Category Archives: Travel

Practicing what I preach: Gallery Wall Displays

I specialize in creating art for my clients’ homes.   I believe that large wall portraits are the perfect way to enjoy your images and a better alternative than smaller prints that eventually find themselves in a drawer or storage bins.  But, for the longest time, my own walls were completely devoid of the very thing that I tell my clients is so important.  I was too busy in my work to take time out to hang artwork in my home.  I’m talking YEARS went by and although I would take lots of photos of my kids, they somehow never managed to make their way to my walls. 
It was starting to really get to me, so I finally I decided to do something about it.  Every summer we travel to New England and each year I do a photo shoot with my kids on the beach.  Sometimes I would get prints made (see drawer comment above), but this time, I had something bigger in mind.  On our way to New England, we made a detour to visit my stepbrother, Charles, and his family in the Washington, DC/Maryland area.   While we were there, we visited the Smithsonian, and I was incredibly inspired by the Nature’s Best Photographer exhibit.   The gallery prints were huge and they glowed.  I knew immediately I wanted something like that on my walls and I wanted to feature my two children in a setting that my family adores– the beach. 
The resulting photo shoot was exactly what I had envisioned.  Watching them play on the beach is a moment I wish I could put in a bottle and keep forever.  Now that I have those moments in near life-sized format on my walls, I can.  
Here’s my living room before (dull, drab and completely uninspired):

And here’s the after (happy, vibrant, and full of life):

Even my cat’s pretty pleased with the way it turned out (I’m pretty sure that’s her look of approval)

Everytime I walk into my living room now, my heart feels super happy.  Another bonus is that my kids are thrilled to see themselves on the walls.  They have the most adorable conversatons about which photo is their favorite and why. 

My husband very graciously agreed to hang the photos for me.  Maybe because he knew I would very likely eyeball it and this kind of thing requires precision (Notice he’s using lasers y’all) 

I wanted to print the photos on acrylic, which is what the Smithsonian photos are printed on.  However, I was unable to get the sizes I wanted.  After a cookout at a fellow photographer’s home (Hi Brian!), I noticed the thin metal prints hung in his home and loved how they glowed just like acrylic.  They come ready to hang and appear to be floating from the wall.  You can see the details in the photos below. 

I am now offering this metal gallery display to my clients.  I’ve named it the “Hampton Collection” in honor of Hampton Beach, NH, where these photos were taken.   Interested in creating a gallery display in your own home?  Contact me and I’ll be happy to schedule a consultation to discuss what would work perfectly on your walls.
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My Quest for the Best Grits in the World is Over

Every time I return to Charleston, South Carolina, where I spent a good chunk of my childhood, I have happy memories.  This time I was able to do several things that make me very happy:  visit with family, spend some time on the beach and enjoy really good food.  

I also happened to discover the Best Grits Ever.  They are served at the Charleston Crab House  and I know they are the best grits because after I ate them I couldn’t stop thinking about them.  I didn’t get a picture of the actual grits, but I did get a couple shots in the restaurant.  Here are my beautiful cousins, Katelyn and Laura.   

And my adorable children, Isabelle and Liam. 

My passion is taking photos of people, but every once in awhile, I’ll try my hand at other things.   Here are a few shots in downtown Charleston, where the iron work is more like art work. 

I know that my cousin will appreciate me posting this photo of her.  There are “gum posts” by the Market and I’m pretty sure she was desperate for a piece of gum…

 The weather was great, so we headed to Isle of Palms, a place that is very special to me.

We also spent one day at Magnolia Plantation.  I took many field trips there as a child, but failed to truly appreciate the beauty until adulthood.    I would love to shoot a wedding there someday.

Here’s Katelyn again, posing in the bamboo.

Liam and Isabelle running along a trail.

And, of course, I have to include some of my kids in my Grandma’s backyard dressed in their Easter outfits, which stayed nice for approximately 5 minutes :)

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