Posts Tagged: creative outdoor photography nc
Spring Orchard Sessions are booking
A very funny Southern columnist – Lewis Grizzard – once penned, “Springtime is the land awakening.”
I know. Hilarious.
Meanwhile, I mention it because it’s true. We see it every year. We know it’s coming and still we are surprised when the smell of the air changes. Things of potential beauty below the soil stretch out. They crack their knuckles and when the time is right, little buds go to the garage – if you will – take a broom to the cobwebs attached to their 10-speed bicycles and get ready to launch like their lives depended on it. And we live for it because it’s fleeting and spectacular and we had ZERO to do with it. How is it somehow possible to feel simultaneously exhilarated by nature when it makes no reference to us whatsoever?
We have exclusive photography rights to one of the largest and most beautiful orchards in North Carolina and we’ve been capturing photos of children, families, couples and countless others over the years during the spring. It’s a heavenly place. Pink blooms dropping onto green grass, lovely thin tree limbs providing not so much shade as inspiration and lots of places to spread props and take images that will last long after the blooms are gone and the fruit arrives.
One of our favorite spots: an extravagantly beautiful orchard in bloom
Maybe I’m wrong and spring does make reference to us when we remember and cherish it. Maybe our own light and joy are reflected in what we see in places like this, in our beautiful part of the world.
Regardless, we hope you’ll get out in it and we absolutely hope you’ll meet us sometime the week of March 11 – 18th and let us capture you in the spring of 2017. The images will last a lifetime, but you need to schedule now. To book your session, mail@pixelsonpaper.biz.
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.
celebrating sisters & their families ~ outdoor portraits
It’s always an honor to be asked to take portraits of people from my hometown or from my childhood. You think about where you are in life and remember how far you’ve come — how far we’ve all come over the years. It shouldn’t take a wedding, a funeral or a reunion to make you stop and breathe in that we’ve grown up, survived, are working to be better people and are continuing to grow and march forward into whatever is next.
I really was excited to be photographing these two sisters – Jennifer and Julie Huffman – who are now married and with sons and daughters of their own. You feel simultaneously mature and like a girl again when you get together and start gabbing and wandering, as we did on their family’s farm.
I grew up with the Huffman girls, but was truly friends with the younger sister Jenny. Oh my gosh you guys, there was this one time………….
just kidding! Jenny and I were friends all through elementary and high school. We were just one grade apart and we spent time at each others homes playing when we were little and then later we rode to school together and, as we got older, we’d go out together on Fridays and Saturdays to see friends or “cruise” around. Her older sister Julie, I’m sure, thought that we were insufferable, because that is sort of the job of siblings: be annoying right up to the point of driving someone crazy and then retreating.
These portraits were taken in the fall on family property with the idea of giving them as Christmas gifts and keeping them as heirlooms. My hope is that they will continue to look at them and smile as their own children grow up, see them as markers in time and certainly as great memories. Spring is coming fast and we’re booking our orchard sessions. Contact me via email (mail@pixelsonpaper.net) to reserve a spot from March 11 – 18.
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.
Winter Outdoor Family Portraits ~ the Graybeals
It didn’t feel like 7 years had passed since we got to hang with Crystal and Adam. The fun, laughs and teasing seemed to pick back up right where we left off. This time we were able to make friends with the new “little Graybeals.” Colton was a little shy upon first meeting us. After a few clicks of the shutter though, Ryan took him on a little exploration adventure through the nature trails, and that kid was shy no more. We were now a part of his entourage. As for wee one Landon, he won us over with his drooling grins and very expressive eye brows.
We love a winter photo shoot and seeing the strength of good couple and their growing family out in it. Much love to burgeoning family units out there and forget the seven year itch! Love that works never gets old.
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.
weddings: it’s time to bake, er…. book YOURS!
I love to cook. If you know me, know about our house and garden, or if you read the blog from summer 2016, you’re aware that I enjoy growing things, cooking the produce and herbs I’ve grown, trying new recipes, canning veggies, etc. Ryan and I are foodies. And we love craft beer as well.
Before you head down the rabbit holes those hyperlinks can lead you down, let me say: I was thinking while reading through a cookbook recently, how very much cooking and especially baking is like planning a wedding. You need the right ingredients, the right environmental elements, good timing and all sorts of other factors in place in order to end up with something you want to devour and share and photograph. The rub is that you get one shot at a wedding vs. a cookbook author or home cook who can test and test recipes until triumph is inevitable.
Amy Adams as Julie from “Julie & Julia” – Sony Pictures
Really good recipes begin with a story. The “why” of what’s being prepared. So do relationships. How’d you meet? Who said I love you first? What made you decide that being apart was not an option? Most stories behind recipes have to do with how amazing the combination of ingredients is and why so many generations of cooks or family members have made this or that item.
