Posts Tagged: themed birthday portraits
Wild Thing Liam One Year Outdoor Portrait Photos
Liam’s one year portrait session was not only fun in its theme – Maurice Sendak’s famous children’s book: Where The Wild Things Are – but it was perfectly suited to this young man. Liam LOVES being outside and was more than happy to play in the dirt and leaves, wandering and exploring during our session. We met up on the beautiful farm property owned by his grandparents. And then the wild rumpus began!
The entire family collaborated to build a teepee on the site and Liam’s paternal grandmother painted the “wild thing” picture displayed in the background. While we created a wild, wilderness setting, having the warmth of the whole clan made it feel special. NOTE: If your child shows a particular preference or interest, we are game to incorporate elements and make a party out of the photo session. First birthdays are a big deal and we are expert (if I may say so) at creating birthday portrait sessions that celebrate who your kiddo is at this age. Plus: it’s FUN!
Like many of our clients, we’ve photographed Liam’s family, the Tevepaughs, many times. (They are family in fact.)
Check out Liam’s newborn and six month portraits to see even more cuteness.
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 newborns and families, 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 ©2021 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Luka Celebrates Turning One
Another June 2020 portrait session during social distancing? Check! I think we can all agree that this hasn’t been the easiest 4 months, but we’re adjusting as best we can. With the warmer months, we’ve still been able to capture big milestones here and there and this little cutie, Luka just celebrated his first birthday. Congrats, Buddy!
It’s hard to believe that a year has passed since we took his newborn portraits, but here we are. Luka’s milk bath portraits at six months were a big hit as well. His parents bought the one year of photos package and mom Sierra is a big fan of themes. She was cooking up the dinosaur idea even during his six month session.
Her older son Conner had Mickey Mouse as a theme and was adorable. She and I emailed and shared ideas and photos over the course of a few months leading up to the date.
Despite all of the planning, when the date approached the location, outfit and cake didn’t all come together as we’d hoped, but the alternatives turned out to be even better. We moved the location to our portrait garden shortly before they arrived which was WAY more convenient for everyone and there I could photograph Luka and his brother perfectly. It was all meant to be. I especially love the bright colors in these photos, the boys sitting and eating and goofing around together, the sense of celebration and of course the icing covered face.
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 LicenseAll photos are ©2019 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Roman Turns One. Airplanes and Cake Smash
We cannot stop it. Time is going to do what it’s going to do….. keep passing. Suddenly Roman, below, is a year old.
The third child of Andy and Traci Pierce just celebrated his first birthday and this family does not “phone it in.” They come to PLAY with themes and props and outfits and the big dessert – cake.
Father Andy is a commercial pilot and we have used themes before in photo shoots with his two older brothers. Holden was Pierce baby number one and the aviation them was chosen for him. Then Sawyer came along as a little surfer and pharmacist like his Mom. He even had (and still has) the curls of a man who lives by the sea and in hammocks during his downtime. Roman is the last and third child for Andy and Traci, so they decided to go for it one more time. Traci got the idea from Pinterest of shooting on location, and tasked Andy with finding a plane.
He did. From WWII. Decked out in flack jackets and aviator shades, we all met up in Concord on a gorgeous mid-March dad, with perfect blue skies and lots of wind.
The weather always plays a role, if only to bless you or challenge you. Thank goodness that it was merely a challenge instead of a curse. Traci is detail-oriented, admittedly type A – something she and I share, so she wants all of our time and effort to be worth it. With the wind blowing us all around, Roman was freezing, but Holden and Sawyer were loving it! They fit the roles of pilot and copilot already. We had a couple of “is this going to work?” moments, but we couldn’t be happier with the results.
I feel confident that the family will be having caption contests with the image above for many years to come. Holden with his tongue sort of sticking out conspiring the plan, Sawyer with his curls and “about to pounce lets get do it” posture and little Roman looking like “LETS TAKE A MINUTE TO THINK ABOUT THIS BOYS.”
