Wetzel Photography

Photographers in Greenville SC

Happy 1st Birthday, Rayf!

So, I am late posting this first birthday session but I wanted to wait until their family session was posted on Care2Foster.org as well. I had the privilege of doing 2 mini sessions in one for this family, who happen to be friends of our’s as well. I’ve taken their pictures several times throughout the past few years and I love working with them. This year, I took some 1 year portraits of sweet Rayf. We were supposed to take the pictures at Furman, but apparently the campus shuts down to the public during their winter break. Thankfully, our church has a beautiful yard and is close to Furman so we headed there for the pictures instead. While we were taking Rayf’s pictures, I also snapped some family pictures to be featured on Care2Foster.org, a website dedicated to providing information on fostering in South Carolina. I am honored to be one of the volunteer photographers for Care2Foster because I love being able to help spread the word on how much SC needs foster families. Jen and Joey have had 3 foster kids come through their home so far. We love seeing their family open up their home to these special kids that need a safe place to stay and need love while they are in that home. Thanks, Jen and Joey, for being willing to open your home to these kids from hard places and give them the love that they desperately need. We look forward to seeing where your foster journey heads next! And thanks for letting me capture these memories for you as you celebrated Rayf’s first birthday!

To see the rest of Jen and Joey’s family session you can visit their featured story on Care2Foster.

The “G” Family Portraits

Well, I just realized that I never posted this session from my Christmas minis. Life happened and I completely dropped the ball on sharing these pictures. But, better late than never. So, here is the “G” family. They are dear friends of our’s and it was an honor to be able to take their family portraits this year as they celebrated their first Christmas as a family of 3. Sweet little “E” wasn’t into the pictures very much but she looked cute even without the smiles. We took their portraits in one of my all time favorite locations, the West End. I always love the different textures and urban feel of the West End. Thanks “G” family for allowing me to capture your family memories this year!

Ledford Family Portraits 2017

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year! I’d love to thank my clients for making this Christmas mini session season such a wonderful one for me. I loved working with each of you!

Now that Christmas is over, I can post a couple more portrait sessions. First up, the Ledford family. This family are sweet friends of our’s from church and I was thrilled when they asked me to take their portraits again this year. We had fun exploring Campbell’s Covered Bridge for their portraits. The kids got creative for me and even climbed the inside of the bridge which made for some fun pictures. Thanks Ledfords for allowing me to capture your Christmas memories again this year! We are thankful for you and your friendship!

\ \

Introducing Ben

So these pictures are some very special pictures to me. They are special for a couple of reasons. One because this precious boy, Ben, is the newest son of some friends of mine from growing up. But they are also special because of this sweet boy’s story. Ben is not Chris and Megan’s first son. Their son, Matthew, will be celebrating his first birthday in Heaven tomorrow. Due to some medical conditions, Matthew only lived a week on earth before God called him home to Heaven. Chris and Megan were incredibly generous to our family in Matthew’s passing because they chose to use his memorial fund for our adoption fund. Because of their incredible sacrifice, we were able to pay for our daughter’s adoption, which ended up costing us a lot more than we anticipated. We are so grateful to Chris and Megan for using Matthew’s story for our adoption. When I heard that they were expecting again I was so excited and knew I wanted to do something for them. I knew I would take pictures of their baby when he arrived but I also wanted to do something more. I was inspired by a friend from college who lost her daughter and had a teddy bear made that weighed the same as her daughter at birth. Well, I knew that was something I could do for Chris and Megan, so I made the bear you see in the pictures and he weighs as much as Matthew. This was the least I could do to thank Chris and Megan for loving our family so much through their loss.

I was so excited when I heard that Ben was here and I could go to Clover to meet him for his pictures. He was such a good model and slept through the whole session. It was so fun to see him with his family, especially his big sisters Elizabeth and Eleanor who adore him. Chris and Megan, we are so thrilled for your growing family! We are praying for you as you celebrate Matthew tomorrow. We are so thankful for you and your precious family! Ben, we cannot wait to watch you grow up and see what God has planned for your life.

Phillips Family Portraits 2017

I had so much fun with this family portrait session because I got the chance to catch up with two of my good friends from high school. I was so excited when Laura contacted me about taking their portraits because it had been way too long since we’d had a chance to get together. I headed back to Rock Hill for their pictures and could not believe how much the downtown has changed since high school. I especially loved the Freedom Alley where we took some of the pictures. It is a tribute to the Friendship Nine, a group of African Americans who were arrested for a sit in at a segregated lunch counter in Rock Hill, whose convictions were overturned in 2015.

