Nakaya and Aaron's Pullen Park Engagement Session

“Love doesn’t make the world go ‘round. Love is what makes the ride worthwhile.”

— Franklin P. Jones

I connected with these two cuties because of The Oaks at Salem, one of my all time favorite venues. Their big day is scheduled there in October this year and we’re all crossing our fingers that nothing will need to change due to the current events. Booking their engagement photos was proving difficult enough, with the winter weather postponing our last attempts and the corona threatening this one, we all really wanted to move forward.

Fortunately the weather cooperated and every single flowering tree in the park seemed to have blossomed over night. It was a perfect day. As most exceptionally beautiful women usually are, Nakaya was super shy at first, believing she’d chosen the wrong outfit and wondering if she was standing just right and not feeling especially beautiful, but Aaron saw to it right away to shower her in kisses and tell her everything that would make her smile.

These two have the type of friendship that loves to play and tease. I could tell from just their social media posts that they were going to have a great time no matter what we did. They were not the least bit bashful when it came to being silly or following the off the wall prompts I threw at them. This makes a shoot so much more enjoyable. It’s not about posing. It’s about connecting with each other and capturing your love in a way that the grandkids will know what you were like together.

I’m so excited for you both! October is just around the corner and we are going to have SO much fun!

Five Lessons from North Carolina

“Nobody who ever accomplished anything big or new or worth raising a celebratory fist in the air did it from their comfort zone. They risked ridicule and failure and sometimes even death.”

— Jen Sincero

Wow. It would seem that today is my last official day in this great state. It has been quite the journey. Raised in Boone, College in Banner Elk, and the past 10 years living and learning in Raleigh with a great deal of impressionable time spent in Charlotte. 

Childhood planted in me deep roots of loving people well and working hard while my time in Raleigh and Charlotte made me more knowledgeable, aware, free and untamable. I'm grateful for the powerhouse women, men and transgendered folks who have helped form my perception of the world, and grateful for the series of mistakes, triumphs, blunders and outright failures that shaped my grit, persistence and courage. 

1: In the words of the Genie from Aladdin, "Just beeeee yourself"

I would have to say my greatest life lesson in these 33 years has been first: to be myself and NEVER apologize for being such. We are all unique individuals who often start off with big dreams and huge hearts ready to take on the world and give everything we are to her. Though, somehow it's easy to lose track of that in the busyness and people-pleasing and we can lose our way. I lost and found myself multiple times over the years between college, marriage, art, forgiveness and discovering my other family as an adult. I'm sure I will continue to do so in the years to come as A.J. and I  learn to love our new St. Augustine home and family. 

Learning to fully embrace my inner ENFP and all of the beauty and complications that come with it has made a huge difference.  Apparently freedom is the most important thing in the world to me. I don’t like being confined by stereotypes or holidays or gender roles or even one job. I usually rail against anything I am "supposed to" or "expected to" do, but when you know who you are, then you know who you don't have to be. 

“An ENFP is: the body of a woman, soul of a child, mind of the free and heart of the wild”

— Ashley Lemaine

2: Kindness wins every time

To this day I still get notes and comments from people that I knew only once or for a season in high school who say that my kindness helped them through a tough time. In most cases I don't even remember what they're talking about. This has to come from my father. Always a servant, never asking for anything, always going above and beyond to make sure people are taken care of. He provided the best possible example.

There's no need to get heated at someone who cuts you off in traffic, it'll only ruin your day, not theirs. Allowing someone to go first in the grocery line will only hold you back by 1-2 minutes but it will drastically improve the rest of their day. Holding open doors, putting karts back in the parking lot, picking up trash that isn't yours, and just offering a smile to a stranger are all acts that have a ripple effect. Occasionally people at A.J.'s coffee bar would pre-purchase coffee for the next person, and it never ended there; five to ten customers later people would still be buying for the next person. Kindness always ripples, use it well and often. 

3: Adaptability is the best stress-relief

I have never met a group of people more chaotic than my new Charlotte family. There is literally no point whatsoever in having a plan for your day if it involves them, because it will absolutely change at least 17 times, and always at the last second. I've always been naturally adaptable (that's the P in ENFP), but never so much as I am now. They have taught me that as long as we are together and no one is getting hurt, the other details are irrelevant. Stressing out over a change in dinner plans will only ruin your night, it's much easier to just go with it and enjoy the ride. 

4: Love every single person you meet

This began with growing up an only child, alone and lonely, desperate for friends or neighbors or even adults to keep me company. In school I was always drawn to outcasts, and in the years I directed and organized community service projects for a church, I met an endless supply of folks who were without a home, refugees unable to speak english, children who couldn't read, mothers who didn't know what to do with unwanted children, convicted pedophiles who couldn't get a job, and my best friend: a man wrongly convicted of a crime (I believe due to his sexual orientation) with an unspeakable life sentence. 

The stories of heartbreak and love, failure and triumph, racism and violence followed by heart change and forgiveness have opened me up to an understanding that we are all the same. We are all messy and beautiful. All capable of inconceivable hate AND fierce love simultaneously. At different times we all make mistakes, say things we regret, take the easy way out, look the other way and judge someone based on their appearance. Just because we're not doing those things right now, doesn't mean that we haven't before or won't tomorrow and it definitely doesn't mean we have a right to judge someone else's story. 

5: The LGBTQ community has become my greatest passion and ally.

