The Lookbook is a photographic journal featuring galleries of our more extensive client work and projects.
In August 2024, we took a much-needed vacation, absconding from our mountain home in Asheville for a relaxing coastal summer retreat in Beaufort, North Carolina. With research done, lodging secured, activities planned, and camera in hand, we were ready to take the 8-hour drive and explore this quaint coastal town brimming with history and the personality and energy of the sea.
Atlantic Beach
Originating from South Florida, the sea has always been a part of our life. Coastal shorelines stretch as far as the eyes can see, waterways the lifelines of the Sunshine State. It's common to sit dockside at your favorite restaurant and witness two sixteen-year-olds deliver the catch of the day. You take it for granted, for what's readily available is not readily appreciated. Having spent the past decade in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, perspective has blossomed gratitude for our previous life in the salt-kissed sun.
It is with that gratitude that Atlantic Beach was met. A beautifully pristine beach offering something you will never have on the shores of Florida: expansive peace and quiet.
We spent many days at Atlantic Beach, picnicking and documenting our experiences in this oceanic haven. Listening to the sounds of waves crashing and seagulls calling. On our first visit, an early morning to watch the sunrise, we met local fisherman Win. Intrigued by the camera, he spoke of his wife, a fellow photographer who documents nature as a hobby. Win gave recommendations for trails and eateries alike before refocusing on his mission of hauling a catch.
Sunrises and sunsets alike, Atlantic Beach was the perfect location for solitary contemplative reenergizing.
Old Burying Grounds
History lives more in death, for hushed tones and secrets whispered in life are revealed and spoken loudly in the hereafter. Weather-worn, centuries-old gravestones line the Old Burying Grounds in Beaufort. Drawn to the macabre and mysterious, like moths to dancing flames, we visited the Old Burying Grounds many times.
Our first visit to this historic cemetery took place on an afternoon after visiting the Olde Beaufort Farmers Market. We made our way to the Old Burying Grounds twice more. The second time was at the end of the Beaufort Ghost Walk. It was at the end of this tour our host, regaled in pirate wares, told us about its history and some of the souls that rest there. Established in the early 1700s, the historic site is home to victims of shipwrecks, ship captains, a young girl buried in a rum barrel, and Otway Burns, for whom Burnsville, North Carolina, gets its namesake. There are also several unmarked graves that were discovered in 1992 after an archeological survey, believed to belong to those who lost their lives during the Indian Wars in the area, which also took place in the early 1700s.
Our last visit to the Old Burying Grounds was a day before we departed from Beaufort. It is during this visit that we captured the photos shown in the gallery above. While our love for horror films and fascination drove our desire to explore these grounds, there was nothing horrific about them. Death is a natural function of life, and while some souls perished far too young and from unnatural causes, what we found was a final resting place that was hauntingly beautiful.
Beaufort Historic District Neighborhood
Beaufort is the third oldest town in North Carolina, having been formally established in 1709. As such, it boasts some gorgeous homes in its historic district, and if there are two things we love that photography allows us to explore, it's exquisite architecture and history. That is why we spent an afternoon walking around the neighborhood in the historic district, snapping photographs in admiration of these homes that have been immaculately maintained for centuries.
Some of the earliest homes constructed were inspired by Bahamian and West Indian-styled homes, which were popular then. As Beaufort grew in population and age, a proper town plan was conceived outlining a 12-block area closest to the waterfront, which remains largely unchanged today and still acts as the primary layout for Beaufort. In addition to the early Caribbean-inspired homes, you'll find Greek Revival, Gothic Revival, and Queen Anne-influenced buildings throughout the historic district of Beaufort.
An interesting and personal bit of history we were drawn to as a Black-owned business and photographer is the Gullah Geechee inspiration throughout Beaufort's historic district. If you look closely at the porch ceilings of the homes, you'll find them adorned in Haint Blue paint, also known as Carolina Blue. The Gullah Geechee were enslaved descendants of Central and West Africans. They believed in and practiced many spiritual traditions of their homelands and believed that "Haints" and "boo-hags"—witches or wraiths who looked like regular people during the day but slipped out of their skin at night—were especially dangerous. The Haint Blue paint was meant to trick these dreadful spirits into thinking they were approaching water, which they could not cross, warding them away from their potential victims. Due to the superstitious nature of sailors, this tradition was adopted outside of the Gullah Geechee people and survives in Beaufort today.
The Rachel Carson Reserve Boat Tour
The wild horses were among the draws that excited us the most for our visit to Beaufort. Full disclosure: we have an unhealthy and unreasonable fear of horses for seemingly no other reason than they are large, powerful animals that also appeared in the film The Ring in a particularly gruesome scene. The wonderful thing about photography is that it sometimes allows us to face and conquer our fears for the sake of the shot. In the case of photographing the wild horses, along with other wildlife found in Beaufort, we were able to do this by way of a boat tour conducted by Miriam Sutton, owner and operator of Science by the Sea.
Miriam, a former science teacher, used her 20-plus years of experience in education and leading boat tours, along with the knowledge gained through her extensive collaborations with local researchers and as a member of the Rachel Carson Reserve Board, to provide a one-of-a-kind adventure filled with detailed background that gave immense value to the entire expedition.
The 3-hour private boat tour takes you through remote portions of the Rachel Carson Reserve that ferries cannot access. As a photographer, the magic of this tour happens when Miriam is able to flex the breadth of her expertise and provide a bounty of context to what it is you're photographing. The depth of Miriam's knowledge becomes apparent in instances like when she points out specific horses, letting you know their age, their personality types, their parentage, how they became part of their particular herd, and which herds do and do not get along. That's not even to mention the scientific and historical enlightenment Miriam will bestow upon you. All of this makes the tour well worth the price of admission.
Beaufort, North Carolina, is a magical and friendly seaside town that captured our hearts, and has yet to let it go. There is so much more we enjoyed while visiting that we did not document, for being present at the moment was too much of a gift to lose. From the ghost tour to the fresh oysters, we are very much looking forward to our next visit to Beaufort.
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