Durham Family Photographer

Carolyn Scott is a Durham family photographer. She specializes in candid and documentary at-home family photography in the Triangle area (Durham, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Cary, etc). Carolyn’s work has been published in several popular books and magazines, including Apartment Therapy, BuzzFeed, and Fangoria. Locally, she’s been voted Best Photographer in Durham Magazine’s Best Of Durham and INDY Week’s Best of the Triangle. She lives in South Durham with her husband Geoff and three cats.

These are our BUDS. Always happy to photograph them as clients but more happy to photograph them as some of our best friends. Last year we did an on-location shoot but this year we went back to their house because SamSam, their dog, felt left out and missed me too much. I don’t know what to say about these folks that I haven’t said before but it bears repeating that I love them and I’m grateful to have friends who are family down here. We watch a lot of bad movies and occasionally some good movies and we celebrate holidays and birthdays and go through good things and bad things together and sometimes I take their pictures. Their oldest son and I are buddies – we hang out at Geoff and Jon’s softball games together where he tells me important things like “I went to Target today” and asks the hard hitting questions such as “How far is your house from here?” and about 50 other questions that start with “why” in an hour’s time. Their youngest son, who has been slightly more wary of me, is now big smiles and I’m pleased to report that he voluntarily ran up and pushed me during this session while giggling and running away, which is his first voluntary interaction with me. Soon we’ll be best buds too. However, their first and oldest child, dog SamSam, will always make sure that I’m her best friend first and foremost and will bowl over all children and people in the process (I’m going to pretend she’d do this even if I didn’t give her treats).

So happy to have these friends back on the blog! Sara and Joe welcomed their newest addition of a baby girl into their family this spring, and it was a joy to photograph her sweet little face! She was so sweet and was an excellent little sleeper for photos. I’m so excited to see what her personality will be as she grows up! She’s seen here alongside her older brother, who is a car make/model expert. He can name what seems like quite literally any make and model of car he sees. His parents, previously not car people, now find themselves definitely aware of what model Buick is parked on their street. He prefered the family-photo-smiling strategy of saying “1-2-3 Jeep!” instead of “1-2-3 cheese!”… and that’s my photography tip to you, fellow parents of car kids. ;) This incredible sibling duo is also pictured alongside their furry siblings: dog Max and cats Cloud and Usagi. Max and Usa are our buds and were easy to photograph. Cloud, the family skeptic, required some treats in exchange for being photographed but decided it was worth it. It was a joy to photograph this family all together and help them welcome their new little girl to their wonderful home!

This was my first time working with Katie, Lee, their newborn baby, and their cat Oliver. I love meeting new people and attempting to win over their cats. I was warned several times that it would probably not be possible with Oliver, but I’m pleased to report that he tolerated my presence and politely posed for photos. ;) What a handsome guy! Tied in first place of handsomeness with his younger human brother, of course. Their baby was so wonderful to work with! He slept, he chilled, he swaddled, he slept some more. What a gem. We took some pictures around their home in their first few weeks of parenthood and discussed the travel adventures that they’ll do with their son when he gets older. Katie and Lee are avid travelers, and their baby’s nursery reflects one of their favorite trips to Africa where they saw some baby elephants (Katie’s favorite). It was a quiet, lovely morning to photographing this beautiful new family!