Posts Tagged: Asheville NC Family Photography
bridal portraits – a fairy in the woods
The fairy poet takes a sheet
Of moonbeam, silver white;
His ink is dew from daisies sweet,
His pen a point of light.
~Joyce Kilmer
Painter Maxfield Parrish loved showcasing light, lush settings and often women of pure beauty in his work. Rebekah would have been one of his studies or models for sure. We love light in the mountains too and we took these photos of her in the gardens and forest in Blowing Rock, NC. It was a place where she roamed as a kid, running around and playing make believe.
We met Rebekah at the High Country wedding expo in Boone in February of this year and our conversation was not so much about wedding details as about travel, growing up in the high country of North Carolina, our shared love of the arts, Scottish roots (check out her tartan below), and dreams of woodland fairies.
In 2011, we photographed bride Erica in a forest in Banner Elk. Photos from this session have remained one of my all time favorites. I loved how magical the forest looked and the juxtaposition of Erica’s couture gown in the midst. One of the images is in our studio and on display at tradeshows. In passing I mentioned to Rebekah that I believed fairies lived there. Instantly we connected and shared our enthusiasm and she mentioned wanting a similar portrait for herself.
While Parrish was not our inspiration, our bridal session with Rebekah had that feel… lush, bright and magical. When we planned Rebekah’s bridal portraits, our goal was to find a magical location that reminded her of where fairies might live.
Do you have a theme or idea in mind for your bridal portraits? Please share it with us. We would love to recreate or create a look for your session.
holiday portrait season is here ~ pack friends, family & make your appointment
Perhaps you’ve noticed that the anticipation and celebration range for holidays has gotten longer, while the holidays themselves are the same. (Please say “yes” or we’re going to have to worry about you.)
Halloween: one day. Preparation begins just after Labor Day.
Thanksgiving: one day … with Black Friday and Cyber Monday hovering like an avalanche of “door buster” circulars. Preparation begins the day after Halloween.
Christmas: one day. Preparation begins the 4th of July. Kidding, but you get the idea.
Well, it’s the first week of November and there are cards to create and gifts to buy and we want to gently tap your shoulder and tell you that it’s probably time to book your session with us. We love the holidays and we want them to be special. Our 2015 studio is ready to go for portraits of families, couples, groups of friends, your babies or kiddos in primary school or those home from college, fur babies or all of the above. We believe in the abundance theory, so the more the merrier.
Here are the details:We will provide 5 digital images for $100 for families with up to 3 children. This includes 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.
Our fee is due when you make your reservation.
Pixels’ studio is located at 1198 Curtis Bridge Rd. Wilkesboro NC 28697.
Call 336-990-0080 to reserve or email inquiries to mail@pixelsonpaper.net.
We cannot wait to see you!– Misty & Ryan
a late summer wedding that captures the setting, the details and the romance
Any wedding planner, wedding photographer, wedding magazine editor or veteran wedding attendee has a list of elements they feel make a wedding sublime. The invitations, the setting, the music, the food, the personal touches and now the many ways to share the day via social media. We love the details as far as the ceremony and reception go (we love seeing how each couple “brands” themselves on their big day), but way more importantly, it’s the couple. It’s always the couple and everyone who loves them and surrounds them with that love. The Bare-Rash wedding was one of those perfect weddings and we do not say that lightly. From the personal to the paid-for, everything was just right from beginning to end.
Pre-ceremony hugs and prayers.
Micala Bare and Tyler Rash got married this August at Bethany Church in Todd, NC and held their reception at Doughton Hall Bed & Breakfast in Laurel Springs, NC. The setting was simply amazing, complete with an historic stone church, quaint red barn and miles of green in a landscape of rolling hills and mountains.
(YAY, North Carolina landscapes. For the millionth time – you ROCK!!)
I spoke of “the elements” that make a wedding successful…. we photographers cherish light and the weather was the headliner, just behind the bride, groom and setting. From first thing in the morning until late in the evening, the lighting was our friend. Both inside and out, everyone shined.
Men who wear argyle together, stick together.
These two shared what is now being called a “First Touch” before the ceremony. We do everything we can to orchestrate these moments so that they’re private, unobtrusive and romantic. The couple don’t lay eyes on each other during this time, but can touch, speak to each other, exchange letters and just be near each other before really meeting when the bride first walks down the aisle.
“We cried when the wedding was about to begin and we knew we were about to see each other for the first time.”
The best moment of their wedding ceremony?
“When we were finally able to kiss each other and when we were pronounced as Mr. and Mrs. Tyler Rash!”
We took Micala and Tyler’s engagement photos in June and this pair continues to get more and more romantic. [Check out how they got engaged…. particularly romantic. The groom-to-be played the guitar. Just saying….]
Three favorite things they want to remember about the day:
“The moment we exchanged our letters with each other and what each of our letters said.”
“The moment when we realized that the groom’s wedding band had been forgotten and a member of our wedding party had to crawl on her hands and knees for a replacement, which happened to be the bride’s great grandpa’s ring.”
