Memories Portraits {blogged} » Peeks into Memories | Knoxville Photographer, Nancy Belden

I’ve finally got my Wall Collection hanging, and I’m ready to show it off.  We’ve lived here for six years, and up until now a very big wall in my kitchen has been completely empty.   It’s the biggest empty space in my house (no furniture covering it up or anything), and it really kind of intimidated me.  I was afraid that whatever I did would not be enough and it would end up looking dinky, and to further complicate my brain, the ceiling is sloped and I could not figure out how to deal with that. But then we took Lexi downtown for her Matilda Jane session, and I knew I was going to have to figure this one out.  We didn’t intentionally shoot this to match my kitchen… but it does.  Perfectly.  So, I sat on my countertops for an hour one night staring at this huge barren wall and formulated a plan.  Once I had the diagram in my head, I went to the garage and grabbed a role of wrapping paper (if you’re anything like me, you have tons upon tons of Christmas paper) and began measuring and cutting.  I knew I wanted to print these canvases as gallery wraps, so I did not have to add any extra space in for framing.  Once all of my pieces were cut, I taped them on the wall like this:

then I went to the computer and looked for the right images to go together.   I knew I wanted the 24×36 to be a full length shot and I really wanted the red brick wall since it would go so well with the room, then I worked the others in the series around that one.  And I layed it out on the computer like this:

Then, all I had to do was size them correctly and place my order.

And wait.

And wait.

And wait some more.

I am so impatient…

then they finally arrived.

And the angels sang.
ok, maybe they didn’t sing, but I did. I put my husband to work measuring and hammering. And when he finished I cried. I am such a sap. I love how the colors match, I love her expressions and her poses, and I love how it is sloped to match the line of my ceiling.  It all goes together fabulously!  For real — they look amazing! Pretty much, I’ve shown it off to anyone that I can drag into my house this week.  And I had to keep my mother-in-law from stealing the 16×24. Now she is demanding copies. Tons of copies for anyone that ever cared to look at my daughter’s pictures. hehe, I love that about her. I digress… so, without further ado, here is my new wall in all it’s glory. I love it, and no matter how many kids we have… these are important and will stay in whatever home we happen to be in. They show her ‘two-ness’ so very well. Here is Miss Sassy Pants herself:

I realize the canvases look a little distorted, they really aren’t.  But I had to use a very wide angled lens to be able to fit the wall into the shot.  And the color is a bit off due to the kitchen light… but the red brick wall is exactly the color of the red paint on the wall.  I love happy accidents like that

Anyhow, I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my process, and maybe this will help you get brave with your walls too.  It is an investment, but a worthy one in my opinion.  This is art that you never get tired of looking at.

And, don’t forget, our next Matilda Jane Trunk Show is this weekend.  Come and bring a friend, these clothes are made for amazing photographs!

They’re here! We are ready to rock-n-roll for Christmas this year… and we’re offering a special. From now through October 31, if you buy two sets of cards you receive a free 5×7 or 5×5 print from your session. These cards come 24 per set and are printed double sided on a high quality linen textured cardstock. They make a great impression when sending to friends, family and clients, and we look forward to designing yours this year!
Click here to view our entire 2009 Christmas Card Collection

Whoops! This has been a crazy couple of weeks at the studio, and we totally let this one slip right by us. I promised to share info on the blog about our upcoming Matilda Jane Trunk Show, and nearly forgot until right now. So, here are the details… it’s a two day party next weekend. Friday, the 18th from 2:00-6:00 and Saturday, the 19th from 10:00-2:00. And before you object — yes, that is the day of the Florida game but the game is away and it doesn’t start until 3:30 so don’t let that stop you from joining in on the fun! There will be gift bags for the first 30 visitors and another round of awesome door prizes, not to mention more of that yummy food that makes all of Nancy’s parties famous. And, we’ll have some supercute new crochet hats that match MJ perfectly! So, even if you can only come for a quick visit after work on Friday… please stop by and check out this funky cute clothing for your sweet girl. We look forward to seeing you there!

