There’s a reason why the baseball team in Asheville, NC is called the Tourists. North Carolina, from pretty much west to east, is a gorgeous part of the world. So every year, families from all over head to the mountains, piedmont and beaches to explore and relax. Ryan and I love destination photo shoots, especially of families who’ve come from all over the state and country to our Blue Ridge Mountains and parkway, Blowing Rock, rolling Wilkes county, the high country, the Biltmore House and elsewhere. Some are on vacation, some are at family reunions, others are couples getting engaged, but they all want portraits in this lush landscape that’s our backyard. Of course, we’re happy to oblige!
Some families, like the Hobens who all met up in Roaring Gap last summer, have property they own and want portraits celebrating them in that place. Others are just traveling through for the summer fun in our area and choose a site or ask for our help (we’ve got tons of ideas) while they’re together, relaxed and enjoying the views. We also have families who live close by and summer break is the first opportunity they have to coordinate a portrait session. They come to our outdoor portrait garden or we meet them on the parkway or in a special location and go from there. One thing we hear – sadly too often – is that people regret not having more photos of the entire family together. So if you’ve been thinking about it, contact us. We’ll help get you started and you’ll have a summer 2017 memory or two to frame!
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Every time we photograph a newborn session or baby’s first birthday and cake smash photo shoot, we imagine the years unspooling and how wonderful it will be watching that little creature grow up. But the weirdest part is that they DO. We blink and they’re driving, going to prom and graduating from high school. We did not take Paiton Roberts’ baby photos, but we have been photographing the Roberts family for years, so there was already a connection with this wonderful young woman. We’ve watched her move from kid to adult over the past decade. The years in between aren’t many, but the transition is amazing. From 11 to 18, she transformed!
We also created Paiton’s graduation announcement cards and she shines in those as well. We look forward to watching this young woman continue to become whoever she wants to be. We love her!
Toward the end of March, I struck out on my own and took a leap outside of my comfort zone to attend a photography workshop and retreat. I love perfecting my craft, learning new techniques, comparing notes, etc., and we all need professional renewal, regardless of what we do. The invitation promised a focus on wedding photography, mastering and using lighting and exposure, and connecting with both your clients and your own desires in life. Tricks of the trade meets self-help meets community and introspection. I’d made excuses for not going in the past and this had an extra element of trepidation – spending 4 days in a house with 9 other women, all strangers. But what’s growth without a bit of surrendering to the unknown?This retreat was hosted by Elly’s Photography and I’ve been a fan of her work for years… another incentive: meet a fellow traveler, working photographer, wife, business woman. As it turns out, Elly’s really a life coach in addition to wonderful photographer and I found that my need to stretch was more important than my fears of hanging with strangers – without Ryan – in a house for 4 days. I needed it more than I knew. Both before and during the retreat, Elly and I spoke for hours so that I’d get the most out of my retreat. She asked questions about what I wanted to learn, what I wanted to see change in our business, how I wanted to connect with our clients. But then there were even harder questions. What are you really passionate about, what drives you, where do you see yourself in 5, 10, 15 years, what is your impact? I did work in “Clearing,” “Dream Casting,” and communication exercises. Photography is easy for me, the personal stuff can be really hard and at times very emotional.
I needed someone to ask me the hard questions. I needed my creativity to be reawakened, to have a new perspective. I needed to have more tools in my tool box to offer our clients. I needed to be surrounded by 9 other creative people that felt the same as me. I ended up having a blast and learning a lot about myself.The best part is that, through all of the personal aspects of the retreat, it was mixed with learning new ways of using my camera and seeing both natural and artificial light differently. Over the past 8 years I’ve become very comfortable with using artificial lighting for photography. I can manipulate light to be what I need it to be in almost any situation. This is a good thing. In fact, Ryan often jokes that I always wish I had one more light to add to the scene no matter how many I have. But what I found during the first half of our workshop is that I had stopped looking at natural light the same way. Natural light can be manipulated. It can be found in sources and locations I have ignored. All of the portrait photos in this blog use natural light and it’s not necessarily sunlight. The dark dramatic head shot photos for example were taken in a bathroom stall with a single overhead light on. The photos are not altered or changed in Photoshop at all. They’re straight out of my camera. I am newly empowered and so excited about using what I’ve learned during portrait photography, weddings, events, day in the life shoots and elsewhere. The next blog will be a continuance of this one, so stay tuned!
I know a lady who likes to say, “these are the things I’m thinking about instead what’s bothering me.” She’s not burying her head in the sand or failing to solve problems or face challenges; she practicing what she says the Buddhists call “good thinking.” It takes practice – like most things worth getting good at – but it can change your mood when the world feels all wrong or the people around appear to be on hiatus from being kind.
So here’s what I’m thinking about instead of what worries me about our world.
Spring is here and summer is coming. There’s a great thought. Cooking and eating the food I grow in my garden, cutting flowers, relaxing on my front porch. Yes to that.
And I’m thinking about family. I love mine and we love to photograph families of all sizes. Each one contains a library of stories, memories, legacies and shared laughter, pain and joy. Family is always a happy thought for me.
Babies. Think about a baby you know or one you’ve raised and your mood will shift immediately. I love thinking of babies. Babies in tutus. Babies wearing hats. Babies in overalls. [Digression: babies in overalls is a HILARIOUS concept to me. They are 20-ish inches tall! “They ain’t driving no tractor!!!” “They ain’t bailing no hay!!” But, there they are… in their denim and buckles and it’s just the funniest, sweetest thing. The only way they are being helpful is that you’re belly laughing at the cuteness. Just saying…] Pick your favorite baby image and ponder. You’re happier, right?
Twinkling lights at night and summer evenings spent by a fire pit, on a porch swing, in a tent or hammock or playing cards by lantern at an old picnic table. I love that kind of light at night.
Mountains. Dance with the one who brung ya, right? I love our mountains and if you’re a hiker, hike. If you have a view, sit back and take it in. I love living in a state replete with mountains and mountain views.
Love that lasts. Who doesn’t want to remember that? Give brain power and care and thought to that; you’ll thank yourself. I love thinking about lasting love: some of it is as new as a baby but will last a lifetime and some already as old as a steadfast marriage. It’s all good.
Going away. I love thinking about travel – allowing myself to escape to my favorite memories and then get excited about the possibilities of travel in the future. Ryan and I have done and seen a lot in our marriage and thinking about that journey makes me smile, regardless of locale.
Home. I think about home and am more full than I could ever describe to you guys. We host you there when you come to our indoor studio or out in the garden, but it’s the center of our world. It’s comfort, it’s creativity, it’s food, it’s gatherings …. our “workin’ week and Sunday rest,” as Auden put it. God blessed us big time with our over-a-century-old home.
Whatever is potentially weighing on you, … take the time – make the room for “good thinking.” List your happy places, people, pets, memories, foods and let that happy into every artery you have inside of you.