I met Nik for the first time shortly after Christmas in 2014. He'd flown in from Colorado to visit Erica, one of my best friends, thanks to a random roommate selection freshman year at James Madison University. I knew immediately this was who Erica would be with forever. I'd never seen her so happy and so herself around anyone before. Nik and Erica are both the type of people you feel like you've known your whole life the first time you meet them. They're down-to-earth, funny and incredibly kind — they're perfect for each other. Fast-forward almost three years, when Erica sent me a picture of her and Nik outside the famous Stanley Hotel with a big 'ol diamond on her hand! BEST. TEXT. EVER. I couldn't wait for them to come back to Virginia for Christmas, so we could do an engagement session. It was only about 25 degrees when we met up at Hotel Roanoke, but you'd never know that from their photos. After Hotel Roanoke, we walked over to the Deschutes Tasting Room, where I let them warm up inside while I snuck some photos from outside the windows. It was such a fun shoot! "Take one of us pretending we don't know you!" Laura Richards is a natural family portrait photographer in Roanoke, Virginia. If I'm the right photographer for your next session, let's talk!
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In my last Tucker update (July through September), he was so close to crawling, and now he's preparing to walk! He recently started standing unassisted for several seconds at a time, and climbing the stairs is his new favorite activity. (He seriously books it up the steps.) I have to remind myself every day that he's only been in this world eight months. Since September, he's also discovered a love of food. His favorites are green vegetables, bananas and pumpkin pie. Not new, though, is how much I continue to adore his funny personality. Currently, my favorite thing is when we tell him, "Shake it!" and he dances his head all around. He also does this when he hears a good song (but who doesn't?). Top: December; Bottom Left: October; Bottom Right: November My monthly mirror shots have started getting difficult to take. He's so wiggly and just ... large. We had to have two costumes this Halloween: Gryffindor Lion and a pumpkin. Love this one with Tyler's parents! 7 months old. Favorite pastime: Pulling Dad's hair. Gameday attire. Always on the move... Christmas morning with his gifts from Santa. His favorite was his first set of golf clubs. And he's eating the bag that has "naughty" printed all over it... Laura Richards is a natural family portrait photographer in Roanoke, Virginia. If I'm the right photographer for your next session, let's talk!
This session has been a long time coming. Way back in the summer of 2016, Courtney entered my very first session giveaway. I was looking for stories with heart, stories that would convey what makes your relationships so meaningful. When I read Courtney's story about her two best friends Erin and Monica — who also happen to be her cousins — something moved inside me. These three have known great loss and great fear. I remember immediately relating to the feeling of looking at someone and realizing how beautiful it is that they’re alive and right here — and never taking that for granted. I couldn't wait to capture this very special lifelong friendship, and to see how each personality contributed to the trio. Unfortunately, between scheduling (Monica lives in Montana) and other "life" things, we weren't able to meet for our session until just a couple of weeks ago — but the wait was SO worth it! I had so much following these three around downtown Roanoke. They swapped embarrassing stories and laughed the whole time. It was perfect. We started in the Pine Room Pub at Hotel Roanoke, then made our way onto the (very cold) courtyard. Then we made a pitstop at The Quarter, where some great Snapchats ensued. Next was the rooftop at Center in the Square, and then finally Jack Brown's! Life brought Courtney, Erin and Monica to James Madison University in Harrisonburg (a.k.a. the location of the OG Jack Brown's), so we had to come full circle! I'll leave you guys to enjoy all the highlights from their session and this snippet from Courtney's original entry: "We no longer live close to each other, but our friendship continues to stand the test of time. No amount of time or distance changes anything between us. Sometimes I'm amazed by it, but it proves to me that there's nothing in this world that could break our bonds. [Their friendship] has brought me so much joy. It needs to be documented while we're still young enough to enjoy it!" Laura Richards is a natural family portrait photographer in Roanoke, Virginia. If I'm the right photographer for your next session, let's talk!
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Hello!Welcome to the blog! I'm Laura, a Charlottesville-area photographer specializing in authentic, natural-light photography and heirloom print art. Hope you'll explore my little online home and reach out if you have any questions! Archives
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