Barn building complete + the finishing touch

So my mom raises charolais cattle – pretty white cows with pink noses and has for a while now. As if she doesn’t have enough to do. If you can today – call your Mom and tell her that you know how amazing she is.
Now where was I?
A while back our clan built a barn on their property for these cows and it’s completed now. We still had one finishing touch to add and that was something Ryan and I worked on.

There is a beloved member of Mom’s charolais cattle and her name is Shiloh. She is both matriarch and pet (she finds time to be both in her busy schedule) and was the inspiration for a quilt/plaque that Ryan designed, I painted and he built. We knew it would be the keystone of the barn and a signal to my mom’s love of what she does.

After we finished creating the quilt/plaque, we took it to share with Shiloh, …. you know… to get her approval.

I promise that we’re safe. Seeing Ryan atop all of those pallets would make your heart stop if you didn’t know Ryan. He wrapped up the project by hanging the quilt above the barn door exterior.

We love it! Mom loves it, and Shiloh – while seemingly underwhelmed – appears to be a fan too. She celebrates her 12th birthday on March 9th. Happy Birthday, OG (that stands for old gal!!)
To see the beginnings of the barn build, check out this blog!


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 ©2022 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.

Hello Heidi – Newborn baby photos

Jamie and Daniel, Henry, Hannah and Heidi Harrison… THAT is a mouthful. They are now a party of 5. This family is one we have known for a while and loved watching grow. Mom Jamie wanted baby Heidi to have her newborn shoot coordinated with sister Hannah’s portraits, so we did just that with palette and our set up at Pixels’ indoor studio.

Older brother Henry is a natural love bug and, just as he did with his sister Hannah, he could not take his eyes off Heidi. I love seeing this in little kids, especially older brothers. They seem to be preternaturally protective, nurturing and engaged with their younger siblings. Henry is proof.

Watching the children interact just reminded me how quickly families are formed. We photographed Jamie and Daniel’s wedding, their eldest daughter Hannah’s newborn session and the family’s 2019 Christmas portraits. Jamie even provided wedding guidance in one of our Wedding Redux blogs.

Heidi was a perfect angel during the shoot and let each family member snuggle her and pass her around. I never tire of greeting new little humans. I look forward to watching you grow up, Miss Heidi.


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 ©2022 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.

Awww, Sweetness……..Baby Faces!

Tibbett Six Months Baby boy portrait photos by Pixels On Paper Wilkesboro NC Photographers Photo

Gearing up for Valentine’s Day has me thinking about the unadulterated cuteness of the babies I’m honored to photograph. For maternity sessions, I am engaged in capturing the excitement and anticipation of the parents. After that, my time with newborns and babies is an embarrassment of riches. Their big eyes looking for friendly faces, if not meaning yet, their crazy cute features from lashes to teeny toes, the expressions they make, the outfits and settings mothers and I concoct, …. it’s all heaven. So here’s to baby faces I love.

York family six months baby portrait photos by Pixels On Paper Photographers Wilkesboro NC photo
Pixels on Paper Photography Outdoor portrait garden baby

If you are expecting or know someone who is, we hope you will contact us or encourage them to. Maternity, newborn, 6 month, one year portraits are my jam, as a photographer and a mom. I would love to meet and work with you to capture those memories and milestones.


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 Beauty of Twos

I’m happy with odd numbers, including our little family of three. But there is something nearly perfect about a duo…. a couple…. a pair. With Valentine’s Day approaching, I’ve been thinking about the beauty of two and finding little couplets everywhere. So here’s a little foray into the beauty of twosomes!

A parent and kid – even when the family is much bigger – make a moment for me. As a mom of one child, I get to pour out a great deal of myself into my time with Finley. I love images of one parent focused solely on that one face. It’s proof that no matter how many times you’ve been blessed with a kid, each one is singular and a miracle.

Images of siblings just warm me up, especially when the kids are younger. They don’t know yet who they are, but they are certain to know – in these moments – that they have each other. And isn’t that enough?


Portraits: Plan your year!

Yep. You nailed it. I miss you. All of you. I miss the giggling and group hugs that come with family portrait sessions. I miss the waving as we all arrive on site – at the overlook, the property, the park, the orchard, campus or cabin retreat. I miss changing my lenses amid the casual chaos of family dynamics.

Don’t get me wrong. I’ve been plenty busy, but with the holidays over, and the temps around freezing most of the time, this girl just wants to hibernate. The wilderness bear in me takes over and I am inclined to cook, bake, read, create art projects, and sleep exclusively. As long as I can keep these boys I love nourished and healthy……… that’s winter for me.

At some point though, I peep over flannel sheets and think: I MISS EVERYBODY! So let’s talk about planning your photo sessions for this year and find each other again!

  • Are there members of your clan who are graduating from high school or college this year?
  • Is someone expecting a baby and perhaps would benefit from our one year baby packages or a maternity shoot – or both?
  • Are you blessed enough to have multiple generations in your family and want to capture everyone before the young scatter and the older folks find it harder to get around?
  • Is there a milestone birthday, anniversary or celebration planned for 2022 that you want to commemorate with a fun photo shoot. Believe me, we get it. There are daily distractions, but these moments matter. Consider planning a portrait session. 

Kids! If you haven’t had portraits of your children with their siblings in a while, consider doing it this year. Any season, indoors or out, with or without bows and costume changes, we can make it happen.

Think about the year ahead and contact us to schedule or with your ideas. Let’s do this in 2022!


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.