Not only did I have the honor of taking pictures of Joe, Laura and their kids, Noah and Isla, but I also got to meet their two foster daughters. I cannot share pictures of those sweet girls but I loved being able to serve foster kiddos by taking pictures of them for their birth families. Thanks Joe and Laura for letting me capture these special memories for you with, as you call them, your permanent and temporary kids!

One Small Step for Prader-Willi Syndrome 2017

I love being able to take pictures every year at the One Small Step for Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS) event. It is hosted by our friends David and Gywn in honor of their daughter, Ellie. This year they hosted a fall festival instead of a 5K, which was so much fun. My 5 year old had a blast with the games, bounce houses and face painting. I loved seeing all the cute costumes, especially the little girl who won her category dressed as Audrey Hepburn, my favorite actress.

When Ellie (aka bat girl for the day) was just a few weeks old she received the PWS diagnosis. Since then, her parents have fought so hard for her and for other kids with PWS. Gywn works with the Foundation for Prader-Willi research in organizing this event to raise funds for research. I love coming to the event and seeing the PWS kids each year and how much they have grown and how well they are doing. We all hope and pray that one day kids like Ellie, Gracie, LeBron, and Mila (just to name a few) will be able to LIVE LIFE FULL and not have to suffer with the insatiable hunger that comes from PWS. If you want to learn more about PWS and how you can support the research for these precious kiddos, you can visit https://www.fpwr.org/

Phillips Family Portraits 2017

I had the honor of taking portraits for some friends from church, Dan, Natalie and their precious boy Chase.We headed to one of my favorite photo spots, Furman, for their session. It was a cold and windy day but Chase didn’t seem to mind. He was all smiles for his pictures, especially when he could try to grab leaves. Dan and Natalie, it is such a pleasure to watch you both as new parents and I look forward to being able to watch Chase grow up over the years. Thanks for letting me capture your first family portraits as a family of 3! 

Elders Family Portraits

Things have been busy with portraits this fall. I will have a lot of pictures to share with you but most will not be shared until after Christmas due to Christmas gifts…don’t want to spoil the surprise for families. But, I do have one session I can share with you now.

I had the honor of taking pictures for Kevin and Kelley and their sweet girls again this year. I took their portraits a couple years ago and it was so fun to see how much the girls have grown. Kelley and I met in Clemson and it is fun to be able to reconnect with her in Greenville. This year I took their portraits at Campbell’s Covered Bridge, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite spots for pictures. I just love the color and texture of the bridge and the water is such a fun backdrop. Kate and Karsten are such sweet girls and were great models for their pictures. I loved working with them! Thanks Elders family for letting me capture your family memories again this year!

The Sarratt Family 2017

It is alway so much fun for me to work with these sweet friends of mine. Craig and I were at Clemson together and his parents were friends of my dad’s at Clemson. It is so fun to watch our kids grow up as friends, and hopefully 3rd generation Clemson students! Ashley and I have had many playdates together and I hope for many more over the years! We headed to Furman for their family portraits this year, and made sure to get some 5 year portraits of Miss Ellie too. Poor Caleb fell and fractured his leg just 2 days before the portrait session but he was such a good sport with his “shoe” as he called his cast. Thanks Sarratt family for letting me capture your family memories again this year and for your friendship!

An Extended Family Birthday Gift

As a photographer, obviously I love taking pictures. I enjoy being creative but I also love the fact that pictures are family treasures for years to come. That’s why I was thrilled when Clair told me that her family wanted to give Ben’s mom a family portrait session for her birthday. She was working with her sister-in-law, Courtney, to organize it and I was happy to be able to preserve these family memories for them. These pictures were extra special because this summer, sweet Bess, officially and legally became part of their family. She was part of their family from the day they met her but now that it was legal, they wanted to get some family pictures taken. We headed to a neighbor’s beautiful field for their extended family session and the light and setting were gorgeous! As always, I had a great time working with this sweet family! Thanks Ben, Clair, Courtney and Trey for allowing me to be part of such a special birthday present for your mom!

Christmas is right around the corner, if you are interested in giving a loved one a portrait session, please contact me today for information.

CONTACT ME

Wetzel.Photography@gmail.com

864-365-6146

STAY CONNECTED