Posts Tagged: creative nc family photography
Don’t Waste Time & miss the little stuff
We have a dear friend who recently suffered a blow to his health: swelling of the brain. He’s been touch and go and he’s rallying with the right care and attention and prayer. We pray. Our pals pray – and it has been a reminder of how much love is shared in our various circles of friends, coworkers and family. While he is on the mend, it got me thinking about lost moments, little hugs or tender exchanges, laughs, cuddles and the peace that is sometimes in a micro-moment. Don’t waste time waiting on the big moments. When they happen, great. Celebrate the little stuff too, though. Make time for it. That’s our goal as a couple, as photogs and as parent-to-be.
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 weddings, brides, 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.
Matthew’s one year birthday and family portrait session | Wilkesboro NC child and family photographers
There is love and there’s love and then there’s the Minick family. You can say the name Minick and my heart fills up. We have the best history with this family and our love for them runs deep. We’ve photographed just about every milestone of their adult lives. On May 17th, Matthew (“Matt Matt”) celebrated his first birthday and we photographed his celebratory portrait session 10 days after. We decided to make this session a family affair and snagged some photos with parents Rachel & Ryan and with his big sis Amelia.
Matthew (May 2017) and big sister Amelia (October 2013) photographed in the same family heirloom high chair.
We’ve been photographing the Minicks for so long, including their engagement and wedding, Christmas photos, maternity and Amelia’s one year portraits and Matthew’s newborn portraits. They are absolutely family. Matthew had a Little Blue Truck themed birthday party and photo shoot as well. We love seeing these kids and family grow and especially watching the little ones develop their own personalities. No two are alike!
Rachel, Ryan, Amelia and Matthew: we love you to pieces. We love how open you are in your lives, how you invite us in to share and how your amazing family is growing in size and in love. We look forward to the next milestone and another chance to hang out and do life.
Summer, Summer, Summer – Great Time for Professional Photos
Every year there is the song of the summer. It gets played over and over and we make it part of that year, that season and that time. Those of us who grew up in the 80s listened to Bananarama (“Cruel Summer”), Billy Idol (“Hot in the City”), Brian Adams (“Summer of ’69”), U2 (“Indian Summer Sky”), Don Henley, Van Halen and others. The 1990s brought us DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince – or Will Smith’s “Summertime,” Len’s “Steal My Sunshine” (remember those scooters in California?), Smash Mouth and Janet Jackson. I hear summer songs this time of year everywhere, including in my head whether I want to or not. Don’t judge – you know you do too. And it makes me think of the little movies we have running in our minds. Our lives to music, with friends and family, children, engagements, new jobs, pitfalls and adventures. There’s a soundtrack and loads of mental images. This year, make sure there are some concrete images as well. Summer photos are keepsakes and we love taking them.
Ryan and I find that summer photo sessions aren’t just about weddings and engagements or Merlefest. We’re asked to capture families, children and any event that matters when the sun is high and people are gathered. Summer outdoor photos capture not only place and people, but specific aspects of where you are in life. What was going on in your family? How old are your kids? What sports or instruments are they playing? Do you have hobbies and pets you want to include? Do you take an annual trip to our part of the Carolinas every year and want to commemorate it? We find that our friends want to show off everything from their kayaks to their dogs, great grandchildren, new homes, summer vacations, gardens and just about everything else.
We’ll help you with location, should you need it and then make sure that the photos are perfect for gifts or family heirlooms.
Give us a call to book a summer session that you’ll have to remember forever. You don’t have to be getting married to want to commemorate the summer of 2017.
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 weddings, brides, 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.
I Wish | 10 Reasons Why You Should Schedule Family Portraits
I am not angling for a beat down by bringing this up, although I may be inviting one (“she said while ducking…”). I hate a guilt trip almost as much as I hate a warning. So, I’ll just type this without guile, like the sweet photography maven you know and love. Ok? Ok.
As family photographers, Ryan and I hear – sadly, way too often and with zero joy – how people wish they had more family portraits when everyone is gathered and happy and still around to enjoy it. You think you’ll do it and then you don’t. Children are born and you share their early photos. Then jobs scatter family members, siblings call and text, the babies grow up too quickly. There are soccer championships, swim meets, proms, braces on, braces off, sledding in winter, camping in summer, graduation and marriage and on and on and at some point you think: “we should have been taking more photos of the WHOLE family together.” The time will fly. We hear this all the time.
