to level up your photography? Try these tips now and share your stunning shots using #epcphotochallenge

If this post helped you in any way, I’d love it if you’d share it with a friend who loves photography, too.

Creatively,
Emily

Starting a Common Place Book

This year I started a commonplace book for quotes and verses. I’ve done something similar to this with images before, but I’ve never systematically written down quotes in one place from all of the information I take in every week from reading, listening to podcasts, or watching documentaries or great movies.

Photo from “Where the Heart Is” Film, 2000

“She pulled her book of pictures out of the plastic beach bag on the seat beside her. She had been collecting pictures from magazines since she was little … pictures of bedrooms with old quilts and four-poster beds, kitchens with copper pots and blue china, living rooms with sleeping Lassies curled on bright rugs, and walls covered with family pictures in gold frames. Before, these rooms had existed only in the pages of magazines she bought at garage sales in Tellico Plains, Tennessee. But now, she was on her way to California — on her way to live in such rooms.” –
“Where the Heart Is”

After I saw this movie when I was a Freshmen in college, I went and bought a three ring binder, filled it with page protectors and began to cut out pictures from magazines of what I drew my eye. I organized the pages by topic. I began to see my style develop as I saw commonalities between the images I was drawn to from the content I was consuming. When I look back through it today, I still have the same taste. No matter the trends, you are who you are.

This method today would be the equivalent of my pinterest page.

You can read more about what a common place book is here.

In a commonplace notebook instead of filing away images, I compile quotes I hear throughout the day into my notes app and then at the end of the day I transfer those notes to a composition book that has a growing table of contents.

Just as I started to notice a pattern of my style and taste developing with my image book, I’ve started to notice the same things with the words I’m collecting.

I read widely, but still see commonalities among things I’m reading and listening to even though the content I’ve selected is varied. I hope this will make me a better writer and help me retain what I’m learning.

Creatively,
Emily

Creativity Reading List

“If you make the choice of reading classic literature every day for a year, rather than reading the news, by the end of that time period you’ll have a more honed sensitivity for recognizing greatness from the books than from the media. This applies to every choice we make. Not just with art, but with friends we choose, the conversations we have, even the thoughts we reflect on. All of these aspects affect our ability to distinguish good from very good, very good from great. They help us determine what’s worthy of our time and attention.”

— Rick Rubin

This post contains affiliate links. This means I may earn a commission should you chose to sign up for a program or make a purchase using my link. It’s okay – I love all of these companies anyways, and you will too! As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Over the last year as I’ve listened to podcasts and researched books that have similar themes to the ones I am writing, I have noted the titles and decided to compile a list in case you have similar reading taste to me.

I’ve made it my goal to intentionally work my way through the list this year (or at least make a dent in it).

I use my Libby App a lot for audio books, but I am also ordering hard copies as I can from Amazon and Thrift Books.

Thrift Books has great deals on used books and gives perks to Teachers. If you aren’t a teacher, they also have a rewards program that I earn free books with all of the time. You can sign up and if you make a qualifying purchase using this link, we both get a free book.

https://www.thriftbooks.com/share/?code=KNhlyXceg4YLApHjv0T%252bAA%253d%253d

Happy Reading!
Emily
**Currently Reading

Parenting
• Age of Opportunity

Writing Craft Books
• Blue Print for a Memoir
• First 5 Pages
• What About Baby?
• Save the Cat YA
• Anatomy of Story
• Jab Jab Right Hook

Art Books
• Monet’s Garden Through the Seasons
• Ways of Seeing
• Hockney a Chronology
• Art for the Soul
• Let There Be Art

Personal Growth
• Wabi Sabi, Japanese Wisdom for a Perfectly Imperfect Life
• Hidden Potential
• The Pivot Year
• Peace as a Practice **
• Wired to Create
• Mini Habits
• Atomic Habits
• 101 Essays that Will Change the Way You Think **
• The Tools
• Quiet
• The Comfort Book
• Wintering

Research for My Fiction Novel (Reading to learn to write dialogue)
• Firefly Lane
• Someday, Someday Maybe
• Baby and Solo
• Meant to Be
• Romantic Comedy
• Five Star Weekend
• Best Summer Ever
•Georgie All Along
•Waiting on Tom Hanks **
• Beach Read
• Happy Place
• Coyote Sunrise
• The Startup Wife
• Maybe Next Time **
• August and Everything After
• Love the One You’re With
• Paperback Crush
• 1996
• Whimsy, a Novella
• This Could Be Everything
• Big Girl, a Novel
• Finding Dorothy
• Love Unscripted
• Just My Type
• Not Like the Movies **

Research for Memoir
• Have I Told You This Already?
• Our Town
• Mother’s Guide to the Meaning of Life
• Grief is Love
• This Homeward Ache
• Films of Endearment
• The Stories We Live

