Mary Cyrus captures portraits, weddings, parties and events on location in Dallas, Texas, in Northeast Texas and beyond. She specializes in creating down-to-earth, beautifully candid imagery.
August 3, 2020
November 18, 2016
Downtown Denton & Recycled Books Engagement Portraits: Caty & Will
Caty has been telling me for years that she would one day hire me to photograph her wedding. Mission accomplished! I'm so looking forward to capturing Caty & Will's wedding next year, especially after having so much fun with their engagement session in downtown Denton earlier this month. We wandered the storefronts and alleys around the historic downtown square on a quiet weekday morning, and wandered into Recycled Books (with advance permission) for some fun photos in one of this couple's favorite stores. I don't make it over to Denton for any occasion other than work very often, but next time I'm in the area and have any time to play, I'll definitely be visiting Recycled Books again and leaving with a big haul of new-to-me used books. It had been a while since I'd photographed downtown Denton, and it was nice to get back out there! There are so many great backdrops to work with. I'd love to work there more often.
Published at 2:49 PM 0 comments
Labels: Book Store, Couple, Denton, Downtown, Engagement, Portrait
September 26, 2016
Downtown McKinney Family Portraits: The Boltons
I love watching this family grow! I've been working with them a few times a year since their eldest turned 1. This was my first time to meet the newest addition, and I'm smitten. He's not camera-shy at all at 6-months-old, and was certainly more on board with the session than his two-year-old big brother! It may seem odd, but toddlers are actually my favorite age group to photograph. Their personalities are huge, and I love capturing that stage. It requires lots of running around in a crouched position and playing peekaboo. This little guy wasn't exactly won over by my charm, but I love the photos of him Not Having Any of This.

September 23, 2016
Extended Family Portraits in Plano: The Hoffmans
The Hoffmans have graced this blog many times in one way or another over the years. Allison's bridal portrait session was my very first. I've also captured Hoffman senior portraits, birthday parties, and family portraits. We've done one other big group family session, back in 2012. Their family has seen a new grandbaby, a marriage, engagements, and several high school graduations since then. Needless to say, the "kids" are no longer little! There are a few new faces since the last session as well, so the group has grown. I love doing big sessions like these. They can be crazy, but I enjoy the challenge. Allison is a costume designer, so I know I can always count on her family to have outfits that coordinate well. This session is definitely going in my folder of inspiration for clients who need a little help deciding what to wear.





Published at 8:00 AM 0 comments
Labels: Extended Family, Family, Large Group Portraits, Nature Preserve, Oak Point Nature Preserve, Plano, Portrait
September 22, 2016
Nisa's Austin College Bridal Portraits in Sherman, Texas
Nisa was a joy to work with! She planned her wedding from California, but we still managed to fit in a bridal portrait session on the campus of our shared alma mater. I worked toward my undergraduate degree at Austin College, though I ultimately transferred and finished elsewhere after switching degree programs from business toward art. Nevertheless, AC was always the school where I felt most at home. It felt like a homecoming to wander around campus with Nisa and her mother, and see how much looked exactly the same, and how much had changed! It was an incredibly hot Texas summer day, so we made use of as much air conditioned space as we could. Nisa holds her PhD in Inorganic Chemistry, so it made sense to start the session in the IDEA Center, Austin College's fancy new science building. I look forward to sharing Nisa's wedding -- the science theme continued there, with an experiment taking the place of a unity ceremony, and beakers and test tubes used throughout their decor. Nisa's a pretty awesome gal, if you haven't already figured that out.




