October 2015 - Charlotte Family Photographer | Carolyn Ann Ryan Photography

28 Oct

Charlotte NC Family Portraits | Focus on the Moments

One of my favorite wedding photographers is constantly reminding photographers that photographing a wedding isn’t about capturing and documenting the shoes, rings and table cards, but it’s about capturing the moments of the day. I think the same can be true in family portraits. It isn’t about photographing a styled session and showing photographs of children holding berries or pinecones (while I will admit these can be beautiful images and wonderful accents to a gallery), but it’s about documenting a family together for an afternoon. It’s about the squeezes and hugs, the way they look at each other, the giggles and laughs, and the stolen moments of pure adorableness. And it’s about remembering the couple of hours they spent together just enjoying each other’s company and being happy. But sometimes, my favorite part of these sessions is remembering the moments that triggered that perfect giggle or smile and what might have been happening behind the scenes to create those seemingly perfect moments. If the viewer of the photographs only knew how we did it. Because yes, maybe the giggles were generated by the tiniest family member singing a song about poops while the family walked together holding hands. As you can imagine, that might just cause the rest of the family to crack up with real, genuine laughter and for me – it becomes the perfect moment. I just love those moments. They are my favorite.

19 Oct

Charlotte Family Photographer | The Gift of Memories

One of my favorite things about this session is that Dad had purchased a gift certificate for Mom for Mother’s Day. He knew she had wanted family portraits for awhile, and he knew she loved my work, so he took a phenomenal opportunity to surprise her and give her the gift of memories for a very special present! Not only did he make her happy when she opened the gift certificate, but I know she was thrilled with the results from the portrait session and the beautiful prints that are now displaying in her home on her walls. This is such a beautiful family and the boys had so much personality!

This is truly a gift that Mom will treasure for many, many years to come! Great job, Dad!

16 Oct

Charlotte, NC Family Photographer | Beauty Multiplied

Charlotte, NC Family Photographer | Beauty Multiplied

I really have a special place in my heart for families that have four girls. While I also love families with 1, 2, 3, 5 or more girls, there is just something about the magic number 4. Maybe, it’s because my only sister has four beautiful daughters and my nieces are some of the most awesome kids I know. There is something so amazing about their sisterhood and friendships – words can’t even describe it. It is so evident in the way they support each other in everything they do. And well, my sister is the equivalent of a superhero in my eyes. I absolutely have no idea how she does all that she does, and in the midst of what could be chaos for some, has created an incredibly loving and crazily fun home and family.

And so, I have a crazy amount of respect and love for parents with four daughters, and I have so much spending time with their families and seeing the family dynamics. This family was no exception, and I saw the same crazily awesome feeling of sisterhood existing in this four beautiful girls, and it was such a pleasure to spend an afternoon with them. But I think all in the family would agree, that the littlest munchkin absolutely STOLE.THE.SHOW! We just couldn’t stop giggling at the amazing and sometimes hilarious expressions she provided. It became evident that she just didn’t love sitting in the grass, especially as she would hold her legs up in the air while Dad was trying to sit her down. And then, she just kept us smiling throughout the day. These images not only gave us beautiful photographs for wall portraits and holiday cards, but we were also able to create the most perfect Thank You card for the littlest first birthday party!

I hope these make you smile today!

12 Oct

Charlotte, NC Family Photographer | Even when they are not so little . . .

As a family photographer, I truly believe there is never a bad time for family portraits. It doesn’t matter the age of your children, younger or older, it’s always a great time to update your photographs. Children deserve to have tons of beautiful images and photographs with their parents that they will keep and treasure years into the future. When children are teenagers, it’s awesome to remind them of the importance of family and the closeness they share with their family members. As children get older, they often start to realize that their parents are their best friends and their biggest fans and champions. These relationships are so fun to capture in images for both parents and children. During this particular session, I especially loved showing these beautiful girls just how stunning they really are, and my favorite photographs from the day were the ones we created of the sisters together. Their incredibly close friendship just shines right through in these photographs. Through thick or thin, these sisters will forever be each other’s best friend.