Posts Tagged: wilkesboro photography studio
These Days
There’s a simple and beautiful song that you all may or may not be familiar with called “These Days.” It’s a throwback for sure. Written in the mid-1960s by Jackson Browne (and later re-popularized by Nico), it’s the mental wanderings of a person sort of in a moment of pause and reflection. The lyrics make me feel pretty seen, and that’s not a bad thing. There’s something about the place I’m in currently – raising a nearly 4 year old – that calls for pauses and reflection and I am so very there “these days.”
Being present for Finley and Ryan (and WITH Finlay and Ryan) has been my primary task this last 18 months and that has its rewards, even for a working woman with goals and a sense of purpose. I know I am where I’m supposed to be, and when my motivation wanes, I’m reminded that it’s OK. These days are about watching life unfold and noticing what would have been missed were I staring at the computer screen all day.
We have been doing life, you guys, spending lots of time outside, escaping to the arms of family, working on home and farm projects, stealing away to the movies, and trying not to worry about what isn’t getting done.
I heard a great quote the other day about nostalgia. The conversation was about going back to relive your life once you knew you’d survived into an advanced age. You could enjoy moments more because you knew the outcome was good. You’d enjoy sitting next to the cute boy on the bus instead of wondering if he thought you looked stupid or had bad breath or whatever. You could truly BE IN THE MOMENT. The author said, “nostalgia is all of the memories, but without the anxiety of not knowing what happens next.” You got the reverie without the flop sweat, stomach aches and sleepless nights. I’m choosing to be present now, even though I don’t know how this movie I’m in actually ends. I rely on my faith and put one foot in front of the next.
None of us knows how it’s all going to turn out. But I’m here for it. I’m here for every busy, exhausted, up at dawn, running all day, forgetting things, remembering others moment of these days. Hang in there and be gentle with yourselves, gang! There is hope and joy out there; it may just not look like you thought it would.
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.
Tinleigh 6 months portraits in Ruffles and Bows
Tinleigh is the only girl among her siblings and it feels like a blink since she had newborn portraits taken. On this occasion, we turned our studio over to her and her stylist and let her go nuts. For her six month portrait session, with no brothers around, and my stash of dress up options, ribbons, ruffles and pearls, this little light shined. Man, she is cute! And her mom loved seeing her all girly for the photo session.
Although it was hard not to see a little tomboy in her since she’s surrounded by brothers, Tinleigh loves all things girly at the moment. I created a creamy Victorian setting and in a little ruffled onsie she was adorable. We also let her drape herself in a bright pink tulle number, … as one does.
I love the expressions this little girl makes. Her face says a million discerning and hammy little things in micro-seconds. I cannot wait to chat with her when she starts talking.
I typically keep my two year old Finley out of the studio during sessions, but Tinleigh is so accustomed to being entertained by her brothers that when she appeared to be getting bored I allowed my little curly haired Ginger to join us. She loved it and was all eyes and smiles. He perked her right up, something I know from first-hand experience that he’s great at.
I cannot wait to get this little nugget, with or without her older brothers, in front of my lens again. Maybe another outdoor, day in the life session with the whole family……….hmmmmm. I have a phone call to make!
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
5 Years of the Pixels Studio | A Tale of 3 Places (and dozens of stories)
From the day we found the property in 2011 to the day we celebrated our closing and received the keys on June 11, 2012.
This is where it all began. Not our business certainly, but the journey of the Pixels studio and the place we lay our heads each night. This place has three stories, if you will. One of them is ours. This home is our shelter and houses our personal lives and our day-to-day, holds many memories, celebrations and even more sweet, albeit mundane moments. Ryan, our sweet Chelsea and I love living here. You’ll see her in several of these images, by the way.
The second story is that of a living library. It contains the stories and moments of every newborn, every first birthday portrait, lots of teens dressed for prom or graduation, children and their parents, pet and holiday portraits and a hundred other stories that happen in a photography studio and outdoor portrait garden. This space houses our clients and friends. It houses all of you – in part. You show up at our studio to have a moment in time captured forever and you leave a little bit our yourselves behind for us to remember. It’s pretty awesome when you think about it.
After landscaping
The third story this place tells is that of an active, creative working business. It’s our portrait studio inside and portrait garden space outside and we worked hard to make this place inspiring for our clients while you’re here and inspiring for us when we’re setting up and after when we’re editing. “Place-making” is something that architects talk about a lot and we believe in many of those concepts. It’s important to us as creatives seeking inspiration and critical for our clients because we want comfort and ease for you. There was a lot of work, but it has really paid off.
Entrance foyer before and after.
Portrait studio lobby before and after.
The lobby walls and throughout the studio display wall art collections, canvas wraps and our full selection of frames.
With a house that is over 100 years old, there were plenty of renovations and we had a vision for our home spaces and certainly for the Pixels spaces. Rooms were remodeled, re-envisioned and repurposed and our equipment was housed and our work – and the possibilities for clients – were showcased. Looking back, it was a lot of labor done with a lot of love. We created an elegant space for client consultations and photo previews, a dressing room & bathroom (wardrobe changes happen, people) with a baby-changing station, and we transformed a large room into our portrait studio itself.
Client bathroom, changing room, and baby changing area.
The indoor portrait studio and shooting space underwent a major transformation.
The indoor portrait photography studio contains 3-4 hand-crafted photo backdrops that rotate seasonally.
Before and after transformation of our client preview and consultation room.
Our clients can see their images projected during their PreView sessions along with useful size aids to help during their ordering process.
The Pixels On Paper office work stations before and after.
And that is just some of how we transformed the inside of Pixels. We also have amazing outdoor spaces and getting them synced up with our vision took some doing. Seriously. Cutting, pruning, planting, mowing, sewing seeds: you name it, it happened. The best part is that we have captured some of the most memorable moments of families, babies and kids in these spots. And we celebrated our 10 Year Anniversary out here too.
