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.

Gina+Pete+Elliott // Family Session.

Two things here.

First – Imma let you finish, but Elliott is the happiest baby OF ALL TIME. I know you might think you have a happy baby and you are like sure, sure, but then I dare you to look through these pictures and see what you think by the end of it. Your kid probably looks mega depressed now, doesn’t he? He is so ridiculously happy that I was afraid he might explode with joy, but much to our delight, he successfully stayed in one piece for the duration of the shoot. It’s possible that he’s not normally that happy, but rather that I don’t know the strength of my own charm and charisma. But, seeing as how no other babies, children, grown adults, nor pets have reacted this way, I can only assume it’s just Elliott. Perhaps he’s an alien (happiest best alien EVER!) or perhaps we just had a really great nap. Either way, we love him. He’s very charming.

Second – he is also the tallest baby ever. He’s 8 months old, but definitely is as tall as some toddlers I know, and basically half my height already. He’s going to be great at basketball.

Elliott, while stealing the majority of the spotlight, is accompanied by his parents Gina and Pete. They dressed him in striped footie pajamas that paid tribute to Sudan, the world’s last male northern white rhino, who had died just before our session. Much respect. Gina and Pete are really cool and the most handy people we’ve ever encountered. Almost everything in their house has been built or sanded/stained or wired by Pete. He casually threw out there that he’s even made all the lamps and picture frames. They have an apple orchard they just planted! They have a backsplash they just tiled! They are crafty and cute and we like them too. Also in the adorable accessory department are Jethro (hound mix) and Cosima (German Shepherd) who are VERY GOOD boys and girls. Lots of sitting, lots of staying, lots of casually and cutely glancing at the camera. Fairly certain that Cosima has some sort of secret modeling pact with Elliott to land a high-profile baby food commercial together, and I don’t have a baby, but I’d still order whatever they were selling anyway.

Amy+Ben+Nathan // A Newborn Session

It’s our pleasure to officially induct Amy+Ben into the CSP 5 Timer’s Club (yep – it’s like hosting SNL, but being on our blog instead… which is just as good, right?)! Their most recent shoot was their maternity session with us in January, and on that blog post, I also link to all the other sessions in their past if you’re interested, which you should be, because Amy+Ben are GREAT! And (to no one’s surprise), so is their new addition Nathan. Nathan is a champion sleeper. Like, a CHAMPION SLEEPER ALL CAPS. He slept through, quite literally, 98% of the session. Sounds and light did not disturb him, but he’s not a huge fan of outfit changes (who is?).

And it’s a good thing Nathan’s a stellar sleeper too, because I locked Amy, Ben, and their two-week-old infant out of their house on accident. We walked onto the porch for a couple pictures, and I closed the door behind me (in my defense, they have cats, and I did not want said cats to escape… also in my defense, I did not know the door would lock). We then realized we were locked out, and locked out with a newborn. But because Nathan is a CHAMPION SLEEPER ALL CAPS, he literally did not notice. We were outside for about 30 minutes and he didn’t wake up because he’s a boss. Thankfully, it was nice out, and more thankfully, Amy and Ben know us very well so they weren’t mad and it wasn’t awkward to wait on their porch for 30 minutes while a locksmith came (I am so sorry you guys). Whooooops. Now I know. And let this be a warning to you all not to let me near your doors.

Cari+Will+Charlie // Newborn Session.

Cari and Will’s wedding will always be near and dear to our hearts. It was our first wedding shot at the Haw River Ballroom, which is now one of our favorite venues, and it was the wedding that produced the now famous Ring Bearer Meltdown shot (about halfway down this post) that still remains my favorite photograph to date. Also, we happened to gain two very wonderful friends from this wedding whom we love dearly. We’ve eaten dinner with them at their house over long conversations about 24 and screened in decks. We’ve watched as Will shot Nerf suction cup arrows at their skylights to scare raccoons. We’ve called Cari over deck advice. We’ve asked Will about random nerve pain symptoms. We obtained our wonderful veterinarian on behalf of Cari’s recommendation. We’ve talked about any and all furniture and design choices. These guys are near and dear to our hearts. And so now is Charlie.

Charlie came into the world with two amazing parents and a handpainted nursery done by mom. He also has older cat sibling Jack (who is not yet a fan of his younger brother) and an older dog sibling Dudley (who is definitely a fan of new brother! also a fan of treats! also a fan of blankets! also a fan of photography!). Charlie so far has really taken to: eating, eating, wearing elaborate hats, eating, eating, non-candid/intense-staring-into-the-camera type of photography, eating, eating, tiki lounge music, and eating. We are excited to see what this kid does in the future. We’re hoping he breaks down at a wedding when he’s a ring bearer. Congratulations to the whole fam – you have quite a handsome young lad who is able to currently wear many hats (literally), and may he do so (figuratively) in his life to come. We love you, Cari+Will!