Posts Tagged: Engagement Photography

Peach Orchard Photo Season

March is here and that means that soon the orchards near us will be in full bloom from the middle of this month for a few weeks after. I will be watching the weather and scheduling photo shoots beginning today, so this is your Heads UP to be in touch.

Need inspiration to grab your calendar? No problem.

Babies, growing families, maternity announcements and even marriage proposals, all of these have taken place in these lovely orchards. Frankly, it is a singular spot and heavenly when in bloom. I don’t think we’ve ever had a bad day there.

If you’re itching to get outside where it’s safe to shoot photos, or just because it’s time to celebrate spring with new portraits of your family, contact us and we’ll get you on our list.


We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs newborns and families, special events and portraits  of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States LicenseAll photos are ©2020 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.

The Look of Love – Couples Photos

You know it when you see it. Love. While we aren’t able to hug our friends and our family much these days, we can celebrate love that we’ve captured back when people were hugging, kissing and canoodling without a care in the world. These images from family portraits, engagement sessions, anniversaries and celebrations over the years give me hope.

Below: Jeremy & Meghan Arnold over the years from engagement to parents of two.

There’s a song by Crosby, Stills & Nash from the early 1970s called “Love the One You’re With” and while we don’t want any of you to get sick or in trouble, it’s good to remember: “if you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.” Take a little time today to give those in your pod a squeeze and don’t forget to check on those you cannot be with.


We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddingsbrides, and special events and portraits  of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License

All photos are ©2021 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.

Remembering Virginia Ruth Roberts

Today, instead of our usual blog about trends, the business of photography, our lives and beloved clients, we’re going to pause to remember a spectacular human being: Virginia Ruth Roberts. For us, this blog is truly personal, because this lady was loved by everyone. 

Virginia passed away merely 4 days ago on December 6th at the age of 87 at her home. For the full obituary and some other details, you can go here.

To Ryan and me, this special lady was someone we got to know through photographing the bridal and wedding of her grand-daughter Meghann Roberts Clawson and the engagement and wedding of her grandson Preston Roberts. 

Virginia was loving and inspiring and, as a former teacher – she shined and brought that bright light to shine on everyone she met. Her love of life and others was contagious, so each time we were hired to photograph these big family milestones, we relished knowing that we were going to get time with her. She really was a jewel.

When I text her family through tears and asked what I could do, they were eager to hear that I would provide photos and it was an honor to send them. I know looking at them brought me enormous joy and smiles and did her family too. She touched all of us and Ryan and I are beyond grateful that we were able to orbit around Virginia as long as we did. She wasn’t our family, per se, but she felt like she was.

We’re missing and loving you today, Virginia Ruth. 

Virginia Ruth at her Rich Hill Farm homestead where her door was always open and she greeted you with a smile and open arms.

We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddingsbrides, and special events and portraits  of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.

88x31 lucy & glens valle crucis wedding photography | pixels on paper boone wedding photographers

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License

All photos are ©2018 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.

5 Reasons to Have Professional Portraits

We know that you guys are busy. Believe me – we’re right there with you. You have a million things to do, so a lot of those “things” end up happening quickly and less deliberately. We’re running around constantly.

Boar’s Head – the premium deli meat purveyors – have created a tagline to get us to think about how we have to thread the needle of decision making: Compromise Elsewhere. It’s a good one, huh? And, sadly or not, it’s necessary in a busy, noisy world.

“Choose your battles.” “Spend your time wisely,” etc. and it’s true. So I would like to co-opt this idea of compromising elsewhere with regard to keeping your biggest moments in life, those things that matter and will someday become the heirlooms on film and not stuck in your phone or in a cloud. For that you need professional photography and a little bit of planning.

So here are my 5 reasons why hiring a professional photographer – ie someone who is seasoned, great at it and loves it – to capture the most important moments in life.
5 – If you make the time, the results are worth it. The quality is better and Ryan and I have worked for well over a decade to make this is true.

4 – It’s more fun than you think it will be. Seriously. People make appointments thinking it’s a box to tick because they need good photos of milestone (AND YOU DO!!), but our clients come back again and again for sessions, because there is a vibe and flow and a lot of laughter. We’re easy like Sunday morning, as the song goes, and the vast majority become our dear friends. We try to make shoots fun no matter where we are or who we’re with because who wants a job that stinks? And honestly – WE DO HAVE FUN. We are real people who are married with a baby and who love music, craft beer, gardening, hockey, family, travel and capturing portraits.

3 – Proper portraits, shot by professional photographers, are of the best quality. It’s just true. Your social media “story” or travel snapshots provide a sense of a moment and some narrative, but professionals portraits do not have to be stuffy. They are real AND turn out better than something shot on the most expensive smart phone or personal point and click digital camera. Part of this is our equipment. We use only the best cameras, lens, and lighting and then the best technology for clarity, cropping, processing and retouch. And then part of it is our experience. We don’t take photos as part of a holiday. It’s how we make our living. Enough on that. You get it. The last part is our passion. We know what we’re doing, do it with the very best equipment and software and we absolutely LOVE IT.

Madelyn McGuire Family and Child Photography by Pixels On Paper Portrait Photography photo

2 – Professional portraits make amazing gifts. We’ve all seen the sort of “great, but blurry” or pixelated framed images and while the sentiment is there – the quality isn’t. If you’re going to give a gift, give a nice one. Whether it’s framed for your own home, made into calendar or used for some fun type of gift, your friends and family will appreciate it if it doesn’t look like it was created on someone’s lunch break in an alley.

The number ONE reason to have professional portraits taken is because the time will indeed pass quickly and when the moment is gone it is indeed actually gone. Kids grow up, the wedding day comes and goes, the beautiful bride goes back to her life and job or career path, the family disburses to the 4 corners of the earth and getting that minute back is just impossible.

Consider where you are in your life right now, what big events, milestones or celebrations are on the horizon during the next few months or even year and give us a call. We’d love to be the ones to create those heirlooms for you.


We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddingsbrides, and special events and portraits  of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.

88x31 lucy & glens valle crucis wedding photography | pixels on paper boone wedding photographers

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License

All photos are ©2018 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.