Posts Tagged: Portrait Photography
NC Pastoral | A Wilkesboro Engagement
On November 12, 2017, we met them out at Randy’s family farm in North Wilkesboro and heard their story. Michelle had seen Randy over the years at various times while she and he would be outdoors and she wondered, from afar (are you with me?? it’s pretty epic) what he was like and if she’d ever meet him. She hoped they would be introduced someday, but it didn’t happen until a salon hairstylist they have in common decided to play matchmaker. Randy took it from there.
When he knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Michelle, he did something outdoorsy and sweet for the proposal: he painted pumpkins with hearts on them, arranged them on hay bails, laid a quilt at a quiet spot near the barn and creek on his family’s farm and, after surprising her, asked her the marry him. For the engagement session we photographed them at the very site of his proposal and then wandered both his and Michelle’s family farms to capture other images that showcase them and their beloved land.
These 2 will be married in October of next year and we so look forward to seeing what details and parts of their personalities will be incorporated into the ceremony and reception.
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.
Baby, baby, baby photos | Full Year of Portraits
Someone once said that “the days are long, but the years are short” and it’s true. It’s usually repeated by those of us over 40 who still feel 24, but I won’t go there. This blog is about babies. Big, round, gushy, adorable, cooing, cuddly, pooping, burbling bundles of life and hope. Some parents want to document way more than babies first newborn portrait and we love that we offer a way to do this.
But first… here’s Holden. Soak up that deliciousness. I mean seriously – WHAT ON EARTH is he dreaming about to be making a face that awesome?
Little Holden is no longer the teeny-weenie newborn or the 6 month old above, and we know because we photographed him several times as part of the Brand New Baby Collection, a package we offer to families who want to capture the first year of their child’s life and then some. We feel like we not only get to know the family even better, but are able to see and record even minuscule changes in each baby’s growth.
Below are a couple of goodies from Holden’s 1st birthday portraits and cake smash photo session.
The Brand New Baby Collection is something we love to do for parents, because it allows us to start with maternity (if Mama wants those shots) and takes us through the first year of the child’s life: newborn portraits (within the first 10 days of your babies life), 6 months, 1 year/birthday photos and with discounts on cards and a variety of package options including digital files, prints, image selections, etc.
Little Miss Harper Huffman… “I’m ready for my close up Mr. DeMille!”
Harper Huffman, 6 months
Harper, Carson and Ivy are 3 more kiddies whose parents chose from this package and watching them transform was so much fun.
Carson Mathis, One Year and rocking the bow tie.
Carson’s Cake Smash
Harper Huffman’s baby announcement
Harper Huffman and her proud parents
Harper Huffman, 6 months
Ivy Myers, Newborn
Ivy at 6 months
Ivy Myers, 1 year
Contact us with questions about Brand New Baby packages or consider giving this package as a gift to expecting mothers and fathers. We photograph at our studio in Wilkesboro, where we have an outdoor portrait garden and lots of props and set ups or at a location that’s meaningful to you.
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.
christine & adam’s loray mill engagement photos | pixels on paper nc wedding photographers
Adam, Christine and a cozy Kensie – their “child.”
We met Christine at the wedding of her friends, Lauren and Patrick in 2014. This girl is a referral machine. We’ve not only booked more weddings because of her recommendations, but when she got engaged herself, she called us. We chatted with the pair at yet another wedding (no, they are not professional wedding goers!) and they were musing about potential engagement photos spots. We told them what we always tell couples: choose a location that’s meaningful to you so that in years to come you can look back at the photos and recognize the setting for its significance. That was when a lightbulb appeared over Adam’s head.
We took advantage of as many angles and options as possible and loved doing so with the couple and their sweet dog Kensie. These 2 will make it official (if you didn’t look closely at the photo above), October 22 of this year in Charlotte and we’ll be there to capture the next set of family memories and history. Counting the days!
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.
Ashley & Oscar engagement photos | 2 backgrounds, 1 God
There were years (in the many hundreds) when people married young. Maybe your parents, grandparents or great-grandparents did. No one thought anything about it and I’m not prepared to give a history lesson about why it worked or didn’t. Young brides and grooms, older brides and grooms…. we ALWAYS cheer for a strong marriage that lasts until Al Roker is talking about it on the Today Show.
These 2 below, Violet and Floyd, were married for 67 years. They were married young, were 21 and 22 in this photo, and in 2015, they passed away holding hands with their hospice beds pushed together. 67 years and together right until the last moment.
Who knows why some young marriages work and last, producing thriving families, smartypants kids, and reels and reels of memories? But they do. When we hear, “but they’re SO YOUNG,” as we have in our tenure as wedding photographers, we think, “but what if what they have is the big “IT?” We believe Ashley & Oscar have it. They are young, yes, but they have the depth, gravitas, self-awareness and sense of longevity – and they displayed it during our photo session.