A to Z of Photography: Always Dreamed of Being a Photographer

“It’s not about following passion; it’s about following purpose passionately. Passion is a manner of traveling, not a means to determine a destination. Passion is the spark that lights the fire; purpose is the kindling that keeps it burning all night.”
Brianna Weist, “101 Essays that Will Change the Way You Think”

When you think back to childhood, what were the things that you were drawn to for fun? Ever since I was a small child, I’ve loved cameras, picking up developed rolls of film at Wal-Mart when I could hardly see over the counter, creating albums and scrapbooks, and looking through my mom’s collection of photo books. It all started with me watching her and my grandmother constantly clicking away at family events and later in childhood I’d be mesmerized by parents at school events with their fancy zoom lenses.

In the mid-’80s, and I got my hands on my very first camera, a pink 110. My family and friends became my first subjects as I tried my best to take pictures that matched the quality of my mom’s that filled our family albums.

In the late 90’s, graduation day rolled around, and in the most awesome way my dad gifted me a Nikon SLR.

That first “real” camera became my sidekick, and with just that and a kit lens, I was on a mission to turn my photography passion into a business. I went on to major in graphic design to fund this dream of mine.

I dove headfirst into the creative career world, working day in and day out, shooting and editing after working an 8 hour day as a graphic designer (plus a 2 hour round trip commute). I had lots of energy then, but it wasn’t all smooth sailing. There were times when my skills fell short of my vision, and frustration would creep in. Yet, my love for photography kept me pushing through knowing this creative outlet was what I was made for.

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
Galatians 6:9

Then came the game-changer. After hours and hours of practice, mimicking pics from magazines, and soaking up advice from mentors, something clicked. My style emerged, and suddenly, my skills matched up with what I envisioned. I was living the life I had always dreamed.

But here’s the neat part: that newfound confidence spilled over into regular life. I took on new creative challenges, faced fears (like public speaking), and guess what? Turns out there’s some science behind it, (thanks to Andrew Huberman’s research , 46 minute mark). Stepping out of your comfort zone, doing stuff you’re not crazy about but you know is good for you—apparently, it makes your brain grow (Anterior Mid-Cingulate Cortex).

This whole experience of dreaming and working towards bringing it to fruition taught me a life lesson: whatever you consistently do, you’ll get better at it. Those things that scare you? Develop a plan and tackle them one at a time. Dreams that feel too big? Go after them. It’s like a brain workout routine, and before you know it, it’s a lifestyle.

So, why am I sharing all this? Because it’s never too late to become who you want to be. Maybe it’s capturing the bright side of life through your iphone camera to combat anxiety, maybe it’s framing your own work to adorn your walls, or maybe it’s having others appreciate what you create enough to pay you for it and hang it in their home. I’m here to cheer you on, whether it’s in photography or wherever your heart’s nudging you.

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Peter 1:5-8 KJV

Our brains are wired to keep learning, and it feels pretty awesome to keep leveling up as you grow older (☺️we don’t just have to do crosswords anymore). So, here’s to embracing whatever you want to accomplish this year, and staying forever young at heart in the process! 📸✨

Creatively,
Emily

A-Z of Photography: Aperture

Your lens is how you view life. How open you are to faith is how much of the Light you let in. His Word is the light for your path. The darker the day the more the Light needs to be let in the lens. -EPC

Psalm 119:105 : “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”

A life of faith can be compared to adjusting your camera settings.

In dark conditions, you should use a low aperture to allow more light in. Just like a photographer finds a way to capture a beautiful moment in low light, you can also discover the goodness of God when life’s circumstances seem dim. Open your heart to the light that Jesus gives, let Him illuminate your path, and allow your faith in Him to help you see Him working, even in the shifting shadows.

A low aperture also acts like a filter, focusing on what matters in the picture and blurring out what doesn’t need to be focused on. Similarly, in faith, when we zoom in on love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, and self-control, the chaos of life begins to blur and what’s most important in life becomes clear.

(Tech note: I only shoot in aperture priority. I don’t ever shoot in manual for my style of photography.)

Expose your film [your life] to the Light [Jesus].

In life’s low light moments, adjust your settings spiritually to allow God’s brilliance in grace into dark times.

When friends hurt you, let the Light in. When grief sneaks up on you, turn your face to the Light. When sickness drags you down, don’t forget to reach for the Light. When you long to reach more of your potential in life, love, or career, let the Light guide your way. When you feel stuck or broken, look up to the Light. When you are tempted to walk into darkness, remember, when the sun is to your back, the Light’s still there showing you the way back to Him. When you are scared of the heartbreak of endings or new beginnings, adjust the way you look through your lens and remember to look for His light in all situations and trust in the Light of His word, His grace, and His love to never leave you. Believe and walk in the light.

“Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12

Is This Anything? Every Artist’s Question.

