Posts Tagged: Outdoor family photography
Summer 2016 ~ or some of it
This summer, Ryan and I are working, of course. But we’re also “having a summer” and so far it has been filled with some travel, 2 birthdays, a storm that sent tree limbs through the roof of our 100+ year old house and watching our small but mighty (MIGHTY, I SAY) garden yield glorious veggies. Here are some highlights (and lowlights). We love you guys. Hope your summers are safe and fun and plentiful, as well.
lovely enough to be fake, but they’re not. … squash. LOVE IT.
late spring, when we started to get excited
for spaghetti sauce, BLTs, caprese salads or just with a dusting of pepper…
sauce for spaghetti squash supper
Late July and the garden keeps giving.
Our summer has also included a usual southern visitor – storms. North Carolina (both the piedmont and mountains) have seen daily thunderstorms in the afternoons and evenings for days on end and often with the fanfare of thunder and lightening as well. I love what rain does to our garden, but the more harsh storms in Wilkes County have been doozies. One in particular, in early July hit the Pixels homestead. Our neighbors were without power and sustained lots of damage. I thank God for a sturdy husband, no loss of power, crews ready to come in and no personal injuries. It could have been worse, but it wasn’t.
Ryan on the roof checking for damage and creating quick fixes
Food, storms, repair, recovery and …… birthdays. We both have summer birthdays and celebrated with great food and time together away from deadlines.
Of course, we’ve been wandering and spending time with friends as well.
Our lovebug – Chelsea, a Southern girl hanging out on the porch during my birthday and while we were shooting an engagement portrait session in Charleston.
We love to travel all over the states, but southern summers are pretty wonderful. We’re grateful for each other, for our family, friends and clients, for getting to do what we love and for 4 seasons and all they bring with them. Autumn is still “a ways off,” so we’re going to stay in the good company of summer for now.
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.
spotlight: our own outdoor portrait garden
One of the greatest pleasures of owning a century old home and the land surrounding it is the maintenance.
Maybe not.
One of the great pleasures of living where we do is that we were able to turn this place into whatever we wanted. We knew when we first began searching for a studio location that it had to accommodate both indoor and outdoor backdrops. What we found is part home, part studio, part offices and when you step outside, you’re surrounded by beauty. Shooting in our outdoor portrait garden is a favorite of ours and we thought – now that summer is on – we’d share some favorite shots we’ve taken there. Some babies, some sunflowers (see just below), some woods and benches, color with natural light and lots of green. We’re truly blessed. And we don’t mind the maintenance…
What nature doesn’t create for us in the surrounding landscapes, we are creating ourselves. From old tin and barn wood that we’ve rescued and harvested ourselves to antique and ReStore treasure finds that we’ve re-purposed. Our outdoor portrait backdrops are constantly changing based on need and our desire to create more options for our portrait photography clients. All within a few steps outside our studio’s front door.
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.
dapper young lad hits the orchard for his close-up(s)
We love the orchards and spring means orchard photography sessions. On their own, the trees and land are gorgeous with blossoms and again later when the trees are overcome with fruit. But they’re even better when populated with a ridiculously perfect kiddo like Conner Tevepaugh. He’s fresh and delicious all year, but we love him in this setting for sure.
How handsome and suave is he in that hat, say nothing of those eyes!? Heaven help him, these are some of the photos his folks are going to show his fiancée when the time comes. And heaven help his own kids in topping that level of yumminess in their portraits some day.
This is the first time we were actually able to photograph Conner in the orchard blooms and we’re so happy it could finally happen. Last year, at only four months, he was a very sleepy baby who basically just wanted to be held. PRIORITIES! And this year, at 16 months, he seemed in a similar mood. “WHY IN THE WORLD would I wake up for a camera?” He may be part Marlon Brando (The Later Years), but before we knew it he was playing with sticks and running through the trees and knocking us out with cuteness. As with almost all other boys, capturing photos while they’re in action yields way more than a posed portrait. He didn’t want to be still once he got going and since we’re able-bodied, we were ready to dart, pivot, coax and dive.