Published at 3:17 PM 0 comments
Labels: Austin College, Bridal, College Campus, Portrait, Sherman, Wedding
September 14, 2016
SMU Maternity Portraits in Dallas: Madhavi & Pradeep
Madhavi is one beautiful mother-to-be! I had a great time capturing her maternity portraits with her husband Pradeep at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. We were treated to a cool morning in late summer, and the campus was quiet as classes hadn't yet begun. SMU always has great landscaping, and I love working with the impressive architecture found all over campus!
Published at 12:02 PM 0 comments
Labels: Couple, Dallas, Maternity, Park Cities, Portrait, SMU, University Park
June 25, 2015
Arbor Hills Engagement Session: Mallory & Alan
You know what takes any engagement session from "pleasant" to "YAYSOMUCHFUN"? A ridiculously cute pug. A ridiculously cute pug with a purple bow tie. I'm more of a great dane gal myself, but few shoots have ever been more fun to capture than this one with a snuffly little pug puppy following us around. I had to restrain myself from making Neville the only star of the shoot, but thankfully Mallory and Alan are a treat for my camera too, if less furry and snuffly (which is probably for the best). It was also probably the prettiest weekend of the year at Arbor Hills Nature Preserve in Plano, so I had ample beautiful backdrops to choose from. As a bonus, I've known Mallory and her sister Morgan (who was there on pug-handling duty) since I was about 13, so we easily fell into telling bad jokes and generally having a good time. I'm glad I finally got to meet Alan, and I'm looking forward to photographing their wedding next year!

P.S. That last photo is 1000% intentionally over the top, and we had great fun with it.
Published at 3:15 PM 0 comments
Labels: Arbor Hills, Couple, Engagement, Nature, Nature Preserve, Plano, Portrait, Spring
May 16, 2015
Fort Worth Historic YWCA Bridal Portraits: Leslie
I had a great time capturing Leslie's bridal session at the historic YWCA in downtown Fort Worth last month! Her mom kept us company, and her dad stopped by too to see his beautiful daughter (and provide a little fatherly teasing). Leslie's dress is one of my favorites so far this year. That layer of bold, graphic, floral lace is gorgeous!

I really enjoyed seeing Leslie's favorite bridal portraits on display at her wedding a few weeks ago! Her framed prints looked lovely, and I continue to be obsessed with metal prints. Leslie opted for an acrylic base for a tabletop display at the wedding, but I also included a float mount on the back of the metal print so it's ready to hang in Leslie's new home with Alex!
Published at 2:20 AM 0 comments
Labels: Bridal, Fort Worth, Historic YWCA, Portrait, Wedding
April 21, 2015
Plano Picnic Engagement Portraits at Arbor Hills
I loved hearing that one of Laurie and Michael's earliest dates was a picnic, so I encouraged them to run with that idea for an engagement session. They brought along their usual picnic gear including a beautiful quilt and a classic picnic basket (I couldn't resist making a few bad Yogi Bear impressions regarding pic-a-nic baskets) as well as some tasty treats. The weather and sunlight were amazing that day, and Spring was really beginning to put on a good show with chartreuse leaves popping out everywhere and trees blooming. Arbor Hills Nature Preserve in Plano has been my most popular location this spring for engagement portraits, and I've loved watching the changes in the park every week. I think Laurie and Michael caught one of the very prettiest days. I can't wait to photograph their wedding in a few weeks! I hope the weather is every bit as wonderful that day.

Published at 8:34 AM 3 comments
Labels: Arbor Hills, Couple, Engagement, Nature, Nature Preserve, Plano, Portrait
April 20, 2015
Bluebonnet Family Portraits in Plano
Last weekend, I met up with this adorable family at a bluebonnet field on the border of Plano and Frisco, Texas. I was delighted to see that there were some bright red poppies growing among the bluebonnets for a little extra festive Spring color. With a 4-year-old and an almost 2-year-old running in opposite directions (and not super keen on the Being Photographed thing), I had my work cut out for me, but I captured some very sweet photos of the whole gang.

April 19, 2015
Adriatica Bridal Portraits in McKinney: Christine
Christine and Kyle were married yesterday, so I can finally share Christine's stunning bridal portraits that I captured at Adriatica in McKinney, Texas last month. What a beautiful bride! Adriatica's old world architecture, stonework, water features and vineyard make the perfect bridal portrait backdrop. I enjoyed seeing these photos alongside the couple's engagement portraits on display all over the wedding reception last night.




