…for some awesome fall outfits for outdoor sessions! No What to Wear this week, as I have feverishly been working on Lexi’s images from her last session, and I am very, very excited about the Wall Collection that will soon be hanging in my kitchen! This weekend I mapped it out on my wall (using an old roll of wrapping paper) and I cannot wait to get these back and hung on the wall, it is going to look amazing! I’ll be sharing more of her images soon, as well as a before and after of my kitchen. Guess I better get to cleaning it, lol!

p.s.  I thought I should also take a moment to answer a popular question as of late… no, you don’t have to be an established customer to get in on this deal.  This Casting Call is open to all newborns two weeks and under.  Please be sure to send this to any friends that have just delivered or are due soon!

ok guys, here’s the deal. We’ve got these amazing new ideas, new props, new products and we need babies! Babies must be under two weeks old, because we bend ‘em and squish ‘em and do all kinds of crazy things that only a fresh one can do. Think over the top Newborn Art… if you or anyone you know has just given birth or is due soon, please call the studio at 357-5800. There are no Session Fees or minimums either. We promise, you won’t be disappointed!

Warning, I’m going to get all mushy in this post. You see, I am in love… with this image, oh and the girl in it too! Nancy and I had plans to take my daughter, Alexis, downtown to get some really cool images of Lex in her new Matilda Jane clothing. The day before her session we received a looong awaited package in the mail, and in that box were four new pettiskirts that we ordered for the studio (two more still to come). So, we knew we had to get some shots of Lexi in a pettiskirt too, and away we went. And ohmygosh, they are fabulous, I swear these are my most favorite ever images of her! Definitely more to come from this session, as soon as I can take my eyes off of this image. I see a very large canvas for my kitchen in the near future.
This girl is sweetness and light all wrapped up in one little body, and I couldn’t be more smitten…

Need your little bundle of sweetness and light captured in one of these pettiskirts? We are most happy to create some amazing images for your home too…

okay, okay, I know it’s been a while since I promised to show the place off… but I reeeeally wanted it to be perfect. And now we are ready. And so very excited to post a Photo Tour of the studio. We love, love, love how it has all turned out and hope you do too. We have painted (and repainted – thanks Billy and Heather!), refurnished, and, most importantly, hung as many Portrait Collections as we could possibly fit onto our walls. We are so glad to have gotten such a positive response to these Collections and really wanted to show exactly how great these can look in any home. So, come on in and stay a while, take your time and take a look around. We’ve left no corner unturned, heck we even showed you our bathroom! Click here to take the Memories Photo Tour.

This week, I had the pleasure of photographing the actresses of Little Women. The show will be running August 13th – August 16th at the Clarence Brown Theater, and will benefit The Autism Society of America’s East Tennessee Chapter. There is a suggested donation of only $8 per ticket, what a great way to spend time with your family and help a very worthy cause all at the same time!

We’re running a month long sale on all Gallery Wrap canvases starting today, July 16th until Saturday, August 15th. Have a past session you’ve been waiting to order from? Go ahead and place you’re order soon for free Gallery Wrapping on your canvas enlargement — that’s a $150 savings! This offer is applicable to all available canvas sizes, and there is no quantity limit  {think Wall Collection…}  Have you been wanting to come in for a session? Call us to book your session soon and you’ll have time to place your order before the sale runs out.

All pieces are printed directly on a fine art canvas and gallery wrapped on a 1 1/2″ stretched frame and ready to hang as they come. This larger sized stretcher frame makes a good sturdy piece that looks amazing on the wall! The little cutie hanging on our wall in this photo is a 24×30, and I swear the color is actually much better in person but the lights in the room really made the colors go wonky for these photos. I took shots from several angles so you could get an idea of just how amazing these look and I also wanted to show the luxurious canvas texture.  Want a better look? Stop by our studio any time during business hours and take a peek at the real deal hanging on our walls!

Call 865-357-5800 today to place your order, or schedule your ordering session to come in and let us help you choose a piece for your home.

Hey guys, I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy 4th of July.  We’re taking the weekend off to enjoy with our families and will return to the studio on Tuesday, July 7.  Have a wonderful and safe holiday!  And, because I don’t like to post without a photo, here is one of my fave fireworks shots.

ok, so my husband took this at Boomsday last year.  But still one of my faves!