And there it is (just above)… the one that is going to slay his first girlfriend, enrapture his college sweetheart, capture his wife for good and ensure that his mom keeps the hugs and adoring glances coming his way for a lifetime.
We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the NC 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.
an orchard photo session with a young sister & brother
“Everything great that ever happened in this world happened first in somebody’s imagination.”
– Astrid Lindgren (author of Pippi Longstocking)
True. So, we ask you: What on earth was happening in her imagination when we took this photo?
Usually, we’d give our kingdom to know, but in this case, it’s counter to the mystery and fun of life.
And anyway, she’s clearly cracked the code. You can see it in her eyes and mouth.
Natalie Overby is one of our favorite subjects to shoot, because she is polite, poised, and incredibly photogenic. We hope she always has the tender passion and beauty in her that is so apparent in her photos. She has a poetic face and sensibility you pray is never interrupted by tragedy, but only enhanced by life’s nuances and adventures.
We also photographed her little brother Eli that day in our favorite orchard. His mom specifically asked that we capture his gorgeous blue eyes. Eli is a typical boy and would rather be playing in the dirt than sitting still for photos. He is charming, but restless and we couldn’t blame him. Spring… outside… sister’s there to hang with. It’s a recipe for play and soaking up sun.
“There comes a time in every rightly constructed boy’s life when he has a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure.” -Mark Twain (author of Tom Sawyer) …. And Eli is thinking about when to make a break for it…
Natalie takes great care to watch out for her little brother, but she was also incredibly present in each moment. It’s an interesting combo in such a young kid and heartening to watch. There’s a lot going on in that girl’s imagination and brain and Eli is the same.
There’s a quote that goes something like, “having a sister is like having a best friend you can’t get rid of… you know whatever you do, she’ll still be there.”
And there’s another great quote about siblings that says, “sisters and brothers just happen; we don’t get to choose them, but they become one of our most cherished relationships.” -Wes Adamson. We love our siblings, both those by blood and those found through this life and we hope that Natalie and Eli will have the same solidarity and trust, laughter and adventure, mayhem and memories that we have with ours.
Keep it up you two.
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.
colorful outdoor family portraits on the blue ridge parkway
This family means a lot to us.
Kim Hatfield is the owner of Waggles Pet Supply. You may recall that we provided portraits for pet food and donated along with Waggles to the Wilkes Animal Shelter. We collaborate with her and her business on so many great causes and we simply adore her and her family as humans. But the best gift, the biggest compliment is that we get to photograph her family. Kim and Terry have a precious daughter, Rayne.
We photographed Rayne’s newborn session and she’s only gotten more cute and more animated. She grins with her mouth open like she’s in the middle of a sentence or a funny thought. It’s hilarious to watch. Kim and Terry’s one request for this session was that we include mountains as a backdrop, which is not a tall order. We’d been eyeing this location along the Blue Ridge Parkway for months, but had never photographed there before. Pretty lighting, great views and a spectacular sunset! We love the outcome.
We know we’ve said this, but we’re outdoorsy so we’re saying it again. We live in a beautiful place. North Carolina, particularly our mountains and valleys, will stop you in your tracks. And it’s not just the mountain views, it’s the details of rock and moss, sky and grass. This family stood out in their bright clothes in every setting we placed them in.
Doesn’t Rayne look like she’s going to grow up to be a great chat? The woman you’re going to want to sit next to on a flight from Toronto to Dallas? She’s a charmer and people are attracted to her every expression. Even butterflies have attached themselves to her shoes…. oh wait. Nevermind.
A fun aside: At Pixels on Paper’s 10 year anniversary, the Hatfield family attended of course and Rayne was the star of the day. She was wearing the most adorable outfit, everyone wanted to hold her and she wanted to be hitched to the hip of the funnest and snuggliest among the partygoers. Those dancing were at the top of her list since she could bounce to the rhythm on the dance floor. Our dear pal, photographer Michael Anderson, of Michael A. Anderson Photography, captured the shot below of her.
I wanted to end with the shot below, mostly because Rayne looks like she’s just blown a kiss and is saying “That’s All Folks!” Watching her grow up is going to be the biggest treat. Kim, Terry and Rayne: WE LOVE YOU!!!!