Posts Tagged: nc mountains
An Outdoor Wedding ~ in a casual way
Is there a penalty for saying this one was special, if it’s true more than once? We feel this way about more than a few of the couples we photograph on their big day, and this one goes in that category. While we don’t know Dylan and Elizabeth intimately, Dylan’s dad, Richard, has been a friend of ours for over a decade. Plus, who can feel cynical about the world when there is a bagpiper – IN A KILT – playing during the ceremony? Dylan’s uncle not only played the bagpipes at Dylan’s wedding, he played them at Richard’s, so this was a tradition worth keeping. Elizabeth and Dylan are a low key couple, extremely cool and fun, and so was their wonderful outdoor wedding.
You want to know how to mix the casual with the tender? Take cues from these two. Part of the laid back atmosphere they wanted to create for their wedding and reception was to have it at their new home in New London, NC surrounded by their families and friends and their beloved dogs. Elizabeth and Dylan had only been in their new digs for a few short months and worked hard to get the place ready. While the dogs made cameos, any dog owner will tell you that getting them to pose takes more than a nod and a wink but they made it.
On the traditional and tender side: Dylan was given a pair of cuff links just before the ceremony that were his grandfathers as a special touch from Richard. Additionally, someone shared the old Southern tradition of burying the bourbon at the ceremony site to ensure good weather the day of the ceremony. It worked!! As the tradition mandates, the bourbon is dug up and there was a toast of bourbon with the guests after the ceremony. The groom’s sweet Grandmother made the desserts and the catering was provided by Lexington Barbecue as in THE best barbecue. Richard commented, “who knew my son was a barbecue snob?!”
We stole the couple from the ceremony late in the reception because the sunset was just too gorgeous not to get photos with. These two are so relaxed with each other, so happy and in love and their future just appears to be only filled with light and joy and silliness AND DOGS.
We look forward to watching these two grow their family and their lives together over the coming years and loved being a part of their big day. Our thanks to Richard and their whole tribe for letting us in! We love you guys!
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.
Rattle & Hum | MerleFest 2017
If you combine jangley guitars, fiddling, soulful singing, drums, stomping, brilliant songwriting, mountain inspiration and camping, you’re probably at Merlesfest. And if you’ve never been, consider making it this year.
It’s spring in the North Carolina mountains and, more specifically in Wilkesboro, where MerleFest was born. For nearly 30 years (the festival began in 1988), crowds of music lovers, players, and entertainers have gathered to listen to and contribute to the festival atmosphere. Like so many other music festivals, MerleFest is singular… the fans, the musicians, the inspirations, the talent, the views, and the overwhelming sense of family, culture and heritage.For the last couple of years, Ryan and I have been official photographers and we’re going again this year in that capacity – from April 27th – 30th. Let the preparations – and energy conservation – commence.
Vendor spotlight: On the Windfall | a Perfect Outdoor Destination for Weddings
On the Windfall, located in Ashe County, North Carolina is a venue we love to photograph. When couples tell us they’ve chosen it, we look forward to seeing the spots we’re familiar with and to tramping around searching for new ones. It’s perfect for a destination wedding, with cottages for the bridal party or others, ideal fly fishing nearby, gorgeous mountain views and a reception hall that when lit at night is about as magical as it gets. (No, I do not get a kick-back for talking up this place. We just love it. It’s in our top 3 for sure.)
I was not kidding about the mountain view for weddings. It’s the very definition of spectacular.
“On the Windfall is part of the Eldreth Homestead circa 1800. The Eldreths farmed the property until the mid 1900s raising cattle, crops, and children. Some of the Eldreth descendants live in Ashe County today.” When George and Carol Ford, the current owners (some of the nicest most accommodating people you will ever meet) envisioned this place, they wanted cabin/cottage meets modern convenience for guests and they succeeded. When shooting weddings there, we see guests wandering in the nearby woods and, depending on time of year, enjoying the many shades of green or the autumn leaves. The site manages to be rustic, fantastical (think tiny white lights), homey, cool, earthy and modern.
