Posts in Category: Kids
conner tevepaugh – a summer peach turns 6 months and works the orchard with zeal
SUMMER, SUMMER, SUMMER, SUMMER!
While it’s almost officially the end of summer (like it or love it), we took Conner Tevepaugh’s 6 month portraits in July of this year at his family’s orchard. [For those who follow this blog closely, and we hope you all are!!], Conner’s newborn pictures were captured at our outdoor studio in Wilkesboro, NC. This time, since it was in the height of the picking season, we went to them at Tevepaugh Orchards. All of the Tevepaugh kids and grandkids have been photographed as babies and toddlers in those wooden gathering crates along with apples or peaches and their photos hang in the family’s orchard house. The basin Conner’s in just below was one used by his great-grandmother to hold fruit that were being peeled for canning or cooking. Family members vividly remember her using it frequently. Pretty sure she would love to know that her family is still using this heirloom in photos of the next generation. Connor certainly cutes it up!
On the left: possible peach thief. On the right: busted for stealing. “It’s ok…. I’ll just sit here and look cute.”
As with all newborn to 6 month, or 6 month to 1 year sessions with babies, the change in them is subtle but still recognizable. Connor, our little “backdraft baby” was tucked into his father’s fireman’s helmet and gear as a newborn (and in a basket of apples just below). This time around, he was hitched to his grand-dad, Armit.
Because this session took place in their orchard, Armit was keen to participate and had lots of ideas and props and energy. Everything was perfectly ripe and sweet (the color of those peaches was not enhanced, by the way, and the smell of ripe fruit was heavenly). Conner was game to be placed in baskets and all over the orchard.
That July harvest time kept everyone in the family busy working day after day on a multitude of tasks and while Connor isn’t walking, much less “pulling his weight” just yet – he was interested in sampling the goods and being a part of the mix. Just as the photos of the kids in the Tevepauch orchard house are treasures for their parents and grandparents, these photos will be priceless for Connor and his family someday. And he can show the basin and the crates, maybe even walk the land with his own kids and talk about how fun it was to be a kid among all of that beauty and deliciousness.
“I just want to go on record to say that this finger is not nearly as tasty as that peach I was slurping on earlier.”
the perry family ~ one spot and 3 generations
“All that history, the love & laughter, is designed for youth. It is what keeps the story of who we are alive from one generation to the next. It ensures our indelible mark in the souls of generations we will never have the pleasure of holding in a warm embrace. Life is short people.” – E.B. Loan
You can find your way back to family using one of those ancestry sites – and they are amazing. You can also get several generations together and capture a moment like we did with the Perry family in Linville, NC …. 3 Generations. Count ’em – THREE.
While all 3 families live in Durham, NC, they wanted to gather at their second family/vacation home in Linville, NC to capture the Matriarch and Patriarch and their 2 sons along with their wives and 5 children. The setting and day turned out to be gorgeous – and so did the multiple groups of Perry’s. Sundress, sandals, shades of blues among the greens of outside and family members ranging from months old to decades old.
Pixels on Paper loves family photos that put a pin in a moment of time … grandmas & grandpas, moms & dads, kiddos, cousins, nieces & nephews, even beloved pets. We’ve watched our clients over time look back and say “Oh, there’s our schnauzer Molly when you were just 3 years old!” Or, “I cannot believe we were all so YOUNG!” It’s caught in time for good. The Perry’s, in particular the little ones dressed up and being held in laps, will treasure these as heirlooms some day. As the quote above says, “life IS short people.” So gather your clan and let us capture you all for the generations you don’t even know are coming.
the McAdoo family album ~ part deux
Meet The Smalls, a.k.a the McAdoo kids – Emma (left) and Sophia. These two are siblings who would have never been sisters if their parents had not fallen in love via eHarmony. (This photo is from March of 2014!)
We had the honor of documenting Rachel and Jeremy’s wedding in November of 2012. Theirs is a wonderful love story and was featured along with our photos in Carolina Bride magazine. We’ve known the McAdoo’s for years. Rachel is a wedding planner and when she chose us to photograph their day – the ceremony at Holiday Inn in Center City Charlotte and reception at Byron’s Southend (so cool – great venue) – it meant the world to us.
