There’s a great moment in the movie “When Harry Met Sally” – no not THAT ONE – when Harry introduces Sally to his friend hoping Sally will like him and Sally introduces Harry to her friend in the hopes that she and Harry will hit it off. They do NOT. Their friends, however, fall in love with each other instead and pretty quickly know that they are perfect for each other. This leaves Harry with Sally,… as it was meant to be and let’s all raise a glass to the late, great Nora Ephron for being a genius of insight, humor and writing.
But I digress. Our story is about Whitney and Preston, who met through friends in a similar situation and found out that in fact they were the ones who were supposed to be together. They too fell in love, dated for 5 years and will be married in just under 3 months. These engagement portraits were the first real photos they have of themselves as a couple outside of cell phone photos.
Their love for each other is evident in their body language, laughter and ability to listen to and really see one another. Always a good sign and so fun to watch. The lyrics from one of “their songs” – My Best Friend by Tim McGraw – describe them perfectly.
“Oh we just get closer – I fall in love all over – Every time I look at you…
And I don’t know where I’d be – Without you here with me – Life with you makes perfect sense – You’re my best friend.”
These two are serious about the foundation of their relationship – a combination of friendship, lots of laughter, commitment and a very strong faith in God. They’ve made plans to incorporate traditional vows into their late summer ceremony and have also added braiding the God’s Knot into the day. For the uninitiated, the God’s Knot is made up of 3 strands of cord: one for God, one for the bride, and one for the groom. During the ceremony, holding the cords as a couple, Whitney and Preston we will braid them and as they are being braided the pastor will read a piece of scripture that describes each strand. They told us that, “God is the biggest factor in both of our lives and we know that as long as we have our faith in God, He will make our marriage and lives together as success and full of love as He sees fit.”
As we prepare to capture their wedding, we asked them for some thoughts about anticipating both the day and their future. “Our wedding day will be the one day in our lives that all the people we love, both family and friends, will be there to help us celebrate such a special time. We are also very excited about all the photos that will be taken! Pictures serve as memories and this is one moment we never want to forget!”
[A quick interjection/aside here]: People talk about the importance of making memories through photos all the time. It really does take an occasion – like a wedding – to show you how fleeting those moments and those days are and how grateful you are that someone documented your joy, your youth, your hope and your character in that particular moment in time.]
Pixels: What do you want to tell your families?
Whitney and Preston: “We want our families to know that without them our relationship wouldn’t be as strong and successful as it is. Both sets of our parents have shown us what lasting relationships need and how they should be.”
We have every confidence that these two will work to make their relationship last, surrounded by the support of family and friends (it matters, folks!! you need your tribe around you) and grounded in a strong relationship with God. They are looking forward to the next chapter in their adventure and to starting a family in the next few years.
We LOVE you guys, Whitney and Preston and wish you only more fun, more cracking each other up, more quiet time at home listening to tunes and watching favorite movies and only the best as you build a full – a TRULY full – life together.
There is a moment in the life of every bride-to-be when she worries about how she’ll look in her gown posing 5 feet from a waterfall. If we had a nickel…… So we’re going to start at this point in the Minick story – the moment when Rachel navigated her way through hill and dale for bridal pictures, looking radiant in her wedding gown and Keen’s. You heard us. You gotta do what you gotta do.
She told us, it was the funniest part of all the shoots we’ve done with Pixels. “Hiking around the location where my bridal portraits were taken was a blast. Wearing Keen’s with my wedding dress and getting strange looks from people fishing at the waterfall was the best!”
Rachel and Ryan met at an Appalachian State football game and so began their relationship. 4 years later we are still photographing them and enjoying not only their company, but watching their family grow and their lives take the various twists and turns it does.
For us, this is not just a business of photography. We’re documenting, watching history unfold, and creating heirlooms that will link generations. The Minick’s, like many of our clients, have become our friends. We “do life” together when there are no cameras around. We feel very strongly that God has given us this gift so that we can become another supportive resource, cheerleaders and advocates for the married couples we’ve met through Pixels. We love seeing them create families and celebrate milestones and feel honored to be a part of the journey. Creating relationships has become as important to us as the photography work.
Below are just a couple of wedding pictures, but we hope you’ll view more of the Minick’s Big Day (teaser: check out Rachel and her bridesmaids’ shoes – they are not Keen’s, but they rock!)
Not surprisingly, people who love each other as much as these two do were destined to add to their family. So two became three with the arrival of Amelia. We’ve enjoyed capturing her with her parental units in a variety of settings. Always fun!
Pixels has an expansive and versatile photography studio for certain shoots, and we love photographing newborns, family portraits, prom pictures, weddings, engagement photos and the like. But we also absolutely embrace those moments when we can be creative in mother nature, and are experienced outdoor photographers in NC. We’ve been able to do both with the Minicks.