This place is as beautiful at night as it is by day and with animals to see, views to enjoy, water to sit by and places to rest and relax, it’s the perfect spot to gather those you love around you to celebrate. We’ve shot several weddings here, including Bonnie & Amanda’s, and Meghan & Josh’s. Couples and their friends alike raved about the venue and how glad they are that they chose it.
Pixels is now booking engagement sessions and weddings for 2017 and 2018. Most brides and grooms who choose our wedding package receive their engagement session FREE. Whether you’re getting married in a church, at On the Windfall or another outdoor venue, we would love to bring our years of experience, inclusive vibe and approach to wedding photography to your celebration.
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.
Family Photos from the Porch | Welcome to the Community
The intersection of the Barnes family with the story of another young boy, Drake, who is battling cystic fibrosis can only happen when there is community. Ryan and I care very much about ours and we put our money where are mouths are as often as possible. For the 3rd consecutive year, we’ve donated a family portrait session to a silent auction for Drake, more specifically the Drives for Drake Charity. In 2014, the VanMeter family were the recipients and we shot photos of 3 generations on their horse farm. The Barnes were the winners from last fall’s auction and we took their photos in May of this year. Their young sons, coincidentally, are around the same age as Drake.
Trisa and Brandon, along with their sons Tristan and Tucker, just recently moved to Wilkesboro so both the area and their home were new to them. Trisa told us that her most memorable family portraits were taken on or around the family front porch over the years and their lovely new home had a perfect front porch where we could continue the tradition. The flag colored bunting helps, but between the house, the landscape and the boys’ scrubbed faces, it made for a fairly Rockwellian type of Americana. If you close your eyes, you can almost hear July 4th fireworks.
We wrapped up the session with a view of the sunset on the putting green at Oakwoods Country Club where “Drives Fore Drake” takes place, bringing the day and that sense of community full circle. While the Barneses are still new to Wilkes, we hope that inaugurating this chapter with photos, especially ones earned through charity, will make this place feel more like home for them. Welcome, you guys! We hope to see you around and take photos of your family as the boys grow and you all become more a part of the community.
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.
Welcome to the adult life ~~ sloooooowly ~~~ pre-Quinceanera Portraits
The globe gets flatter and smaller (just ask Thomas Friedman) and that is a pretty exciting thing. Now, more than ever, we know more about our neighbors. Not just the “my grocery cart hit yours and OH, HEY! our kids go to the same school.” We know about our neighbors in other countries, our neighbors from different cultural backgrounds. The transition from childhood to adulthood is a biggee, no matter where you live or whether you call it a bar or bat mitzvah, a debutante or coming out party or a Quinceañera.
Vanessa Chaquea will celebrate her 15th birthday in September, and 15 is THE AGE when a young Latina celebrates the beginning of her entry into adulthood. We captured some of Vanessa’s portraits at and near our Wilkesboro studio for her to use on invitations and at her celebration in the fall. These sessions were all about showing her youth and beauty, her spirit and sweet personality.
Vanessa is the most adorable 14 year old we’ve ever met. She is bubbly, beautiful and bi-lingual. She is an athlete and a self-taught musician. She is a big fan of America’s Next Top Model and she rocked our photo shoot as if she was a pro model herself. We’re already dreaming up ways we can have Vanessa model for us in styled photo shoots. We’re looking forward to September and photographing all the traditional customs of a Quinceanera – a new thing for us.
It was refreshing to be around this season of youth …. the beginning of the next thing. We just recently blogged about 2 week old baby Sawyer who is at the very beginning of life. We photograph engagements and weddings, with couples at the beginning of marriage. Vanessa is in the full, cool, wild, tender, scary, heartening, thrilling, anxiety-producing BEGINNING of adulthood. Remember that time? Well, hers arrives in just a few months and we cannot wait to be there for this great young woman.
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 babies and kids, 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.