Posts Tagged: asheville christmas photography
Christmas Portraits
Our studio this 2017 holiday season was a revolving door of friends, collaborators, families, children, pets and we loved it. And we took photos of them too <smirk, laugh>. Seeing the faces of some of our nearest and dearest family/friends, checking out how the children have grown and hearing about school, sports, jobs, holiday plans, what’s new for 2018 was wonderful. This time of year, a plus to photographing not only new faces, but long standing clients and pals is that we really get that time to give hugs, recalibrate, and share that sense of renewal and hope. Here are some of the faces we love!
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Love, Peace and Joy to all of 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 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.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2017 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Christmas at Home with the Hollands
Bakers know that the right ingredients will deliver nothing short of heaven when combined according to directions, in the right proportion, using the right tools and cooking for the right amount of time at the right temp. Occasionally altitude is a problem with cakes, but that is not what this blog is about. This blog is about how Christmas – a sacred time for believers and a joyous time for everyone – can accommodate many combinations of elements and still manage to create heaven. 
Welcome to the timber-frame warmth of The Hollands. This family is new to us, but we are already so incredibly grateful for this burgeoning relationship and for the opportunity to get to know this wonderful family that really “gets it.” Both parents, Kevin and Tram are in the military and they moved to Wilkes from Fayetteville, NC with their blended family which includes 3 children still at home: Colton, Ava, & Sophia. When I visited them on December 4th to document their holiday at home, it was cold, dark and rainy. When the door opened, it was like getting a hug. There was so much light, heat and warmth. 
The family used to drive from their home to Ashe county to cut down their tree and this year, they all went together locally do the same. Next year, I hope to go with some of the client families to take photos of the journey, the tree choice, the car with it tied on top or tossed in the truck bed and the little faces looking out the window.
The ingredients that made this “day in the life” session so wonderful were varied and fun, specific and universal. I loved it! To wit: there was an impromptu paper airplane making and flying contest, stories around special decorations, origami ornaments from Tram’s aunt, beloved glass ornaments that were the girls favorites, running around in sock feet, games of checkers on the rug, decorating, coffee and hot chocolate preparations, stolen kisses between the parents. It was family. I was reminded of the other families I’ve done Christmas at Home portraits with and how normal becomes extraordinary when you pay attention. 
There were the posed photos that families want and I enjoy – when everyone is smiling and practicing good posture, but I have to say I love it when we pass that point of formality and people just act like I’m not even there. The Hollands are wonderful and Tram took the time to share that they had a photographer back in Fayetteville who’d been their photographer for years – someone who’d documented big and small occasions in their lives. She understood the importance of building a relationship, where trust and familiarity are combined over the years and that shared knowledge and care make for wonderful photos and memories. We look forward to many, many years of getting to know the Hollands, watching the kids grow and helping them celebrate all aspects of their lives.
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.
Christmas Portraits at Home | The Pierce family
We believed, when we proposed the idea of taking Christmas portraits at client’s homes vs. set dressing our Pixels studio, that it would be a success. It would be fun, if not funny, magical and tender and, most critically, it would WORK. Well, the proof is in the pudding. We discovered this at the Pierce’s home earlier this month. 
Traci and Andy Pierce have let us photograph them numerous times over the years, most especially their sweet boys Holden and Sawyer. But on December 2nd, I went to their house to shoot Christmas portraits more as a documentarian than a portraitist and I loved every sweet little second of it. You never know what’s going to happen in the studio or on locations and I certainly wondered about this “big idea” of mine as well, but it was everything I hoped for.
The best part for me was being eyewitness to little moments and conversations that would seem mundane if not overheard by someone who cares and is tuned in. Holden wanted to zip his Dad’s shirt and read him a story. Traci and Holden had a conversation about their new house and why they left their old house. The whole family wrestled together and little Sawyer watched his big brother dance around pointing out ornaments on the Christmas tree. They were just little moments, but it’s exactly the “slice of life” I was hoping to get as the onsite historian. 
I’ve always wondered with this style of photography if the subjects could completely relax and be natural… ignore that I was there. It turns out, they can! After a half hour, they all go on about their lives and are naturally interacting with each other. I got to breathe, watch, aim, shoot and solidify moments that would have been lost otherwise. It’s a photographers dream and so rewarding. Even after many years in the profession, it felt wonderful.
