Dear Friends,

I hope you and your family had a wonderful August. It passed too quickly for me. Our children are back in school and the carefree days of summer are replaced with packing lunches, car pool lines, and checking homework. August was a busy month for me. My daughter Grace celebrated her 8th birthday this month and we had all the neighbors over for a pool party. She is in 3rd grade and loves playing on her Upward Soccer team.

I spent a week in Photography School here in Raleigh, NC and studied with Tony Corbell from San Diego, CA. He is an amazing photographer, author and teacher who has photographed 3 United States Presidents, 185 World Leaders, NASA astronauts & lots of famous people since 1979. He is an intelligent man who can break down difficult concepts and make them easy to understand. He’s also down-to-earth and very friendly. We had a wonderful time learning from him and photographing throughout the week. Here’s a fun silhouette shot we took in class. We were going for the Charlie’s Angel’s look (can you tell which one is me? Hint…look for the long hair) That pose was not easy to hold. It was worse than doing squats in aerobics, because we held it for at least 10 minutes while everyone was snapping away!

We survived a week of renovations in our home studio this month….which turned our lives upside down. We got new flooring in most of the rooms and granite countertops in the restrooms. It was like moving without going anywhere. Everything in the rooms had to be boxed up and moved… and I’m still unpacking boxes. But the carpet is so wonderful under my toes and the new wood floor adds a nice clean feel to the studio. And the good news is that I’m organizing everything… which is “my thing”. I think I was meant to bring order out of disorder. (I try to stop entropy… “the natural state of order is disorder”)

I saw many precious clients this month… babies, maternity, toddlers & families. I enjoy seeing your smiling faces and your beautiful children. Thank you for your friendship and the moments you entrust me to capture. It’s a blessing to share in your lives.

It’s a great time for a FAMILY PORTRAIT!

Every child longs to hear stories about their family. It helps them to understand the world better and tells them who they are and where they came from. When a child sees family faces in a portrait from long ago, today comes better into focus. Families need to be photographed regularly, as time touches each countenance, as we change and grow.

One of the most important photographs you’ll ever have taken is a family portrait. Beautifully designed family portraits make fine decor. Stop and think about your family room or living room. We invest thousands in fine furniture, window treatments, hardwoods and carpet, yet most of us give little thought to what we put on our walls. This is the weakest element of home interior design. Most wall “art” options are purchased off-the-rack at a store and they are chosen mainly because they might match the colors in the room.

Imagine, instead, a nicely designed family portrait with well-coordinated clothing, and expressions that reflect a pleasant moment in your lives. To hang this portrait in your home is much more personal than buying a print of a bowl of fruit from a chain store. When family portraits are taken to a level of fine art wall decor, your guests will spend all their time raving about your portrait and not even notice your new sofa or leather chair. Most importantly, in years to come… the family portrait is going to provide far more enjoyment than that old sofa which by then has been replaced because it went out of style. Your family portrait never will.

Have your family portrait done this Fall. Delight those you love with a Wall Portrait, Christmas cards, photo jewelry or photo handbags from your session. Hurry, sessions go quickly because this is my busiest season of the year! Call today to secure your spot 919-662-5541.

CLIENT OF THE MONTH: Matt & Jennifer Byers

I consider everyone I’ve photographed to be a part of my “studio family.” I have photographed many wonderful and interesting people over the years and I wanted to give you a glimpse of their stories along with portraits we’ve created. So come meet the rest of the family! August‘s featured client of the month is Matt & Jennifer Byers. They brought their beautiful daughter “Maddie” for a newborn/family session. We got the sweetest family portrait as well as some darling “sleeping baby” portraits. She joined the Baby Plan and brought Maddie for her three month portraits. She has beautiful red hair and is a little doll baby!

Here is Matt & Jennifer’s story…

Matthew and I met at our youth group at church as teenagers. We were friends for a long time before we actually went on a date.  After that first date though, we were pretty much inseparable!  We still are, even 14 years later, if you can believe it!  We were married on June 9, 2001 in our home church surrounded by our family and friends.  It was a beautiful day and one we will certainly cherish forever.  I think one of the things we appreciate about each other most is the fact that we are best friends and always try to put God and each other first in our marriage.  We moved to the Johnston County area in 2006 when Matthew was relocated with his job.  He is an IT Service Engineer with Umicore and I teach kindergarten with Harnett County Schools.  Both of us have very busy jobs, but what keeps us busiest is our little Madeline Claire!  She was born on May 8^th weighing in at 8 pounds 14 ounces. What a perfect first Mother’s Day gift!

