Charlotte NC Child Photographer Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Charlotte Family Photographer

07 Aug

Marvin, NC Summer Family Portraits | Everybody

I just love Summer Family Portrait sessions. We photographed this adorable family locally right in a local park and had a great afternoon with the kids exploring the area. At this time of the Summer, there were still a few cicadas around, and the two littlest ones had no fear and loved looking at them and even picking them up to get a closer look. They tried to give me a few to bring home as presents, but I explained that the cicadas would be happiest at the park. 🙂

Check out these images of a sweet local family.

Marvin, NC Summer Family Portraits by Carolyn Ann Ryan
Summer Portraits in Marvin, NC with North Carolina Family and Child Photographer Carolyn Ann Ryan.

North Carolina Child and Family Photographer photographs a Summer portrait session in Marvin, NC

14 May

Marvin, NC Child Photographer | Cuteness

I love watching my little clients grow. I’ve been photographing this family since their older little man was just a tiny newborn baby. And last year, we welcomed their second little guy. It was so wonderful to meet my clients at Historic Richmondtown in Staten Island once again this Spring to photograph their oldest child’s 3rd birthday portraits along with Easter portraits of both little guys.

During our consultation, their Mom and I talked about how much we love Janie & Jack outfits and I just can’t resist a little boy in a hat, so Mom made sure to get some adorable little hats for these munchkins. Their outfits were just perfect for the day, the season and location.

While we were wandering around Richmondtown in Staten Island, I noticed a few new buildings. These new additions are part of the set for Boardwalk Empire which occasionally films in this area. We loved incorporating the buildings into our photographs.

I hope you enjoy the irresistible cuteness of these little brothers and I can’t wait for the little man’s 1st birthday session later this year!

Enjoy!

Marvin, NC Child Portraits Brothers Marvin, NC Child Portraits of Brothers by Carolyn Ann Ryan

22 Feb

North Carolina Child and Family Photographer | Favorite Fridays – Trendy Ties

As a North Carolina child and family photographer, I often find adorable, little online stores for clothing for children, as well as cute props and accessories! My latest find is this adorable online store, Trendy Ties!

As you might imagine, they make adorable ties and bowties for our favorite little men! But now they also make cute little skirts for our favorite little ladies, as well as matching hair ties! I just received my order today of a sweet tie for my son in the Spring Blue Gingham with a matching skirt and hair tie for my daughter for Easter. I cannot wait to photograph my children in their coordinating set, and will definitely share photos when I do!

These sets will also be adorable for your children for your Spring Family Portrait Sessions, so I recommend checking out their site and placing your order soon, as these are custom made.

For today’s Favorite Friday, I wanted to introduce my clients, fans and friends to Trendy Ties, as well as let you know that I have a special coupon code that I can share with clients. So, if you are a current or past Carolyn Ann Ryan Photography client, and would like to place an order with Trendy Ties, then please email me at carolyn@carolynannryan.com for your special coupon code.

Enjoy your weekend!

11 Sep

Charlotte, NC Child Photographer | Tiny Tuesday – “Someday we’ll tell you what this all means . . .”

On a rainy day in August, and we traveled to Jersey City and spent the morning at the Liberty Science Center. But upon leaving, we found the sky had cleared, and I wanted to visit the Central Railroad of New Jersey historic train station located inside Liberty State Park. It was a short drive from the museum and I knew the kids would enjoy seeing a view of the NYC skyline up close.

But when we got out of the car, my husband and I quickly glanced over and saw the Empty Sky Memorial. Of course, we immediately remembered that day 11 years ago, and our hearts grew a little heavier.

We first ventured into the train station and looked around, and then returned outside to see the skyline again. I have a bunch of images that I love from that afternoon (I’ll post more tomorrow), but as we turned to head back towards the car, we decided to walk through the beautiful Memorial standing tall between us and the parking lot. It was so elegant and peaceful. It deserved a quiet respect. As my husband took my smiling three year old son’s hand and began to slowly walk through the Memorial, I heard him whisper, “Someday we’ll tell you what this all means . . . “.

I paused for a moment with my daughter. In front of me I saw a man with a heavy heart, clutching the sweetness and innocence of childhood right at his side. When I saw their reflection in the side wall, I had to capture the moment. And yes, someday we’ll tell our children what it all means, but not just yet.

Today’s Tiny Tuesday post is in honor of all of those who lost their lives, especially the heroes who gave their lives to help save others.

