Spring wedding at The Village House in Litchfield

I was excited to photograph my first wedding at The Village House in the Litchfield / Pawleys Island area. I’ve previously photographed an event there and even created a 360 virtual walkthrough for the venue, but it was great to be back for a wedding. I knew from my past visit that The Village House has amazing large windows in the ballroom. After capturing some shots of the bride’s details and macro photos of the rings on the flowers, I moved the dresses to the ballroom windows to take advantage of the beautiful light pouring in from the outside.

The Village House has a nicely decorated upstairs room for the bride’s preparations, with lots of natural light and elegant mirrors. I suggested that Brooke do a first look with her bridesmaids, which turned out cute. Even though some of them had already seen her in the dress, they still pretended it was the first time! I also got some beautiful shots of Brooke putting on her earrings and her mother looking at her in the full-length mirror. The bridal party had a fun, unique touch of wearing matching Converse All-Star sneakers. Brooke was relaxed and easygoing and wanted everyone to be comfortable for the wedding, even wearing comfy shoes.

My wife was assisting me as a second photographer at this wedding. While she took Joshua and his groomsmen outside, I focused on capturing the getting-ready moments with Brooke and her bridesmaids. After we hid the groom away, I took Brooke and the bridesmaids out for some stunning pictures by the ballroom windows. I always love finding a brightly lit doorway for the bride to stand in with her dress flowing out behind her.

Ceremony inside the newly remodeled event space

The Village House had some renovations since my last visit, including a new large event space off the ballroom perfect for indoor ceremonies. This new room has dark wood floors contrasted with white walls and lots of windows overlooking the back porch. It’s an elegant space for a ceremony, although it was a little tight with this many bridesmaids and groomsmen in the front.

The ring bearer and flower girl did a great job walking down the aisle, and I got some adorable pictures of them. Joshua got emotional when he turned around to see Brooke and her father walking down the aisle. There wasn’t a lot of room for me to maneuver, but I got some great shots of the emotions on the faces of the bride and groom during their vows.

Family, wedding party, and couple’s portraits after the ceremony

After the ceremony, we moved outside to capture the family, wedding party, and bride and groom’s portraits. There is a lot of lovely shade from all the trees around The Village House, which helped out with these pictures a couple of hours before sunset. The space on the back lawn is a little tight for such a large wedding party, but we made it work. Brooke did not want to take many pictures and was ready to get to dinner and dancing. I would have loved to take a few photos at the beach, but the timing didn’t work out.

If you are planning a wedding at The Village House, keep in mind the beach in Pawleys Island or the Huntington Beach State Park is nearby, so that is an additional option for pictures. Even without going anywhere else, there is a charming gazebo and many palm trees for photos at the venue. Joshua was up for anything. We even had all the bridesmaids pick him up for one shot! I had my wife and a couple of bridesmaids help me throw the veil in the air, and we got some lovely “veil blowing in the wind” pictures. I was pleased with how all the photos came out, even though we did them quickly.

Lots of dancing for the reception

After introductions, we went immediately to the first dance and parent dances. With it still being a while before sunset, the first dance was beautiful, with the evening light coming in the windows. I tried to convince the bride and groom to do a few sunset pictures, but they were tired and just wanted to party and have a good time after dinner, which I completely understand. I did get them to take a couple more shots with The Village House sign in front of the venue.

They were not doing a sparkler exit or anything special at the end of the reception, so I didn’t stay until the end. I was there long enough to get pictures of the cake cutting, garter and bouquet, and lots of fun dancing. This was a big partying and dancing group, and everyone was having a blast. I hope you enjoy the pictures. Please let me know if you are planning a wedding at The Village House. I would be happy to help.