paige elizabeth photography

Happy Christmas morning light...

I'm an early riser. Sleeping in looks like 7am if I'm lucky. But this morning, Christmas morning, it worked out to my benefit. Awake early I peeked out the window to see what the weathermen thought we had slim chance of receiving this holiday... snow. And at this quiet hour when even the most anxious of Christmas children haven't stirred yet, not even my husband, it feels like magic. If I listen closely I can almost hear Santa's sleigh winging out of sight.

Merry Christmas to all! In the first morning light...

(My Christmas surprise was my sweet husband coming out the door just after this photos was taken. He thinks his girls, the dog and I, are nuts. But came out to join us in celebrating Christmas snow anyway. Our own little Christmas miracle... :) )

Giggles & Leaves

This is just the kind of session I loooooove! I just adore these kids! We did really fun photojournalistic photos of the family in the morning while they were on vacation - there's nothing better than 2 year old bed hair - and then fnished up at the park. I love being able to play and romp and follow kids into their world. And Luke, Ella, and Quinn always give me the funniest material to work with...

Boris

It's just the fall of kittens. And I couldn't be happier about it!

I love photographing pets. Heaven knows they are our furry children. One of the first gifts I gave my husband when we were dating was a coffee table book of photos of his dog. It's incredibly important to have photos of our pets. We don't realize how briefly they are with us.

And cats? They always present unique challenges to photograph. Boris, however, practically posed for me. Along the way to stealing my heart...

Twenty photographers, thirty cameras...

And more fun than you can shake a stick at!

Andrew & Jessica & Erin worked their tails off to get a great group of models and photographers together to give Crystal's dress a proper send off to married life. I always find it hard to photograph when surrounded by so many other photographers -- I'd be a terrible paparazzi. But I had a great time catching the trippy things that photographers do to get the shot. Sometimes I feel like we're the James Browns of the wedding industry... And then I remember how hard every single person works to make a fabulous wedding happen. It must be a labor of love.

Saturdays and Dresses...

What could possibly be better than Saturday afternoon and bridal gowns? Lots and lots of bridal gowns!

I joined the wonderful women of Anna Be Bridal Boutique to photograph brides choosing their dresses and we just had the best time! The only thing better than a bride every Saturday is many brides in the same day. And their moms, friends, sisters, aunts, nieces... it was just too much fun. When the champagne started to flow I knew that I had found a new home.

A special thank you to Anna, Breanna, Jordan, and Kalli. And to all the wonderful brides I met. I won't share names or faces so it can all stay a big secret from the guys. You know who you are! Enjoy your super secret slideshows. Congratulations! And look for your dress below...

Don't box me in!

I am so excited! The amazing Sofie of Amorphia Photography out of the UK contacted me in July wanting to post my work on Don't box us in! (The blog is run by the fabulous Mark Eric and Sofie and a spin off of their very successful Trash the Dress blog.) The new site is all about getting outside of the every day photography, especially for weddings.

Wedding photography now is about so much more than photojournalism... It's about getting really creative and delivering those once in a lifetime images of the day a bride barely remembers but never forgets. It's about putting every part of your heart and soul into photographing a love story.

DBUI has posted some incredible work over the last few months including the amazing Jesh de Rox. And I'm so excited to be there too! You can check out the interview here. Thanks Mark & Sofie!

Point & Shoot... beach style

At long last we took a weekend off! A few planes and cars later we joined dear friends in Rehoboth for a few days of serious R & R, incredible food, wine, and friends. And the opportunity to test a theory...

When I'm shooting I always have back ups for the back ups of my equipment. I believe you can never be too careful. But I also believe that a good photographer should be able to make some magic happen with nothing more than a pocket size point and shoot. I was hoping to prove that it is indeed your head (which has to know what that little camera can and can't do) and your heart (which leads you to beautiful moments that you want to keep forever) that make a great photo. It's not the equipment.

So after being just as lazy and happy with the gang on the beach as I possibly could, I gave in, picked up my itty bitty Nikon S5 and headed into the surf with the girls to see what we could make...

(I should also mention that I am seriously attached to these girls! Sayer's freckles stole my heart and Rosie had the energy of ten men! How she stayed in the water that long is a mystery to me. And they were kind enough to let me do puzzles with them, which is a quick way into my heart.)

We had such a wonderful time! Thank you, thank you to our terrific hosts!

The Sunflower Sessions...

The sunflowers are back! And I'm just too excited to stand it. They are just fabulous for portraits! The sunflowers are great for brides, engagements, families, high school seniors... Let your imagination roam!

So, in honor of the sunflowers being in bloom, I'm opening up two more last minute 'Sunflower Sessions.'

Update: The sunflower sessions are booked for this year. Tune in next summer for what promises to be an annual event...

Love of My Life...

Pity the life of a photographer's family. It's true. Children, spouses, dogs, cats, parents... they are forever subjected to the whims of our cameras. The problem is that it's usually in the service of testing new equipment or ideas. As we sat on the back patio last evening enjoying the last day of what was for both of us a well-deserved mini break, I realized it was a moment I wanted to keep.

Too often I forget to make the same photographs for myself that I have so much fun making for my clients. To that end, my darling man found himself dragged from a pleasant Sunday evening glass of wine to an impromptu portrait session. If you know him, you know that he is always perfectly pressed, immaculate in every way. I love these photos because they are the weekend version that is so special to me. Even if I did get the hand after just a few minutes...

It's about love, actually...

I watched one of my favorite movies again this weekend and realized it’s my favorite, actually.

I cry every time I watch Love Actually just like I get a little bit teary at every wedding I photograph. I love every part of every love story in the movie and all the different flavors. Father and son, new loves, old loves, friends that you love more than you’ve ever learned to express.

As I was watching the very end, the part at the airport arrival lounge where everyone is so happy to be reunited, I realized it’s just like weddings. At a wedding, all you have to do is open your eyes and those same stories come leaping forward all around you. This is why I love photography – photographing people, photographing weddings. The loves of our lives take a thousand different forms and they’re just waiting to be captured.

The warmth of a memory and the photograph of a single second in time are the only ways I know to keep these moments forever.