Rachel: “I want to remember the early days of our marriage and family and look back at the stages of Amelia’s growth. I know that I will delight in these portraits for years to come and love creating future family heirlooms with Misty and Ryan.” WE look forward to it, too. We love you guys.
Angela loves photos and takes advantage of having every moment captured in a snapshot. Andrew, like most guys would prefer to not be in front of the camera but understands how important these engagement memories are as they draw closer to their wedding day and would do anything for Angela. Spending time with these two before we photograph their September wedding was precious time together. The natural location with the NC Blue Ridge Mountains as the backdrop seemed perfectly appropriate at putting Andrew, a professional landscaper, at ease. And of course we couldn’t pass up the opportunity during the engagement session to include their fur babies, Mia and Duke, who are also going to have roles in the wedding ceremony.
We are so thankful for the opportunity to capture these memories and cannot wait to photograph their September wedding day at Beech Mountain Alpen Inn. In the meantime, take a peek at Angela and Andrew’s engagement photos.
Interested in learning more about Pixels On Paper wedding photography, engagement photos or portrait photography? View our website at www.pixelsonpaper.net or call to schedule a visit to our portrait studio in the beautiful NC Yadkin Valley in Wilkesboro.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2014 Pixels On Paper. Pixels On Paper Photography Engagement Photos, Blowing Rock NC Wedding, Blowing Rock Wedding Photography, NC Mountain Weddings, NC Mountain Destination Wedding Photography, NC Mountain Wedding Photographer, Boone Wedding and Portrait Photographers, Boone Wedding Photography, Boone Wedding Photographers, High Country Wedding Photographers, NC Wedding Photographers, Charlotte Wedding Photographers. Husband and wife team providing creative photography for weddings and portraits in NC, specializing in the NC High Country, Charlotte, and NC Mountain Destination Weddings.
Take a peek at Lauren and Patrick’s engagement photos taken in the North Carolina Mountains near Boone in West Jefferson. Lauren is very sentimental so we photographed their session at her family’s mountain home, also the same location where their wedding will be held in just a few short months. Patrick’s recent return from military duty made these moments with them even more precious.
We are so thankful for the opportunity to capture these memories and cannot wait to photograph their June wedding day.
Interested in learning more about Pixels On Paper wedding photography, engagement photos or portrait photography? View our website at www.pixelsonpaper.net or call to schedule a visit to our portrait studio in the beautiful NC Yadkin Valley in Wilkesboro.
All images ©2014 Pixels On Paper Inc.
When we first met Megan and Jeff for their wedding consult, there was just something that seemed to click and the feeling that we really wanted to photograph their wedding. When the call came in to let us know they wanted to hire us for their Charlotte wedding photography at the Mint Museum on Randolph, we were seriously excited.
Since all of our wedding packages now come with a complimentary engagement session, the next thing to do was plan out where they wanted to go. They both loved the idea of uptown Charlotte and doing their engagement session in and around the Fourth Ward park area. The park is nice, but the surrounding areas offer up so much in the lines of scenery, texture and opportunity to have a little fun. We literally set out and walked the area, stopping at a few spots we knew we wanted to capture and at several places in between that seemed to just catch our eye. And they completely rocked it from start to finish!
The only other preference that Megan had for their session, was a night shot of the Charlotte skyline behind them. We knew just the spot! What we did not expect was the level of silliness that could be reached at the end of an engagement session as the evening cooled off after a hot day. As Megan and Jeff posed for the shot, Megan said to Jeff that he looked a little like Clark Kent. It just happened to come up that Ryan had a Superman t-shirt in the car (necessary equipment for proper photographers by the way) and Jeff agreed to do a few extra poses with Megan to round out the session. The words crazy fun come to mind.
It was an awesome afternoon/evening and we had so much fun getting to know Megan and Jeff during the session, that the day of the wedding was much smoother. Not only because we had connected on a fun level, but they learned how to pose just right and were now more comfortable with us behind the cameras. Those are the best benefits to come out of doing an engagement session with us, lots of fun and connecting to make the day of wedding photography that much better.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2013 Pixels On Paper. Pixels On Paper Photography Charlotte Wedding and Portrait Photographers, Charlotte NC Engagement Photographers, Engagement Photos, NC Engagement Photography, Charlotte Engagement Session Photographer, Charlotte Wedding Photography, Charlotte Wedding Photographers, Charlotte Wedding Pictures, Charlotte Wedding Photos, High Country Wedding Photographers, NC Wedding Photographers. Husband and wife team providing creative photography for weddings and portraits in NC, specializing in the NC High Country, Charlotte, and NC Mountain Destination Weddings.