10 Sep

North Carolina Family Photographer | Ocean Daydreams

Earlier this Summer, I traveled down the Garden State Parkway to meet old friends for an extended family portrait. I was contacted in December by a friend from elementary school that was looking to purchase a gift certificate as a Christmas present for her mother. She knew right away that the ideal time for family portraits would be during the family’s annual vacation in Long Beach Island in the Summer.

It was a special treat to be reunited with a childhood friend, her mother and sister, and also to meet their entire family – husbands and children. The weather was perfect and we began shooting right outside their vacation home before we journeyed down to the beach for extended family portraits as well as sweet moments with all the cousins having fun in the sand. Some of my absolute favorite images are the ones that capture the giggles behind silly moments with a family.

Here is a little opportunity for you to remember those lazy days of Summer . . .

Enjoy!

01 May

Marvin, NC Communion Portrait Photographer | Tiny Tuesday – A Moment of Reflection

This past weekend was my niece’s Communion Day and this was my absolute favorite image from the day. It was after the ceremony and we were in the lobby of the Church. I had brought her near the door to make some portraits using the window light when all of a sudden, I caught a glimpse of her bouquet in the marble wall. I took a few steps back, and there she was – the beautiful reflection of my sweet niece.

I had a photographer’s moment of glee as I made these images. I truly felt like a kid in a candy store. It was just pure happiness for me to capture a sweet moment like this.

Special thanks to my beautiful niece for all her cooperation and modeling for the day. Many more images to share, but for today, just sharing my favorite.

Enjoy.

31 Jan

Charlotte, North Carolina Children’s Photographer | Tiny Tuesday – Expect the Unexpected

What happens when you ask two adorable little girls to gather a pile of leaves and throw them in the air? Sometimes, even the subjects in your photograph don’t know what to expect next.

I loved everything about this session with these two beautiful little girls. The older sister has such a gorgeous smile, beautiful eyes, and she just seems to light up in front of the camera. The younger sister is full of spirit, energy, and a complete bundle of fun!

I also loved the colors here – their mom did a fantastic job with these adorable outfits. While the outfits are completely different, the colors pair nicely together and just pop against our late Fall backdrop.

So, these adorable girls gathered their leaves as requested, and stood really close together ready to toss them into the air. The older one threw her pile up in the air immediately after the first image was shot and honestly before I was completely ready.

But the little one waited just a few seconds more and tossed her pile a little lower (therefore partially in her big sister’s face) – catching her sister completely off guard. And then, this little munchkin was so excited with the leaves raining on their heads that she just starting giggling and running circles around her big sister.

The bottom picture captures a moment of sheer happiness and also one of surprise. What I love most about the images though is how much they made their Mom giggle when we sat down to review them together. Even to this day, everytime she sees that second image, she chuckles remembering the moment. We didn’t expect what happened, but it makes us both smile (and laugh) to remember that feeling of happiness.

26 Jan

Charlotte, NC Photographer | You Can’t Win, If You Don’t Try

Last year, while I was attending WPPI in Las Vegas, Animoto was sponsoring the “Animoto Pro Success Story Contest”. All you had to do was swing by the booth and answer a few questions on video about how you use and why you love Animoto, and one person would be chosen to be featured in an Animoto ad. I had been using Animoto to create slideshows for my clients for about one year, and they always did such an outstanding job helping to convey the emotions and story behind every session. In fact, it wasn’t uncommon for a Mom to tell me that it brought her to tears (or her parents, her husband, her neighbors, or her friends).

The contest itself sounded very cool, and although I figured a bunch of awesome and amazing photographers would be lining up for this opportunity, I decided to take a chance. Who knows, right? You definitely can’t win if you don’t at least try, and the opportunity sounded so exciting.

A few months later, I received a phone call from Animoto that I had been chosen to be featured in an ad that would run in Rangefinder and Professional Photograph magazines! Are you kidding me? Their ads so far have featured Kevin Kubota, Vicki Taufer, Scott Bourne, Jeff & Allison Rodgers and so many other wonderful people in the photography industry. And now I could count myself among them? Really?

It took time for me to believe it was really true. We spent some time discussing the plan for the shoot and Animoto’s own Justin Camerer (photographer & software developer) agreed to do the session right in Animoto’s offices. The tech geek in me (that spent 11 years doing software design) was really excited to visit Animoto’s offices and get to know their amazing team. In all honesty, if I still worked in Technology, I would want to work with these guys.

One of the things I love about Animoto isn’t just their awesome slideshows, but I love working with vendors that support photographers and provide education for our industry. And everyone I’ve met from Animoto has been incredible. Their slideshows have amazed my clients, and I still get so excited each time I click the button to produce a new slideshow.