Maddie is the greatest blessing! She is so beautiful!  She has red hair and her eyes are turning brown.  I am especially excited about the brown eyes because everyone says she looks just like Matthew, which is not a bad thing, but at least this is one thing like me!  Not only is she beautiful on the outside, but we are starting to see a wonderful little personality beginning to emerge more and more.  She is so sweet and has a good demeanor about her – very peaceful and easy going.  She is also alert and curious!  We can tell she is going to be a very bright child – her eyes are always looking around, soaking up anything and everything she can to learn about the world! She’s in the stage now where if she grabs an object, she pulls it straight into her mouth.  It’s so funny to watch her chewing on her little toys and exploring them with wonder.

She absolutely loves music and when she is excited about it, she wiggles and “dances”. It is the most precious thing!  She has started laughing real laughs in the last week or two.  Matthew always gets the best ones out of her – she is certainly a “Daddy’s Girl”.  Maddie is truly a joy and our lives are certainly better for her being a part of them!  My prayer these days is that we will be the kind of parents Maddie deserves, ones that will show her how to love and live like Jesus so that she will grow up to be a world changer for Him!

We first saw Susie’s work at Dr. Brannon’s office. If you’ve ever been in there, you know it would be hard to miss!  When you see Susie’s work displayed so beautifully, it’s obvious she is more than a photographer, she’s an artist.  I chose Susie because I knew I wanted to preserve Maddie’s baby days in such a way that captured the beauty and essence of this time in our lives.  I believe that Susie has done a stellar job and I know that as the years go by and I look at those portraits, I will remember these moments perfectly and with a heart of joy.

I loved Maddie’s newborn session, especially when the three of us had our picture taken together. There is one in particular that looks like Matthew and I are sort of giving a blessing to our little one.  During her 3 month session, she was a little less cooperative than in the newborn session, but the pictures were beautiful nonetheless.  My favorite moments were watching her in the pink ruffly outfit.  She was such a cute little princess!

I have to admit I was a cry baby when I saw Maddie’s pictures at the slideshow, especially the newborn session. Her portraits absolutely took my breath away!  I have recommended Susie to others and I certainly will continue to do so!  I love working with her because she is patient with me, even though I can tend to be a bit indecisive.  Of course, it’s difficult to decide when every picture is so precious!  I also love the way she interacts with my daughter.  She is delightful and pleasant and I know she works hard to get the very best shots she can.  It shows in the finished product, for sure!

We bought a framed collage with the scripture, “Every good and perfect gift comes from above.” It hangs in Maddie’s bedroom and the verse inscribed sums up how we feel about our precious girl.  She IS a gift from God and we are tasked with raising her to love and serve Him.  We thank God every day that she is in our lives and I honestly don’t know what we would do without her!

The loose portraits we bought have been framed and placed in a special grouping on our bedroom wall. I love to look at our sweet girl and just think about how much she has grown already!  These pictures really show how our family has changed over the last few months!  I think we both feel more complete since Maddie has come into our lives.

We bought a large wall portrait of Maddie with a butterfly on her back. We hung it in our family room, and I want everyone who comes in our home to see our perfect angel on display.  Although, I’m sure one day it will have to be moved as I’m guessing a teenage Maddie will not appreciate her bare bottom shining at everyone from the wall!

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Thank you Matt & Jennifer for sharing your story and for giving us a glimpse of your sweet portraits and your life. I can’t wait to photograph Maddie again…. She’ll be sitting up at our next session! It’s amazing how quickly babies change in the first year! Have a great month everyone and I look forward to photographing you soon.

Blessings to you!

To see more of my work, go to http://www.SusieGilmore.com

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To offer you the finest in portraiture, Susie is an active member in Professional Photographers of America, Professional Photographers of North Carolina and Photographic Society of the Triangle.