There’s this moment after you snap a Polaroid picture where you wonder is this anything? Will the lighting be right? Will the color look nice? Will everyone’s eyes be open? Is this a keeper? Is this anything?

That’s what the creative process is like for me. I see the result in my mind quite often for many artistic endeavors whether it be through photography, teaching, writing, or art. That’s what imaginative people do, but until we take the risk to take action on the actual work we can’t know if what we see in our minds will translate in real life.

Creating something takes research, input, reflecting, releasing things on paper, and then using the time, talents, and resources we have to see if we have what it takes to finish the project. What we are taking in to make art often spills out of us in what we say and what we post, sometimes cryptically and sometimes more literally. We enjoy art and want others to join in on what’s bringing us happiness.

I’ve shared my process publicly through the years, trying out my ideas to see if they sink, swim, or need to be filed for a later date when the time is right. Until you share the art that is bubbling under the surface, you can’t know if it resonates with anyone else, although being relevant is not the goal. Rick Rubin says “An artist makes art for himself, not for the audience; you must like your art before your audience does.” That flies in the face of modern publishing and marketing which wants artists to niche down and put themselves in a box.

I need to practice writing in a long-form more regularly. I am still adding to last year’s work, but don’t feel it’s ready yet to move forward. When writers get stuck, we are advised to write what we know. Photography mingled with my faith in Jesus is what I could talk to you about in my sleep. It’s so ingrained in me. I hope sharing the process of writing what I know about photography will give me the momentum and motivation I need to just keep writing.

To help me generate my longer copy, I’ve created an encyclopedia of sorts of 100 prompts from A-Z of this photographer’s life who views it through the lens of faith.

I’ll be sharing these “snapshots” about life behind the lens with you here and on Instagram because I enjoy talking about what I’ve learned and helping others further their abilities in the process.

Not a book yet, but maybe one day will be.

Will this develop into that finished pink book you see in the photo above? We won’t know until I shake everything up like a Polaroid picture. As a result of my outward creative process, you’ll gain photography knowledge and encouragement, and I’ll get the daily word count that I need to become a stronger writer.

Let’s get those cameras ready!

30 Days to Portfolio Challenge

Want to take better photos in 2024? Every goal starts with one action step. This is your sign!

JOIN ME FOR THIS FREE CHALLENGE! Click here to access the calendar of prompts.

I’m starting the year off telling the story of EPC Photography.

Let’s start at the very beginning…

From the start I was fueled by a deep love for capturing moments. My mom and my grandmother constantly had a camera in their hands and I was fascinated! Yet, the limitations of my small town (no photography lessons until 11th grade), the era I grew up in (no YouTube, internet, etc.), and my lack of equipment could have frustrated me. But, with just a pink 110 camera in hand, I immersed myself in practice, learning from every roll of film developed. I carried my photos around in my backpack from 1st grade onward.

Post-graduation, my dad surprised me with a trip to Wolf Camera, where I acquired my first SLR. Little did I know, that film camera would become the foundation of my photography business. Was I a master from the start? No. Did I possess an unwavering passion? Absolutely! People took a chance on me, and the moment they offered to pay me to take pictures I was floored. It was a validation that all those hours of dedicated practice were paying off.

The essence of my journey lies in starting with what I had, reveling in the joy of experimentation and learning from the results, purely for the fun of it. Photography, then and now, has been a source of immeasurable joy.

My smile is reflected in the images you see in my portfolio (here and here) because we have so much fun at the sessions! Transforming this passion into a career feels like a blessing I could never repay.

I share this as an encouragement to use whatever you have to practice joyfully. In this process, not only will you improve your skills, but you’ll also begin to see the world with fresh eyes.

Join me on a transformative 30-days to Portfolio challenge. Tag me #epcphotochallenge if you post any of them on Instagram.

Here’s to capturing better moments through our lenses in ’24! 📸✨

Ready to turn your photography dreams into your reality? Whether you want to elevate your photography skills, start a side hustle, have a dream of owning a studio or feel stuck in your creative biz, I’m here to help!

Hi! I’m Emily Cook and I have had a relentless passion for photography since I was a kid with a pink camera from the Sears Catalog on my🎅🏻wish list in 1988. 💖I transformed my childhood dream into a thriving photography business and I want to help you do the same.

If you’re a dreamer yearning for fun behind the lens, join me as I unfold the story of EPC Photography—it’s not just my story, but the blueprint to proven photography success.

Join me, a Main Street girl with a Wall Street mindset, as we unlock the secrets to a fulfilling hobby, side hustle, or career in photography (I’ve done all three).

Do you have the love of photography, but crave the skills, strategies, and ability to make money doing something you enjoy? I’m here to share my secret sauce!

Ask me anything about photography, and let’s start the conversation! Drop your questions below.