Landscape cleanup was a huge effort in order to create the outdoor portrait garden
Summer sunflower portrait garden from start to finish
Our colorful outdoor portrait wall changes with every season
Unique outdoor garden spaces are ever-changing and being created for new photography backdrops.
At the risk of bragging, Ryan and I have created an amazing business space separate from but housed within this glorious old manse. It’s like no other portrait studio we’ve ever seen. It’s where modern work and technology meets a century of memories lodged in every board and room… with some updates.
NOTHING happens overnight and we were never on our own during this transformation journey. I could never name everyone in and outside of our families who’s worked tirelessly with us these last 5 years. There’s just no way. The boards inside and the dirt surrounding our home have been touched and trod on by so many. We’ve been blessed beyond expression and we love that we get to live in this place and that we are able to share it with all of you – even for a few hours during a session. It’s a magic spot where love and creativity lives, where laughter is encouraged, and where everyone is welcome.
the Grievous Angels ~ photographing a killer charlotte band
These guys use only the good notes.
If it’s your cup of tea (or whiskey) to go to a live local show, then you need to see the Grievous Angels Band. We ADORE them and were honored to photograph a performance of theirs. They’ve got some fab photos from fans and friends, but wanted a few more for promotional use and we threw our equipment in the car and sped their way. Do you like American music, vocals that range from gravelly to crazy smooth, guitars, guitars, guitars with texture, folk, rock and a confluence of talent, grace, mischief, energy and a pure force that brings you back to earth? These guys are for you, … and when we say guys, we mean guys (precisely 5) and one gal – Alicia – nicknamed “the Pistol.” Any woman who can elbow her way into that mix is a mighty thing and Alicia is mighty.The photos for this session were taken in February of this year at Summit Coffee in Davidson where they perform regularly. As with all truly good live music, the vibe was raw and fun and we loved focusing on each band member. The Grievous Angels, by the way, are Joe Ciarlante, Tim Farney, Richard McDevitt, Reid Cathcart, Jim Gamble and Alicia Akima R Driver.
Drummer (and booking agent) Jim Gamble
the lovely, the talented Tim Farney, Ladies and Gentlemen.
(left) Joe Ciarlante and Reid Cathcart and the brilliant Richard McDevitt on piano
Grinning Reid (left) completely caught up and DY-NO-MITE Joe shredding and singing on the right
Reid Cathcart
The Pistol – Alicia Akima R Driver (get OUT of the way ya’ll)
L-R: Joe, Richard and Alicia
Pixels loves photographing musicians, as you know, and would love to do so for your band, group, ensemble, trio or musical tribe. We’re looking forward to Merlefest in a mere 4 weeks.
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.
Pet Portraits yield mountains of pet food for our local animal shelter
In early November of last year, we broadcasted that we were booking appointments for Christmas photos of families, kids, new babies, couples and your other adored family friends. We also set aside a special day to photograph your pets. Here was the deal: on December 12th, we would prepare a festive and decorative setting for pets at our Pixels On Paper portrait studio in Wilkesboro for a free session. We would provide you with a photo file of your pet for use on a holiday card or to print, frame or share. In return, you would bring a 20 lb bag of food for us to donate to the Wilkes Animal Shelter.
We exceeded even our expectations!
We filled our truck to overflow and delivered it to the shelter. Upon our arrival, they told us that they were almost completely out of dog food. Their food storage building had only a few bags until we unpacked literally our truckload.
The last time we did this fundraiser, we contributed 560 lbs of food to the shelter. That was 2012. For 2015, we more than doubled it, delivering 1,243 pounds of dog and cat food. Our partners in this, Waggles Pet Supply & Dog Wash matched more than half of our donations.
We love this fundraiser, though it’s an exchange of pet portraits for pet food. It’s a foodraiser! I don’t have a soapbox speech on this, gang – I just want to say THANK YOU. Thank you, because it matters. We hear in our communities fairly often about the importance of outreach and “meeting a need,” be it for a school, a church, a specific neighborhood that is struggling or for more well-known causes related to health and sustainability. These local animal shelters in our communities meet a real need as well, so whether you are a former or current pet owner, or just a big-hearted human, we appreciate your willingness to be a part of the helping team!
Below is a selection of our portraits subjects. No cat, dog or human was harmed in the taking of these. They were mostly snuggled to bits.
Our donation offers a small decrease in expenses for the shelter which can then prolong the time the animals have to be adopted.
We’re incredibly grateful for all those who participated, let us love on and photograph their fur babies, and especially to our partner Waggles Pet Supply & Dog Wash for their generous contribution of food and freebies.
Learn more about how you can give back:
About Waggles Pet Supply & Dog Wash
Waggles Pet Supply & Dog Wash is a locally owned and operated business in Historic Downtown Wilkesboro. Two sisters, Kim and Robin, with the assistance of their mother Anna have created a unique place to spoil pets. Waggles offers accessories, specialty foods/treats and grooming supplies. A Do-It-Yourself Wash is available where you are supplied with everything you need to wash your dog, but Waggles cleans up the mess. Waggles Wash, and Dazzle Dog Grooming are also available.
About Wilkes Animal Shelter
Wilkes Animal Shelter receives more than 6,000 impounds per year. Approximately 100 pounds of pet food are used per day. Donations of food, bleach, blankets and towels are always needed. The Humane Society of Wilkes volunteers work closely with the personnel at the Wilkes County Animal Shelter to help get shelter pets adopted or placed in foster homes. The Wilkes county animal shelter is located at 408 Call st. Wilkesboro NC. Their number is 903-7688 and their hours are 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM Monday – Friday, and 10:30 AM to noon on Saturday.