Our lives aren’t perfect. Often they’re perfectly messy. They’re filled with clutter, unmade beds, scattered toys, half empty cups, to do lists, don’t want to lists, nose prints on windows and tooth paste on mirrors. But all these things make up our lives. It’s real, it’s us, it’s family, it’s life. Having that picture perfect family portrait is great. But having photos of real life also has it’s place in our lives and our memories. 
These recent photos amid the trees and holiday lights are the precursor to something bigger for Pixels On Paper Photography. Starting in 2017 we’ll be photographing A Day In The Life sessions. Documentary style photos of you and your family in your environment and every day life. I want you to see your life, your family and the everyday moments you share in a whole new light. We all need a different perspective and we all could use a little more reason to appreciate the lives we have been given no matter how messy they may be in real 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, 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.
Photo Christmas gifts from Pixels On Paper photography | Personally Perfect
We’re now booking our Christmas at Home portraits, but we are also creating gifts in our workshop for those of you who already have a photo or photos you love from Pixels and would like us to create a gift for you or someone you love this year.
Prints, cards, canvases, albums, jewelry, ornaments, etc. are available for order using any photo or photos that we’ve taken for you at any time. It doesn’t have to be holiday in theme, as long as Pixels took it and you love it. Check out a gallery of Holiday cards we created to give you ideas.
All orders in by December 10th can be created and ready for gifting in time for Christmas.
Contact us and let’s get started!
Home for the Holidays… as in your place
Eddie: You surprised to see us, Clark?
Clark: Oh, Eddie… If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn’t be more surprised than I am now.
National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989)
For Christmas 2016, we’re leaving the lights off in our studio and only decking the halls we use as a family. Surprise!!
But it’s not because a relative is coming in an RV with a chemical toilet that needs dumping. And thanks for asking.
We’re taking photos this year at YOUR home, because that is where the holiday magic happens. The magic of cousins and siblings cracking each other up, relatives comparing diets, cars, & travel stories, people quibbling over football games and superior technology; the sharing, bargaining, eating, celebrating, reminiscing, and all the other things that make up The Abject Comedy of A FAMILY CHRISTMAS.
A Christmas Story (1983)
Ryan and I have fond memories of our Christmases at home as children and now it’s your turn. If you’re wondering about this, here’s a little movie inspiration to help you along. We know Christmas is rarely Currier & Ives…. and so do you. So, let’s have some fun!
The Family Stone (2005)
Meredith: I’m just as good as any of you!
Amy: Maybe better.
Meredith: What’s so great about you guys?
Sybil: Oh, nothing! It’s just that we’re all we’ve got.
Holly Hunter & Robert Downey, Jr. in Home for the Holidays (1995)
Joanne: You’re calling me a freak?
Tommy: No, I’m calling you a product of baboon lovin’. There’s a distinction.
Iris and Miles in The Holiday (2006)
Miles: Iris, if you were a melody…… I used only the good notes.
Elf (2003)
Buddy: I’m sorry I ruined your lives and crammed 11 cookies into your VCR.
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Harry: Hi, it’s me. It’s is the holiday season and I thought I’d just remind you that this is the season for charity and forgiveness. And although it’s not widely known, it is also the season of grovelling. So if you felt like calling me back, I’d be more than happy to do the traditional Christmas grovel.
Die Hard (1988)
John McClane: Come out to the coast, we’ll get together, have a few laughs…
So, here’s the proposal: Get your house decorated (if you want), tree and stockings up, kids dressed, antlers for the dog, etc. and then let us come to your home to photograph your family, friends, neighbors, pets, coworkers and anyone else in your tribe. Be elegant, be campy, be casual, be silly, be seriously festive, it’s up to you and yours. Just make a date and when you call us we’ll help you brainstorm and plan.
The fee of $125 is due when you make your reservation. We will provide 5 digital images for families with up to 3 children. This includes the printing rights along with the option to purchase prints, cards, and gifts. Pets and additional children or family members are welcome for an additional $25. Call 336-990-0080 to reserve or email inquiries to mail@pixelsonpaper.net.
Love Actually (2003)
Prime Minister: Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion’s starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don’t see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often, it’s not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it’s always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know, none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I’ve got a sneaky feeling you’ll find that love actually is all around.
One last thought… Christmas is truly a time to capture a memory and moment in time. Photos at your home are often the most memorable and regardless of whatever else is happening in your life – love is what manifests this season.