Posts Tagged: Outdoor family portraits in NC

Gavin is Four – An Outdoor Portrait Session

Believe it or not, Gavin stopped running, climbing and exploring long enough for us to grab some photos. Oh, and he’s four years old, hence the photo session. He loves being outside. In fact, every single time we’ve photographed this little monkey, we’ve done so out of doors (and occasionally out of breath).

I met his mom Jessica years ago and after we became friends, I shot Gavin’s 6 month portraits (I was 38 weeks pregnant during that shoot), his first birthday cake smash, as well as his 2 year old portraits. Before our eyes, he’s become a little boy.

On April 16th, we all met up at a park, and we brought our 3 year old with us. Those boys (and the rest of us) got filthy playing around, laughed constantly, and marveled at their energy. As you all know, boy and girl dynamics can be different. Girls, even when they are outside, will stick with a plan for the most part and follow directions. Boys love to move, must move. They demand dynamism. Finley and Gavin are text book examples of this. They are free range nuts and I loved to watch them. Perfect weather and setting and happy kids made for a perfect afternoon of photography.

One of the funniest moments was when Jessica, who is a full-time Army Reservist, asked Gavin to come to her and he took off. She is a petite creature, but she means business, and ran after him in wedge heels! She kept calling, “you know you’ll have to stop SOMETIME!!”

By the end of the day, Gavin was so wired, he tore off his shirt and Ryan caught him in action … nothing but a blur. Four year olds should be celebrated. We certainly adore this one.


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

Six Month Baby portraits in the orchards

I say it all the time, but with all that we endured during quarantine and Covid lock-down, it seems like these babies are growing up even faster. This is the third time we’ve photographed this little cutie, and now Gracelynn is six months old. She came to the orchards with an entourage, a steamer trunk filled with costume changes and a sparkling personality. All of it was right on time.

This is our third time photographing Gracelynn, including her newborn session and a family session. We also photographed mom Caitlin’s maternity portraits. Along with Caitlin and Gracelynn, father Matthew and grandmother Tabitha were in attendance to help with the many outfit changes and generally just to enjoy the day. This little girl is adorable, so filled with personality and always ready to give us great expressions.

I loved getting special photos of Tabitha and Gracelynn. This young gramma is over the moon to have a new grandchild in her life.


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

The Driver Family and 6 month old Astrid

Somehow, six months blew by and suddenly there we were, right back where we photographed Mom and Dad (Macy and Jesse) for their maternity session. This time, they had their daughter Astrid, a freshly minted six month old, in tow and looking adorable.

It was a REALLY COLD and windy the morning we gathered, but the views on top of the mountain were incredible and the blooms on the apple trees lent themselves to the day. Astrid is the sweetest little thing and while she didn’t appreciate the temperature, much less the views, she perked up when she could be snuggled between her adoring parents.

Often, after children enter the picture, parents will shy away from having images taken of just them as a couple. We loved that Macy and Jesse wanted some of these portraits and we encourage other parents to remember this. Before there were little versions of you, there was just you. That should be celebrated too!

It was a beautiful day with a beautiful young family in a pretty spectacular spot. I would say that is satisfying all around. We love it when families find a location that they love and return to it to mark special occasions, milestones or just because images.


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

York Family Outdoor Spring Peach Orchard Portrait photos

Heaven is getting to see faces you love after an absence, and aren’t we all experiencing a version of this these days? Families call us to take annual photos in the orchards, but when the York family contacted us, we were especially thrilled. We’ve known this couple Lindsay and Mitch for what seems like forever and they have three pretty awesome kids.

Ryan and I have had the privilege of photographing this wonderful family for family reunions, outdoor portrait sessions, Christmas at home sessions, the birth of children and again in the peach orchards. Lindsay and Mitch, along with sons Tate and Turner and their youngest, daughter Tinleigh, met us on a gorgeous day and I was amazed at how much those kids have grown. We had perfect weather and it was a blast letting the kids climb trees and dance beneath all of the blooms.

It’s the season for graduation portraits and family reunions, but it’s also a great time to simply update your family portraits. There are so many changes in kids and in life, make a point of capturing this moment in time on film.


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

Holbrook Family – Spring portrait photos

This outdoor portrait session at the peach orchards was an absolute treat. Mom Rebecca and I have been in the same women’s Bible study for years. Eldest daughter Maycee and Finley are just a month apart, and I have fond memories of those two rolling on the floor as our group unpacked scripture together and supported each other through all the joys and trials of early motherhood.

When discussing getting together for these portraits, Rebecca mentioned that the family had not had a portrait taken of all of them since son Preston was around a year old. Time flies, to say the least and they are now a family of five. Their third and youngest child Everley was born during the pandemic, so this was our first chance to spend time with her as well.

You’ve never met parents more fun or chill than Rebecca and Brian, and with the warm weather and perfect scenery, we struck out to remedy the “no family portraits” situation. I loved every single second of it. I adore this bunch and was thrilled to spend time with them, camera in hand and heart open.

It was a beautiful day with this beautiful family and while the trees will lose their blooms, this family is a reminder that, with portraits, the memories will last.


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