Emily DeLuke Photography

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Wilmington, NC
Emily DeLuke Photography

📍Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Topsail Beach

✨ Intentional images you can feel

09/08/2026

Some people get good hair.

I got the ability to walk into a room and immediately know who's nervous, who's sizing everyone up, who is NOT having it e and who needs approximately 7 minutes 😆before they're ready to be a human being.

When I first started photography, every guide I read was about posing. Where to put their hands. How to angle their bodies. What to do with their feet. The whole shabang.

And nobody really talked about the actual human part. Because honestly, after doing this for years, I think that's like 93% of the job.

You have to read the room.

You have to know when someone needs direction, when they need a joke, when they need you to back off for a second, and when mom is about to lose her mind and you need to change the entire plan immediately

And now I'm trying to teach my girls the same thing I use at basically every session:

Read. The. Room.

They are, unfortunately, not as impressed by my wisdom as l am.

| Wilmington NC photographer | Wrightsville Beach
Photographer | Family Session

08/31/2026

Okay hiii loves 💕

I've mostly been gone from here since May which feels crazy to say because I genuinely didn't think I'd stay away this long. 😂

I took the summer off from social media and it ended up being one of the best things I could have done for myself. And just to be clear, I hope nobody noticed a I hope you were all too busy living your own lives, taking your own summer pictures, and being where your feet were!!

But I have to say... coming back and seeing everyone pop up on my feed again has been really fun. It felt like opening up a little scrapbook of everyone's summer fi And seeing some of the photos I've taken for yall pop up again made me realize how much I've missed this little community!! 💕

I'm officially back, but I'm also coming back with a little more *intention*. I want to be here, I want to share, I want to see what you're all up to... but I also really, reallilly like being present in my actual life. So I'm trying to hold onto that!

Anyway, hi. I missed you!!

I hope you all had the best summer. And I have approximately 700 insanely crazy things to tell you about mine.... Soonish 😆

05/17/2026

The audience that’s watched every milestone along the way 🥹🤍

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05/13/2026

I’d argue one of THE most important parts of photographing families is knowing how to pivot.

And honestly, photographers either learn that quickly… or spend the whole session fighting a toddler who could not care less about the plan 😂

I always go into sessions with ideas in my head. Certain prompts I want to try, certain light I want to use, little moments I’m looking for. But when kids are involved, you cannot hold too tightly to a vision because the second you do, everybodyyyy starts feeling stressed 🫠

Kids are people. Tiny people🤭 but still people. They need a second sometimes. To observe. To warm up. To decide if they trust you.

At the beginning of this session, this cutie wanted absolutely nothing to do with me or my camera. Zero interest 😂 And instead of trying to immediately win her over or force smiles, we just slowed allll the way down. We talked. We played. I paid attention to what made her light up and followed that instead.

And once she settled in everything changed. Suddenly she was laughing, running around, giving nose kisses, wanting to be thrown in the air. The session started unfolding naturally because she felt comfortable enough to just be herself.

That’s why I’ll choose connection over perfect posing every.single.time.

I never want your session to feel stiff or overly controlled. I want it to feel like your family. Loud toddlers, shy toddlers, clingy toddlers, wild toddlers… all of it. Because years from now THOSE are the things as a mama I’ll actually want to remember and I have a feeling you will, too. ✨

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05/09/2026

Spent way too much time putting together this Summer 2026 Lookbook and honestly… I’m obsessed ☀️😭

Think effortless summer outfits, elevated basics, beach vacation inspo, family photo outfit ideas, and pieces that feel current without trying too hard!!

Everything in here is shoppable because I already did the scrolling for you 🤝

Comment “LOOKBOOK” and I’ll send you all the outfit links ✨

Send this to your friend who lives for neutral coastal summer style ☀️

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05/04/2026

It feels cringe to even type this but there was a very short season at the beginning of my photography journey where I tried to “pose” my sessions 🫣

It never felt right.

It felt forced. It felt like I was trying to be someone I’m not. And honestly, I don’t think it felt natural for my clients either.

So I stopped.

Now I lean into prompts, little games, and just letting things unfold.

It’s WILD how quickly walls come down when people aren’t worried about ‘doing it right’. I don’t think there’s even such thing as a ‘right’ thing, so let’s just get that out of your head if it’s in there!

Anyways. Before long, you’re just hanging out with your people. Laughing, moving, being yourselves.

And I’m right there capturing it as it actually felt.

If that sounds like the experience you’re after, let’s chat. If you’re looking for posed proper stiff type images, I’m not your gal 🫠

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Wrightsville beach March family photo session

04/30/2026

Cameras can be learned but paying attention to people is something else entirely.

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Wilmington North Carolina Family Photographer
Wrightsville Beach Maternity Photo Session

04/26/2026

Hot take: I don’t photograph posed perfection (is that even a thing?) and I’ll never try to.

My work is built around real family life as it actually unfolds which involves movement, connection, unpredictability, and all the moments that don’t ask to be staged.

I’m not directing fake smiles or manufacturing interactions that wouldn’t happen on their own. If that’s what you’re looking for, I’m not the right photographer for you 😬😬

I work best with families who are willing to let go of control a little. Who understand that kids move, emotions shift, and the most meaningful moments are usually the unplanned ones! My job is to notice what’s already there. I never want to reshape it into something it’s not.

I’m after honesty. It’s images that FEEL like your life… not a performance of it.

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Fort Fisher Family Photo Session
Wilmington Photographer

04/21/2026

👏🏼 👏🏼 This is why I care SO much about getting your photos OFF your phone.

There’s something completely different that happens when they’re printed. When they’re sitting out. When your kids can actually grab them and flip through without asking to see their pictures on your phone.

You’ll see it… they slow down. They notice things. They see themselves in your arms, in your love, in your everyday life, they giggle, they point… and it sticks.

That’s why every package I offer includes the option for an heirloom album. Not because it’s “nice to have,” but because I truly believe this is where your images belong.

If you’re a past client and never ordered an album, it’s absolutely not too late. I would love to create one for you.

I’ll design it for you from your session. These albums are made with archival, museum-quality materials. They’re meant to last for generations without fading or discoloring.

Send me a message and let’s get your memories INTO your hands 🤍

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Wilmington North Carolina photographer

04/17/2026

I keep thinking about this lately… how I’ve probably been unlearning just as much as I’ve been learning.

When I first started as a photographer, I held SO tightly to all the “rules”… if you’re a photographer you knoww this: even light, perfect skin tones, no harsh shadows, no sun spots. Like everything needed to be clean and controlled to be “right.”

And yes… that matters. It taught me a LOT.

But also… it kind of took the life out of things sometimes.

Because well, real life isn’t evenly lit.
It’s messy and patchy and constantly moving.

Lately I’ve found myself drawn to the things I used to avoid (funny how this happens)- the streaks of sun, the blown out spots, light hitting in weird places… all the things that would’ve stressed me out before.

And now I’m like… wait.
This actually feels like *the moment*.

Like this is where the story is.

And to be completely honest that’s what I care about now more than anything… not creating perfect images,
but creating something people can feel when they look back.

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Wilmington North Carolina Family Photo Session In Home

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Wilmington, NC

Website

http://www.emilydelukephotography.com/, https://emilydelukephotography.myflodesk.com/cfsraemf9t

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