We had the good fortune of connecting with Jennifer Emery and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jennifer, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
After receiving my BA, I was in the midst of pursuing an acting career and waiting tables, although flexible, was putting a damper on my psyche to say the least. I read the book “What Color Is Your Parachute” and it led me to creating a photography business. I had worked on and off modeling for a few commercial photographers, who also hired me as a photo assistant, and had a little income coming in from shooting fellow actors headshots. Photography was a joy for me, so it became my career.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Well, I’m proud I have been able to make a living in an artistic career for the majority of my adult life. At times it’s been a challenge but it has always worked out. Over 20 years of freelancing has its ups and downs, and while considering a full-time staff position, I subsequently landed a job as a crime-scene photographer, which I performed for a little over 7 years. This I am very proud of, as I feel it was probably the most impactful photography I have ever done. Recently I have transitioned to video production and content creation for another public entity, a fun new adventure in image making. I have also gone back to school and am pursuing a Master’s of Library and Information Science (MLIS) and hope my next chapter will be working in some sort of digital asset management of visual media, possibly with a museum or archive. What I can say about lessons learned is we Americans have this thing about tying our identity to our professions. Even in artistic endeavors this is not all of who we are. I have learned not to put myself in this box, as you can tell I keep moving forward with new pursuits. Sometimes a job is just that, a job. And we should be proud of supporting ourselves and allowing the job to pay for other things in life like a scuba diving vacation. Like that is life!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If a friend was visiting, I would probably take them on an easy hike somewhere on one of the great LA hiking trails. Elysian Park is a great spot to take a lightweight hike and overlook the city by Dodgers Stadium and then go to a hipster lunch in Echo Park. Little Tokyo is a favorite place for lunch and a little walk around a cityscape. My favorite place for Boba Tea is Ten Ren’s Tea Time in Chinatown. If we had time, a trip to the beach out past Malibu. The Last Bookstore downtown or their sister store in Montrose, Lost Books.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Notably are the two people who took a chance on me and started me on the road in teaching photography. Ford Lowcock who hired me as an adjunct photography instructor at Santa Monica Community College where I taught Advanced Lighting of People, and subsequently wrote an instructional book with Amherst Media, that I then used in my instruction as a Lecture of Photography at LMU. And Julia Dean who hired me to teach photography workshops at the Los Angeles Center of Photography where I have taught since 2015. Personally, my husband/partner-in-crime is my number one Shoutout for all the support and fun independent film projects we have created or worked on together. Not to mention that he is my best friend.

Website: https://jenniferemery.photo

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferemeryphoto/

Other: Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/pbjcandids
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0957373/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Image Credits
Jennifer Emery
Jade Pondella: Headshot

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