Photography

I was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. I am married to Stephen W. Cockerham who researches, buys (I get treats often), packs and transports all of my equipment. I have three children, David 24, Kelly 21, and Emily 14; three stepchildren, Monique 12, Taylor 9, and Alexandra 3; a daughter-in-law, Melanie 23; a granddaughter, Madison 2; a black lab, Rock; a chocolate lab, Molly; and a blue-heeler/beagle/lab mix, Trojan. Overall, it’s never dull around here.

My mother is Edna L. Henderson. She is a very prominent watercolor artist and my best friend. Mom is one of my greatest fans and I am most definitely hers. Although I

cannot even draw a stick person, she has a mother’s way of seeing my “artistic” abilities and is quite an inspiration. Her encouragement and belief that I can do anything has gently nudged me into many things I might not have attempted. Kudos to Mom! By the way, should you be interested in a consultation regarding my Mom’s work, you may contact her via my contact page on this website. I will forward all notes to her.

My husband and I (since I was apparently approaching a mid-life moment and, being male, he was simply having a moment of his own) purchased a BMW KR1200 RS motorcycle in the summer of 2000. Oddly enough, almost as soon as we signed on the dotted line, my son told us we were going to be grandparents. Overwhelming joy and excitement was intermingled with a tinge of feeling old and decrepit. We kept the bike anyway since anyone who is a bike-lover knows that once you’ve petted a bike like this one, there’s really no leaving it on the showroom floor.

Stephen does hazardous and confined space rescue for Shell Chemical, as well as being on the fire crew. Two hours after the phone call from my son, Stephen and I were off to Beaumont, Texas for a nationwide rescue challenge competition hosted by Roco Rescue. In all the excitement, we forgot the camera. We decided to stop somewhere along the way and pick up a few disposable ones for the trip. After sufficient whining and some arm-twisting, I convinced Stephen that every new grandmother should have a great camera and where better to try out a new camera than at the rescue challenge. After the first day, we went to a one-hour photo shop to develop the film. Most were pretty decent and Shell decided to pick up the tab for film and developing if I would shoot all the competitors during the rest of the rescue challenge. I got my very own hard hat and was allowed to crawl into most of the confined spaces. It was a blast and I was hooked.

Low and behold, when Stephen was scheduled as a fire training instructor the following fall at Texas A & M Fire School, Shell again hired me as their photographer. The rescue challenge was fun, but the fire training was incredible. The fires were unpredictable and I found myself getting a little too close. One of the guys from Texas A & M came over to reprimand me. I was sure he was going to force me behind the safety lines and, in the process, probably ruin my chances of getting any really great photos with the lenses I had with me. Instead, he suited me up in fire gear and let me go in as close as my equipment could handle. That was, by far, the most fun I have had in a long time. When you look at these photos, my husband is the one with “Cockerham” on the back of his fire gear.

A short time later, one of my daughters, Emily, was discovered by a modeling scout and needed some photos. I decided to try my hand at location portraiture to broaden her portfolio options and give her valuable “camera time” so that she would be more at ease when doing professional jobs . Beth Boldt was the photographer hired by Emily’s modeling agent to do the portfolio photos for his groups that were attending the week-long American Modeling and Talent Convention in South Carolina. Beth and I became acquainted during Emily’s photo session and she was interested in seeing the photos I had taken. At Beth’s suggestion, Emily’s portfolio was comprised of a combination of photos taken by Beth and myself. Stephen and I had dinner with Beth that evening and she truly gave me the push I needed to dive into this industry.

I hope you have not been too bored with this glimpse into my life and work. It certainly keeps me entertained.