We ended up back inside, playing around the hangar and avoiding the wind and Roman’s mood shifted from “I’m freezing” to “this ROCKS!” Everything turned out beautifully and I loved capturing the colors of the plane, the natural light and the boys. We adored the plane’s owner who was so accommodating and cool too. He helped make the day a success.
The cake smash went off well too. First birthdays have to have cake and like his older brothers, Roman was able to get the anticipated – and much deserved – sugar rush. Cake theme: why yes, planes!
Roman: we’ve said this about your older brothers, but we are serious when we say it to you: we cannot wait to watch you grow up in front of our lenses and in our midst. Congratulations on your first year on earth. Here’s to so very many more.
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 newborns and families, 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 LicenseAll photos are ©2020 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Barrett Turns One
Some photo shoot themes have to be crafted and developed out of thin air. And others are a natural because of family hobbies, vocations, passions, whatever. For Barrett Spillman’s one year portraits and cake smash, the choice of baseball was a home run….. I know. I’m ducking as I type, but this stuff writes itself, you guys!
Mom Elisabeth told me her idea of “MVP of the Year” and to “run with it” and that’s exactly what I did. Both her father and her husband Isaac, play baseball, so this theme felt like a fitting tribute to them and a fun way to celebrate their one year old.
I love doing an outdoor cake smash but rarely get to because many parents prefer to photograph them indoors. Fortunately, these parents weren’t at all worried about their little rookie getting dirty.
We adore Elisabeth and Isaac and have photographed their engagement, bridal, wedding, Barrett’s newborn portraits and At Home Christmas. So it’s nice to feel relaxed and ready to play with faces we know well. This family is one of those who’ve hired us from the beginning and appreciate the continuity we capture through photo sessions over the years.
Now for some baseball! Thanks to our Parks and Rec director here in Wilkesboro who met with me and gave me full access to newly refurbished baseball fields that were otherwise locked down for the season. It’s hard to have a baseball shoot without the right setting. And thanks to my dear friend Ashley Shumate, the busiest baseball Mom I know. She let me borrow all the baseball gear to bring my vision to life for the Spillmans.
Barrett loved being outside, in the dug out, and on home plate and played the role of MVP as if he were born to it! His first birthday cake was a reward, so he was game for just about anything we needed from him. He was a good sport!
Those expressions during the first taste of icing are always priceless and rewarding.
We also photographed some studio portraits where Barrett wore an outfit that was a family heirloom. It’s been passed down and worn by other babies in the family turning one before him. Hence the need for these shots to be indoors. I wanted to preserve and protect it for future generations. That and it was 100% wool! To hot for outside.
Happy Birthday, Young Man!! We’ll see you soon, I hope – whether you’re a sports star or not, we’re fans of yours.
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 LicenseAll photos are ©2019 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
The York Family Outdoor Portraits
I feel like I say this about every family that we photograph more than two times. Maybe I do. And then it occurred to me that perhaps Ryan and I are just blessed in this way beyond the other blessings that we already see daily. Maybe our superpower is attracting great people into our lives who just happen to be our clients. We find commonalities, share values, a world view or life experience, crack each other up, can relate about the ups and downs of life and become bonded for keeps. The Yorks are just such a couple and just such a family.
We photographed the Lindsey, Mitch, Tate and Turner a few years ago with Lindsey’s family and again last year with outdoor portraits of Mitch’s family. This most recent occasion was about birthday celebrations for their boys, Turner and Tate. The two year old loves trains so we all met up at the Depot in North Wilkesboro. His theme? CHOO CHOO ~ I’M 2! Cute huh? He is obsessed with trains, train tracks, the cars, all of it. And the four year old is ALLLLLL about fishing, so there were plenty of props for each little man. If only we could all hang onto passion the way we do when we’re so young…. “she said wistfully.”
Lindsey has envisioned a stairwell wall collection as well as one above her bed and we’re in the process of getting the canvases created and up on the walls for this crew. We’re also already planning next year’s session. We had so much fun at this one, that we cannot wait. Ideas are brewing!
As we watch this family grow, and I look at these images, that blessed feeling returns. We are happy to be doing life with these guys. Lindsey, Mitch, Turner and Tate: We love 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.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2018 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.