First of all, thank you for taking the time to visit me out here on my little internet home!
My name is Katie Cook, I am a self-taught family photographer here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. My life revolves around Derek, my hubby of nearly 20 years, and our three kids who are 16, 12 and 8.
Where to begin? I'll start by simply saying this: photography's just always been a part of me. When I was in middle school I would save my allowance for Polaroid film and stage photo shoots in my room. In high school I wrote a paper about where I saw myself as an adult and in it, I wrote I wanted to be a photographer. In my twenties we started our family, and having babies ushered in a whole new reason to capture moments, get creative, and learn skills.
Lucky for me, I've always had family and friends that had faith in my ability. They called on me to photograph their senior photos, their new arrivals, their families...they gave me the opportunity to grow and evolve. And they constantly pushed me to make photography more than just my hobby. Despite always having it on my heart, I never in a million years thought I would do it as a job. However, one day in the spring of 2012, I took home a brand new Nikon and that was all she wrote. I had the gear, and I took the leap. Katie Cook Photography was born.
Photography brings me so many blessings, but the biggest one is being front row to people's lives. It's never lost on me how I get to celebrate so many milestones with clients, to witness their love and be a part of their journey as their lives grow and change. And as my own family has grown and changed, I've been able to do photography more and work outside of the home less. It's been a perfect balance for me to do something that fuels me, but also be able to be there for my kiddos when they need their mom the most. I have my DREAM job! Not everyone can say that and I'm so SO thankful.
A little bit about me and my photography style: I like - oh, who am I kidding - I LOVE simplicity. I am a sucker for a good close-up and I die for beautiful golden light. I do a combination of traditional posed photography with some movement-based candid photography mixed in. My favorite moments from any session are always when people forget the camera is around. I love to see families wrapped up in each other, love to make couples lean in closer, love to make expectant mamas feel gorgeous, and love to cuddle wrinkly new babies.
Thanks for reading - I hope to meet you and be able to capture this time in your life!
(Photos of us below were taken by Amanda C. Wilson Photography in one of our favorite places - Great Smoky Mountains National Park )