Now don’t they look happy? They probably had barbecue after.
In all seriousness, we’ve taken so many family portraits because one member decided to coordinate dates, get everyone gathered and then contact us to get a photo or two. Here are some great examples of that in case you missed it.
So on that note, I’m going to do a David Letterman style Top 10 List (remember dear, hilarious, tormented and snarky Letterman?…… man I miss him!) Here goes!
The Top 10 Reasons you should hire us to take your family vacation portraits this summer:
#10 – Coordinating outfits. C’mon – you know you’ve wanted to try to manage this task at least once.
#9 – Fun locales! Not there this is anything wrong with your own front porch – or our portrait garden. But if you don’t live around here and you’re visiting, take your pick! We have scenic vistas, quaint downtown squares, the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Biltmore House, miles of mountains and forest overlooks and trails, arboretums, you name it. And if you want us to meet you at a special location that is meaningful to your family – even better. We’ve shot in Banner Elk, Charleston, Roaring Gap, at family farms and heritage properties.
Hoben family reunion on family property
#8 – Watching the generations intermingle. “I remember the Moon landing” meets “You can have the iPad when the baby is done with it.”
#7 – The conversations that happen between shots. So much recollecting, so much sharing, so much comparing notes and correcting history. It’s a chance for us to get to know you too and we relish the chatter during family photo shoots.
#6 – It’s an heirloom. How hard is it to get a single nuclear family around a dinner table on a Wednesday? Multiply that by the number of grown siblings, aunts and uncles, the number of cities of residence, distance, vacation schedules and you know that these moments don’t happen. They simply don’t. So create a memory that other family members decades from now – those you may never meet – will look at one day with curiosity and affection.
#5 – You WILL learn something about your family during the vacation and we manage to capture that “old newness,” if that makes sense. It may be one trivial item about a talent your cousin has, or a card trick your mom somehow never found the time to show you, or something magical about your grandparents’ love story, but I can promise you that family portrait sessions bring out the ability to observe yourselves as we observe you. It’s crazy but it’s true.
#4 – Little intimate moments happen. There are photos of the whole gang, but we also capture individual components of each family if you want, right down to siblings. These are often un-posed and ridiculously sweet. We are documentarians as well as portrait photographers.
#3 – The laughter. There is a closeness that is remarkable and specific to each family we photograph and then an edge when two strangers meet up with you holding cameras and gear and start telling you where and how to stand. But Ryan and I are light. We get it. We work to make you comfortable, we’ve been told we blend in with the membership and we encourage smiles and silliness. You’ll have the photos to remember the day, but you’ll also have the laughs.
#2 – You will never be this age, in this time, with these people, ever again. And you know what I mean, so I’ll stop there.
And the number 1 reason you should have us come take your family reunion portraits, your family gathered in one place (if you’re not the reunion type), your vacation or family’s summer getaway is ………..DRUMROLL PLEASE……………..!!!
You won’t regret it. We receive more thank yous from individuals and families who decided to coordinate a shoot, meet us and let us capture them all together in a special spot during a special time. And honestly, that can be any place or any time you are all gathered as a family. I promise. Do it. You’ll be glad you did for the rest of your days.
p.s. I’ll be giving this sermon again at Christmas.
Thanks. We look forward to seeing you and coordinating.
Love you guys!
Family Vacation | destination photos
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!
Hobens at the family vacation camp
Hoben family reunion on family property in Roaring Gap NC.
Charleston SC engagement portraits
The Picard family descended upon the NC Mountains to celebrate Easter together.
The Ellis Family visits from Charlotte for portraits together.
McCoy Outdoor Family Portrait Photography near the Blue Ridge Parkway
The entire Poland family together during a rare occasion in Boone NC.
The Allen family on vacation at Chetola Resort in Blowing Rock NC.
Rogers Outdoor Family Portrait Photography in Charlotte NC
The Perry family together for portraits at their vacation home in Grandfather Mountain Country Club.
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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