You can see how Sophia has grown! And now she’s a big sister who loves the little lamb who showed up to grace all of their lives. We love this family so much and look forward to capturing more moments in their journey as the girls turn into little ladies. We know kids, well ALL OF US, change every day, but any excuse to see all 4 of their faces and hear the latest and greatest from the world of McAdoo would be fun.
Pixels on Paper photographs weddings, maternity shots, new borns, kids, family portraits, head shots and anything personal and creative. We have both indoor and outdoor studios, but also travel to favorite locations we know and love discovering new ones with clients. We’d love to hear from you!
polka dots + bows + 12 Monkeys jumping on a bed = the release of spring
OH, Winter. We do love you. We love it when you land on us and grace every limb, hill and valley. We also love saying “BUH-BYE. We’ve enjoyed our time with you and now need fresh green things and a new day.”
Seriously, aren’t we glad that we’re close to the end of this season with its spring sucker punches of warmth and then more frigid temps?
That said, part of what makes the winter thaw special for us at Pixels is that it releases little sprites from their dormant stage and jettisons them into spring. Amelia (even her name is fairy-like) broke loose from a chrysalis and landed in our studio, glorious in pink and purple with blooms on her shoes, polka dots on her coat, big blue eyes and that grin.
For these Easter portraits, we placed her in a garden of blooms of our making – a backdrop where we could play kiddie tunes and make her come out of her shell. The song “12 Monkeys Jumping on a Bed” turned out to be a fan fave and Ryan jumped around, pretending to bump his head, and crack her up. It worked.
She is the smiliest (is that a word?) child and we’ve had her in our lenses since she was a newborn (see the last couple of photos).
With Easter on the horizon, and winter season packing up for a while, schedule your session with us. Whether you have 1 tot or 10 kiddos, we’d love to photograph them before they are lost to playing in the woods, building forts, finding fireflies and trying to escape capture. The studio backdrop is still available for Easter, spring and special occasions when you just need to be surrounded by flowers.
Amelia at almost two months old
Amelia at six months old.
the meade family ~ a visual narrative
A dear friend of ours tells a story about coming home to his very young sons one evening, the oldest of which was around 4 years old. The sitter left a note that was found later saying that she’d prompted the boy about how much he loved bears. She took the time to write down, “he said adamantly, ‘I don’t love bears!!! I love my daddy!”
Our pal still has the note, even though his son is now in his 20s.
What if she hadn’t taken the time to write down that little moment, that little throw away comment? It would be gone.
This life of ours is a continuum, isn’t it? At any given time, bits can be solidified or lost.
We do our part at Pixels On Paper Photography to help with this by being your journalists, and sometimes archivists, of sorts. We capture and catalog your family by establishing a set time, a studio, amazing outdoor settings, imagination, photos and a great amount of care.
The Meade family continuum has been a blessing to us. We first photographed them in 2010, in a field near a family farm in the NC Mountains.
2 years later, we took pictures of their newborn second child, Alarie – a bundle of sugar that put all of us dangerously close to becoming diabetic.
Our third session was in the fall of 2013 near the Blue Ridge Parkway and Blowing Rock, and their last session in the summer of 2014, included pictures of Carisa, Bradley, Slater (their eldest and boy-man) and Alarie. Mom, Carisa told us, “it’s a blessing to watch our two children interact, and show their love for one another. This summer session revealed a great example of sibling love, and capturing those moments was priceless!”
Slater and Alarie are a study in complete opposites. Slater is a 40 year old man stored handily in the body of a 6 year old. He is the only child that age we know who worries more about others more than he worries about himself. He’s an old soul combined with great parenting.
Alarie could not be more different. She is fearless, silly and may have Red Bull running in her veins where there should be blood. We’re waiting to hear back from her pediatrician. She will take on anything at any time. She finds trouble, gets into it and when punishment is doled out, leaves Slater often saying, “well I guess now we’re not going to be allowed to [fill in something fun here].”
They love each other though. All 4 of them and it shows. Can’t you tell?
We asked Mom, Carisa: What do you want to remember most or tell yourself when you look back at these photos in 5 years?
“To be very thankful we captured these special moments that I can’t ever go back to relive.”
The Meade’s have committed to this concept by having us create a wall in their home of some of these captured moments.
We could not be more proud to be their journalists and archivists.
We’re looking forward to seeing them this summer and for many more to come!