Eggs are eggs. Flour is flour. But combine them and STAND BACK!!!
When we book engagements, one of the first things we do is learn your story. Yes, we ask about locations for the shoot, but we also want to know you and I am confident that we get the photos we get of our clients and we become friends with so many of them because we take learning about you seriously – and discovering the elements and ingredients that make you special as a couple.
Bride, groom, landscape, sky …. all of the elements are there.
Bride and bride, Spanish moss, water, Charleston: DONE.
Our couple at Asheville’s Biltmore Estate in autumn.
No sooner do you mix up the ingredients for an engagement session than it’s time to plan the wedding. As photographers, ours is only one part – albeit an important one.
Who asked for sprinkles??
There is weather to consider when cooking up your wedding day plan; the guest list, the gown purchase and alterations, the suits or tuxes to rent, the choices of chocolate or strawberry, sit down or buffet, band or DJ, mountains or coast, outdoors or church and on it goes. A vanilla cake is a blank canvas and once you’ve chosen your actual wedding date and location – it feels sort of limitless. To my mind, it should be fun. “Please let it be fun – and meaningful” – we pray for our clients. We so hope that it is. Even the elements that don’t come together are rarely noticed by guests. They see the environment, listen to the vows, hear the music, enjoy the experience. Guests don’t worry about the eggs when they’re enjoying the cake, you know?
Sunlight, outdoors, surrounded by family.
Throwback Renaissance gown, bride and perfect weather.
A farm and an intimate hug.
The outcome is most often lovely and delicious and our job is to capture it. What has been fun these 11+ years is seeing the same elements combined with a variety of results. Church weddings, outdoor weddings, small gatherings, casts of thousands, at the end of the day it’s still a cake, or for my purposes it’s still 2 people who enter that day single and leave it as someone’s spouse.
It’s the end of January and we aren’t the pressuring type, but if you’re planning your wedding for 2017 and haven’t booked your photographer, we hope you will do so and choose us. We are proud to be recognized for our wedding photography by friends and fans and by WeddingWire, among others.
Next week! ONION RINGS….kidding. Contact us with questions. For those of you who know us…. we love you!
YOU’RE Engaged!! time to book your portraits
You can look at a couple and sort of see when they’re at the beginning of a relationship, of their journey together, or the beginning of something big. I love this scene from The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. He’s been daydreaming in hyper-drive about her, obsessing about what “they” might be and FINALLY – at the end (it’s a movie, folks, you know how it works), they begin what might be an actual love affair.
So, now you’re engaged! Tell us how it happened. Flash mob dancing to or singing your favorite song? A video journal with all the memories leading up to falling in love? Scavenger hunt? Did you order a pizza and just decide “let’s do this!?” Regardless: congratulations! You’re at the beginning and this is where we come in as seasoned husband and wife and experienced engagement and wedding photographers. Whether they are indoor portraits or outdoor shots at your favorite spot, we know how to capture the beginning of your life together, tell your story and make it fun.
AND! Engagement portrait sessions are complimentary in most of our wedding photography packages.
At a vineyard……. they love wine!
At a mill with family history …. with their sweet pup.
On the water …. remembering how they met.
With a view of the Blue Ridge Mountains …. you don’t need a reason for choosing this spot.
In Charleston, looking at the water and the future…
We take engagement portraits pretty much anywhere and everywhere our clients ask us to and so far we haven’t had any request too audacious. We always ask couples to think about a place that means something to them and we’ll make it work. There’s something about your first official portraits together as a To Be Married pair, so we want you to be relaxed, excited (you can do both!) and let us handle the results. Engagement portraits are a way for us to get to know our wedding clients better. We get to learn about you, see how comfortable you are in front of the camera and help you increase your comfort level before the wedding day. It’s great practice in posing, and figuring out if you can be candid in front of the camera without our guidance or if you need a little coaching. We’re on YOUR team, so we love the engagement session because it’s an opportunity to create a level of familiarity and comfort.
Engagement session at The Biltmore House in Asheville. These two brought their dog as well. Family is welcome, by the way.
Biltmore Estate, Asheville
In Blowing Rock, … these two ASU grads love this area.
As you plan your big day, don’t forget the engagement portraits can be dressy or casual and given as gifts, put on your wedding website or save the date cards or just sent out to friends via social media. Whatever you decide though, these shots are important and you’ll never regret having them made.
Autumn engagement in Blowing Rock – still a favorite.
A country barn setting for a pretty chic couple.
We were also the wedding photographers for each of these couples above and hundreds of others. If you’re looking for photographers for your engagement portraits and wedding day in 2017, it’s not too soon to start planning and booking. I know…. it’s the second week of January, but you’ll be glad you did. Contact us and let’s get started.
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.