I’m so excited to share a few images from the photo shoot and announce that the ad was published in Rangefinder and Professional Photographer magazine this January. I’m so grateful to Animoto for this opportunity and can’t believe my name is listed in the drop-down on their site along with a ton of top photographers that I admire. Thank you!

Special thanks to Justin Camerer for the portraits and Lindsey Jones for hair/make-up. I loved working with both of you!

22 Nov

Priceless Charlotte, NC Children’s Photography | Tiny Tuesday – Mother’s Love

Today’s Tiny Tuesday post is from one of this year’s Fall portrait sessions. I LOVE this moment and so does this little man’s Mommy, and it might be our favorite image from the entire session.

When we started the session, this little guy was being shy and just wanted to stay very close to his Mom and also his stuffed animal, George. But even though he was being shy, there were still moments to be captured.

I love this image because you can feel the tenderness. You don’t need a smile, a giggle or laughter to show the love that exists between a parent and child. For me, this image shows sweetness, comfort, security, love and curiosity all rolled into one. And I’m just completely mesmerized by those adorable eyes.

Enjoy and I hope everyone has a very Happy Thanksgiving.

15 Nov

Charlotte, NC Child Photographer | Tiny Tuesday – Thanksgiving Inspirations

Charlotte, NC Child Photographer | Tiny Tuesday

This week’s Charlotte, NC Child Photographer Tiny Tuesday post is about more than just a photograph of a cute little girl. This story is about how this sweet little one inspired her parents and many others to do good in their community around the holidays. With Thanksgiving approaching next week, I felt this was a really sweet story to share and I’m including my favorite image from her portrait session last October.

Olivia’s parents wanted to teach their daughter the true meaning of Thanksgiving and what it means to appreciate and give back. In November 2010, they set a goal to help feed four families a full Thanksgiving meal with all the extra trimmings. But after chatting with Olivia, she increased their goal from four to ten families. Olivia’s philosophy was simple and sincere: “If we are going to help people, we should try to help more people.”

So, Olivia’s father launched an effort through friends and family and in just two weeks, they were able to raise enough funds and collected enough food to feed 34 families a full Thanksgiving meal last year! They had funds come from New Jersey, New York, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico and England. This year, Olivia’s father increased their goals, is working with more families, and had even offered to chat with others to help them get a similar effort going in their own community. Based upon his personal experiences, he notes “you will certainly receive so much more than you give.”

I’m thrilled to say that my family contributed to their effort last year and again this year, and we are hoping to join them this weekend as they gather and sort all the food into boxes for distribution on Monday and Tuesday. And it’s all because of this adorable little smile below. This little sweetheart has inspired a whole community to give thanks in a wonderful way and help other families that couldn’t afford to enjoy Thanksgiving, celebrate with a wonderful feast.

So, now I’m curious, who else will this little girl inspire? If you can, please consider donating to your local food banks or other charities this coming week and help others enjoy this holiday. It doesn’t take much. It just takes a start.

08 Nov

Waxhaw, NC Children’s Photographer | Tiny Tuesday – Favorite Moments

Today’s Waxhaw, NC Children’s Photographer Tiny Tuesday post has two images. These were taken in July 2010 while my family was visiting a friend in Pennsylvania. Our friends had beautiful light in their backyard and thankfully I brought my camera.

Photographs don’t always need to show little ones looking at the camera smiling. In this case, you don’t even need to see faces. For me, the first image captures a moment. My little guy gives amazing hugs. And when he runs around, he’ll run right up to one of us, grab our legs, bury his head and squeeze real tight. Just looking at this image, I can feel his amazing squeeze. And I just love watching moments of my husband being a cute Dad. While this may be a moment that happens often during these toddler years, it’s a moment I love to see again and again, and I’m thrilled to have captured it in this sweet photograph. Someday, when our little guy is bigger, maybe even as tall as his 6’3″ Daddy, he’ll love this image, too!

The second image is just a sweet portrait of a smiling Daddy and his little man. I love the little one’s eyes and the beautiful light in this image. These are my favorite men.

25 Oct

Professional Matthews NC Child Photographer | Tiny Dancer

Starting this week, I’m introducing two weekly blog posts. Every Tuesday will be Tiny Tuesday where I post favorite images from sessions over the last few years and talk about why I love the photograph. Later this week, I’m going to start Favorite Fridays where I will share a favorite toy, children’s store, educational item or service related to children. I do expect that many of these will be local to my area and my clients, but some may be national or online items.

I do hope you enjoy these posts and I welcome feedback and comments.

