Today we’d like to introduce you to Johnnie Cooper
Hi Johnnie, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
My journey in Houston began nearly 6 years ago, being a Florida native the thing that brought me to Houston was living in a lifestyle of addiction. I was lost, broken, and hopeless. My mother found this program called Project Hope, little did I know at the time that this would be the program to change my entire existence, through the influence of this Christ centered program is where I truly began to build my relationship with Jesus. Project Hope is a 1 year discipleship process where you learn many different things such as life skills, biblical studies for new Christian’s, as well as a work study program. Once I graduated the program, doors began to open left and right. The first of which would be when my wife and I began to date she went through our sister program Saving Grace. 8 months later we were married. Fast forward to today and we’ve got 2 beautiful kids Aria (3) and Luke (1). August 16th we’ll celebrate our 4th anniversary! Where does photography come into play in all of this? Well I’ve always had an eye that is keen to detail. While also being drawn to taking photos mainly on my iPhone because that’s what was readily available (and affordable lol). Over this past year I began to notice just how intrigued my kids were when they looked at their own pictures and videos on my phone. Seeing them react in that way took me back to my childhood of looking through the family photo albums, pure nostalgia! Back in January someone donated a Canon Rebel to Project Hope and I was off to the races. Once I became efficient with that camera I upgraded to what I now use daily which is a Canon m50. This passion of mine is growing into an actual business, you know the ones with paying clients! At first this was a total hobby, but I soon realized that I could actually monetize on this endeavor, and that has led to the creation of Clean Captures by Cooper. What a dream! Every day I push myself to learn new things weather it be business related, new compositions, or camera settings. One thing that is guaranteed to set my business apart from the rest is definitely going to be customer relations. I believe that by building relationships to a deeper level of understanding it will in turn build a more sustainable business and brand altogether.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
There have definitely been challenges. The biggest would be funding. Anyone with kids who is trying to start a business knows just how hard times can get, but God is good and he always provides all of our needs. So when in trying times, we as a family have remained faithful and simply put our trust in the Lord.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
What sets me apart from others is my unique ability to make genuine connections, the tenacity to prevail through tough situations, and consistently having a positive attitude. The thing that I am most proud of would have to be maintaining a life of sobriety (Aug 28th makes 6 years drug/alcohol free). It has truly been a chain reaction of blessing! I found sobriety through a year long faith based discipleship program called Project Hope. This is where the ultimate life changing transformation took place. It was the introduction to Jesus and getting in right relation with Him that was the glue that continues to hold me and my family together today. I am known for my can do attitude. When situations arise I look at them as problem solving opportunities. I currently work full time with Project Hope as the Corporate Shop Manager , I oversee our shops in 8 locations 2 of which are in the Houston area. With photography being something that began as a hobby, I quickly fell in love with it. While mostly this is something I pursue on the side I can see potential all around me when it comes to photography/videography. Daily I try to learn something or just go out and capture images/video.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
For me I have found it very helpful to have several people in my corner as mentors whether the topic is business or family related it’s really cool to see an outsider’s perspective. It has personally helped me reshape the way I see things. Something that has worked really well for me, is getting comfortable by being uncomfortable. As humans we are naturally, creatures of habit, but for me once I learn something and then master the task it soon becomes mundane. I truly take pride in learning things I know absolutely nothing about. For me this keeps my creative juices flowing!
Pricing:
- $115 Headshots/solo portrait
- $165 Couples
- $175 Graduation
- $195 Bridal
- $350+ Elopement/small wedding
Contact Info:
- Website: https://cleancapturesbycooper.pixieset.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clean_capsbycoop/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61560563728817
Image Credits
Johnnie Cooper