“When everyone left the reception and we finally got to go up to our room for the first time, where we had a bottle of champagne and a cheese and fruit tray waiting for us.”
The reception was a blast. Even with a little bit of rain, everyone danced, played games, and partied! Micala: “When asked about the reception, we almost always mention when the DJ asked everyone to form the huge line and all of the guests joined in to dance around the reception area.”
Micala & Tyler wanted their wedding reception under the stars. And this again called for perfect lighting and it was there. Receptions with tents are elegant, but being out of cover was more festive and more beautiful than we could have hoped for.
“I Do.” “Me, too.” Forever.
baby’s one year portrait ……. AND CAKE SMASH!!
The Prevettes are lifers with us… at least so far and we hope for the next 30 years. We photographed Lindsay and Seth Prevette’s wedding in 2008 and later their first born, daughter Macanna, as well as son Walker as a new born. This session, however, is in celebration of Walker’s first birthday, so we invited them to the Pixels’ studio and outdoor portrait garden in August of this year.
Remember when you were so small that your parents could fit your bum into a baseball glove? He won’t either, but he’s so stinking cute and now there’s proof of it. Walker’s newborn portraits were delicious because he was and at 1 year, he still is. The love of baseball was a major theme in both sessions.
I look at the newborn photo below and those fingers especially and wonder if he’s dreaming about music and thinking, “I’m playing guitar. I’m the band’s Front Man…. making brilliant chord changes that no one saw coming.”
BUT. Walker may be scratching his chest and trying to decide between throwing a slider, a cutter or a change-up and hoping to impress some cute girl sitting in the stands just behind home plate.
Walker’s mom, Lindsey is very laid back. She makes appointments for portraits and always says “just do what you do best and I know I’ll love it.” That kind of confidence and faith is humbling, so we pull out the stops. Lindsay mentioned that she loved the red wagon because it reminded her of her own childhood, and we definitely love props with kids; they help distract and promote creativity at the same time.
Unfortunately, nostalgia about wagons and creative props do not stave off fussiness with toddlers and after Walker got tired of posing for photos, he decided to give us the “You’ve Got to Be Kidding Me” speech in his own made up language that consisted of pulling faces, tears, and some squawking.
And then [harp music] the clouds parted.
And there was cake.
CAKE!
Beautiful, perfect, resplendent, decadent cake.
SWEET SUSTAINER OF LIFE!!!!!
After that I think we could have left him alone with it and he would not have missed us.
There were claw marks in the cake for sure, but Walker managed to limit the smearing to his cheeks, mouth, nose, chest, hands, knees, legs and feet. Success.
piccard fall family portraits – goodbye summer, helloooooooo autumn
Some of us mourn when it starts creeping toward us.
“Wait, what? We just got settled in and then it was the 4th of July and now you’re telling me to change out my closet and garage?!?!” “I barely used that new floaty, those new grill tongs, that umbrella for the deck, that swimsuit and visor I got for Christmas!” “We were going to go to the beach twice!” “We were going to cook out more with the neighbors.”
Others of us crave it … we anticipate it, rubbing our hands together like we’re practicing for that first bonfire.
But like it or not, summer is rounding the corner y’all; it’s time for Autumn – capital A Autumn. Since we’re making yet another trip around the sun, and summer will return, let’s focus on the good of this coming season – the gorgeous leaves, brisk mornings, fire wood, scarves, heated car seats, football, soups and stews and snuggling with those we love.
And seriously – NO ONE wants to snuggle someone in a sweaty tank top. And if you do, no judgement, but we don’t want to hear about it.
The Piccards were ALL about the snuggling in October of 2014 when we met up and photographed them along the Blue Ridge Parkway. It started raining when we arrived, but the delay gave us time to grab lunch and bond and when the weather cleared, we were able to grab shots of this family of 4 with wet leaves beneath them and mountain fog surrounding them.
We’ve got spirit, yes we do, and boots and blue nails, HOW ‘BOUT YOU?
We’ve know mom, Brandii McCoy for many years, since we’ve worked with many Charlotte, NC sports teams and Brandii is the dance and cheer coach for the Charlotte Checkers, the former NBA Bobcats, and now the Charlotte Hornets. She’s used to being in front of the camera, so we knew we’d get great shots of her and her lovely family looking pulled together. We also wanted photos of them just being themselves, relaxed and silly and goofing. During conversations, we learned that Brandii and her husband had never had formal portraits of themselves taken, so this session and our lunch with them made for a lot of fun for all of us.
The girls, Karsen and Adler, knew how to work it, by the way. Check out the crossed legs and ankles, the subtle head tilting and, of course, there was the unscripted cuteness. 
We look forward to many Autumn shoots in 2015 and now is the time to book your fall portrait session. Pixels has openings, but they fill up quickly, especially the weekends. We’ll want to capture the best pics of you (and yours) during the height of the season. Call us at 704.641.1131 or 336.990.0080 and let’s make a plan!!