They have “it” and IT is a shared belief in Christ and each other.
Ashley and Oscar met when her church took a trip to Mexico. When Oscar returned to school in the states, they started spending more time together and realized their similar dreams and feelings. Ryan and I have known them for a while. Oscar and Ashley’s brother Daniel were models for us during a prom shoot a few years ago. The Caudill’s have supported Pixels On Paper Photography and we’ve always appreciated their love and care for us. Now we get to return the favor as documentarians and friends.
I’ve never been around a couple, even twice their age, who were more grounded in faith, family and tradition. Ashley will finish the last of both her high school and college courses in December and then they will be married in NC. A honeymoon in Mexico is planned and Ashley will finally be able to meet all of Oscar’s family. We’re excited about the stories to come of how these families will blend into one and write their own new story with Him at the center. We couldn’t be more hopeful or proud or happy for them.
We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or NC 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 as well as the surrounding areas. 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. Contact us to schedule your portrait or wedding photography.
What Fuels Us – Part 1
We had a conversation recently about motivations, inspirations, choices we make each day, what makes us happy and other little idiosyncratic things that make us tick as individuals and as a couple of creatives. We could write a book about our adventures and what fuels us, but here is a first pass, from Ryan.
Hi Gang!! I’m jumping in here and hitting the things from my perspective. Hope you enjoy.
Activities that turn us on: Hiking! These do not have to be strenuous by any means, just nice strolls through new places. We are always on the look out for new shoot locations and often find ourselves looking at every aspect of a place. “If we were going to do a shoot here, how /where would we pose people?”
A second thing I love (and this came to mind more than once) is cooking. It’s similar to how we approach photography, taking concepts that we have seen or read about for various recipes and adding a bit of ourselves and our “twist” to make them different is always fun. And we love to go to Boondocks, which is basically our local hangout even if it is 45 minutes away. I love craft beers, so count me in for anything that’s as black as motor oil and aged in bourbon barrels, and typically 10%ABV and up. [In my best Homer Simpson voice: “BEEEEEEEEEEER. Sweet sustainer of life….”]
BOONDOCKS! We love this restaurant and brewery in West Jefferson and the folks who operate it. Family!
What bands/music? Well, you know we cover Merlefest as official photographers, so these answers won’t surprise you…. Avett Brothers, Dave Matthews Band, Pokey Lafarge. But also Dean Martin, Trampled By Turtles, anything solid bluegrass, electronic dance music (EDM), anything with a good bass/drum combo that I can “turn up to 11.”
What faces fuel me? Misty’s for sure. I can tell a lot of what’s going on by reading her expressions. Also the look on a client’s face when we sneak a peek at the back of camera and see the awesomeness we are capturing. That’s the best!
What types of media do you consume out of complete love? Books: Game of Thrones series – before they became a TV show and became even cool-er. I tend to love more of the Lord of the Rings fantasy types of series that require an active imagination with good descriptions so I can “see” the story in my head. Movies: action thrillers like the Bourne series and James Bond, animated Pixar anything. And with TV, I am obsessed with “This Old House,” am a DIY/HGTV junkie as well as stuff on Food Network/Cooking Channel.
What part of a photo session turns you on the most? Trying to get to a location and then figuring out how to shoot it from a perspective that may not be what everyone else would see. Safe shots are still OK to do, but the fun comes in trying something that you think may not work, but if it does, its going to be epic.
Orozco engagement portrait photography by Wilkesboro NC Photographers Pixels On Paper
What’s your favorite time of day? Sunset, it’s a time for magic with lighting, but it goes super fast as the light changes by the second, so knowing how to adapt and adjust quickly is a necessity.
What scriptures do you recite and rely on most? Romans 5:8: “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
What places or aspects of travel provide a personal or creative “reboot?” For the vacation spots, there are different ways of looking at it: All inclusive for the times where you just want to fully relax and not worry about what to do other than figure out what drink to order next or what pool to go to. I love Charleston. It’s always going to be a favorite spot from a food/site-seeing perspective. Even in the mundane travels, I like taking any combination of backroads when going somewhere leads to a fun antique store or mom-and-pop restaurant. I love finding places that we’d miss if we stuck to the main roads all the time.
What’s your favorite room in your house? The kitchen, not only because we built it basically from the studs out when we moved in, but it’s another place for creativity, to try new recipes and have fun enjoying the hard work after.
Well, that seems like enough, so let’s call that a wrap for me. Have a great weekend, everybody.
Misty? You’re up, honey!