This week’s Tiny Tuesday share is an adorable little girl caught spinning in the grass. As we started our session last Summer, she was a little shy and I needed to get her to warm up to the camera. I noticed her dress was perfect for spinning, so I backed up to give her some space and also a feeling that I wasn’t right on top of her and asked her to just twirl. What little girl doesn’t love to twirl and watch her own dress spin in the breeze? The result was this adorable image, and the remainder of the session was just wonderful. I love the timeless feel of this image. For me, it captures an innocence and sweetness that is a part of being a little girl – just a moment lost in their own world spinning in their dress.

27 Sep

Waxhaw, NC Child Portraits | All Smiles

Have you ever seen a photo of your children that you just kept going back to look at it over and over because you loved it so much? A photo that just makes you smile really big everytime you see it? You know, the photo that makes you stop and say to yourself – “Wow, these guys are mine and I love them so much! They may drive me nuts sometimes, but just look at them, they are awesome.”

Sometimes, all it takes is just one image to give you that feeling, and I was so happy to capture that one image for myself this weekend.

These guys love to run. They squeal and giggle as they are running, and I think this image just shows my munchkin and pumpkin at their best – happy together.

This is why I do what I do. Because, sometimes, you get a picture that will just make you smile everytime you see it. I love when it happens for me, but I also really do love when it happens for my clients, too. There will be more to share from this session, but for now, here was favorite.

21 Sep

Lovable Marvin, NC Family Photography | Nieces

I am blessed to have four beautiful, little nieces living not too far away. They are my daughter’s best friends, and we just love spending time with them.

I think my sister loves having a photographer in the family, but I don’t mind. It is a pleasure to spend a few hours with these girls and capture their beautiful smiles and watch them grow.
This year, some of my favorites are of my youngest niece, because she made me work for some of those smiles as you can see below, but capturing all of her personality (including the “fake” pouts) was just so much fun. Sometimes, those are the images that make me giggle most when I’m post-processing the session on my computer.

Here are some highlights from our End of Summer session last week. {Thanks girls for being so wonderful and fun!}

18 Jul

Enchanting Waxhaw, NC Child Portrait Session | Somewhere in a historic village . . .

My little girl will soon be one year older, and we are starting to plan her 6th birthday party, which will take place just a few days before she begins first grade. Earlier this year in her Kindergarten class, her teacher read the book “The Wizard of Oz” to the class, and my little munchkin (which has been my nickname for her for years) absolutely loved the story. Although she is still too timid to watch the movie, she loves the story of Dorothy.

So, she picked “The Wizard of Oz” as the theme for her birthday party. For the last few years we have included her birthday portraits on her invitations, because I love being able to look back each year to see how much she has grown. This year we decided to include the theme of her party as part of a very special portrait session for her.

Believe me, being a photographer does not make it easier to take my own children’s portraits. It’s sometimes harder, because I’m not a new or interesting person to them and they already know all my secret, special tricks for making children giggle and smile.

But this year, I made her birthday portraits a full day event complete with costume, hair appointment, red sparkly shoes and a stuffed animal puppy in a basket. We talked about this special session for two full weeks, and I blocked off my calendar to create a special day for just the two of us.
My little girl was completely swept up in the magic of this day from the moment she woke up that morning, and came rushing into my room with eager anticipation. We started early at Anthony Michael Hair Salon in Westfield, where the wonderful Pam Sestito created the braids that would start my little girl’s transformation. We then journeyed about 45 minutes away to Historic Richmondtown in Staten Island to give our session a complete period look with historic homes, barns, fences, and gardens.

Of course, twenty minutes into the actual portrait session, the heat of the day and the itchiness of her costume was causing her to pout, so that’s when I used my bribery plan and explained that if she cooperated for the remainder of the session, then we would get ice cream afterwards. I’ll let you guess which image below shows her reaction to that announcement.

Sometimes portrait sessions might seem stressful and frustrating, because we are trying to get our children to cooperate and do something for us. But, I’ve learned that by turning a portrait session into a fun day that is all about the children, and becomes something they WANT to do, then it becomes much easier to get their cooperation during the session. And if you choose to use bribery, don’t tell them about the rewards until you really need to use it. The pictures are worth it!

My daughter and I had a wonderful day complete with ice cream for lunch (something I would never do on a regular day), and we have these beautiful images of our little girl growing up. I love my job and I love being a Mom to this wonderful child. Thanks to my little munchkin for all her cooperation, and her beautiful smile.

(Now I have to brainstorm a special day with my little boy!)

Costume: Chasing Fireflies

Hair: Anthony Michael Salon (Westfield)