I must apologize here first. For over 20 years I allowed the village of well intended teachers, family, books, friends, co-workers and preachers to form my beliefs completely about this community without question. I've always been one to easily believe anything I hear until an opposing viewpoint is introduced. I didn't hear an opposing viewpoint about this beautiful community from someone I respect until a few years into Raleigh. This is quite possibly the greatest community of individuals I have ever known. Brave, kind, patient, forgiving, resilient...everything I want to be and more.

I am humiliated when I look back at the feelings I had toward this community early on, the things I would say "on God's behalf" regarding their eternity. To go through life without questioning anything you are taught is a very dangerous road, and it's a mistake I don't intend to make again. With grace and patience they have loved me anyway and I couldn't be more grateful for my own heart change.  

It is in honor of all these beautiful human beings, especially Christopher, who have reshaped me in the past few years that I am happy to announce, I will be giving away one free couple or family session to the LGBTQ community every month in 2018. This can also include $500 off of any wedding package. I know $6,000 is not much in the grand scheme of things, but I want the world to begin seeing this community for who they really are: fiercely loving, loyal, generous and compassionate. You can find the details and technicalities of the giveaways at the bottom of the post. 

I have written and rewritten this blog wondering who I am going to offend and how it’s going to affect different relationships... then I realized that goes against lesson number one: just be yourself and don’t apologize. Thank you North Carolina friends and family for shaping me into who I am today. Thank you for enduring my growing pains and for loving me as I am. You will be my home forever. 

““Try to learn to breathe deeply, really to taste food when you eat, and when you sleep, really to sleep. Try as much as possible to be wholly alive with all your might, and when you laugh, laugh like hell. And when you get angry, get good and angry. Try to be alive. You will be dead soon enough.””

— Ernest Hemingway

Giveaway Details:

One free couple or family session per month in 2018 for the LGBTQia+ Community. This can include $500 off of a wedding. 

To enter, tag your partner on this blog or on my original Facebook/Instagram/Twitter Post. (not a shared version, because I might not see it) 

I will draw the first 3 couples/families Jan 1st, and again quarterly throughout the year.

You will need to be able to come to St. Augustine, FL or Raleigh, NC at the same time I am.

Good luck!

The Fleming Family at Fred Fletcher Park

“When love is a habit, joy is a reflex.”

— Bob Goff

A.J. and I met Gorden at our gym a couple months ago and instantly knew we liked him. You know, some people you just like right away and you can't explain it. When he asked me to take family portraits for them, I couldn't wait to meet the rest of his family and they did not disappoint!

Kelly was quick to welcome me with a big hug right away and by the end of the shoot inviting us over for dinner. They both have such big hearts and you feel loved immediately in their presence. 

That is not unnoticed by their 4 amazing kiddos. Ware and Caroline Gray were both quick to help their younger siblings get into place and make sure they adjusted Hunt's hair and Bess' cute dress. They helped them when they wanted to climb the stairs... and the tree...and the wall...and the porch... you get the idea, love came effortlessly. 

Hunt and Bess are little fireballs of energy, never without a huge smile on their face, and always ready for the next adventure...very much my kind of (little) people. 

I had so much fun exploring Fletcher Park with you guys! I hope you enjoy looking back through some of my favorites from the day! 

Tony and Amber EXPECTING! Raleigh, N.C.

“Family is not an important thing, it’s everything”

— Michael J. Fox

With Hurricane Matthew headed toward the coastline last week, we were more than a little worried for our family. All of A.J.'s immediate family and several extended family live in or near St. Augustine, FL where the storm surge was expected to be several feet. They had to evacuate to new locations twice because it kept getting worse, and while we are MORE than grateful no one was hurt, the family restaurant took a huge hit and they've been scrambling to make repairs ever since. 

It was difficult for them the leave the chaos, but they had already planned a quick baby-moon up to the mountains of NC (and Raleigh to visit us of course). Everyone encouraged them to get away from it all for a minute to rest and make sure there wasn't any unnecessary stress on the baby. We are, of course, so glad they did. 

Amber is absolutely glowing right now in her 7month glory and I've never seen Tony so happy. They are going to make the very best of parents and we are going to spoil the little guy SO much! Cannot wait to meet him you guys! Here's a few of my favorites from Pullen Park see you in January!

Have you ever seen two people SO excited to be parents?!?! Gah! I love you both so much! Can't wait!!

Wedding Day Moments

“The moment in between what you once were, and who you are now becoming, is where the dance of life really takes place.”

— Barbara de Angelis

Formal portraits and semi-posed smiles are certainly a vital part of any wedding day, but some of my favorites moments are the ones that fall in between. There's life to be found there. 

It's easy to gauge each milestone marker in our lives with the big events: birthdays, weddings, new puppies, births, new jobs, new cities, even concerts and other bucket list items. I like to think of those as the formal portraits and semi-posed smiles that represent each step in our lives. 

But it's the in between moments that are pure gold. The small victories when we choose kindness over impatience. When we stay up late with our spouse because they need comfort more than we need sleep. When a knowing smile is all it takes for two souls to burst into laughter and a gentle touch to bring on the flood gates that wash away the pain. 

Sometimes the camera settings are not perfect and the composition not exactly artistic, but it's the captured moments that arrive for a second and are gone just as fast, the moments that cannot be re-posed that make the day real and move the story forward. 

From epic toasts to subtle adjustments to brothers in the military calling in because they couldn't be there, I live for these moments in my own life and yours.