Intimate beach house wedding with a reception at The Village House in Litchfield

It’s been a while since I posted pictures from a beach house wedding on my blog, so I thought this recent intimate wedding in Pawleys Island would be a great opportunity. Kristi and Che had a beautiful beach house near the southern end of Pawleys Island. This house is unique, surrounded by dense trees and foliage pushing up against either side, and has beautiful shaded views from the porches and beach walkway. At this wedding, I was working with my favorite videographer, Jerry, from Luminous Event Films. They also had Ash Events for wedding planning and help during the day.

Ceremony on the beach in Pawleys Island

Working closely with the videographer, we got some lovely getting-ready pictures and shots of the bride’s details, like flowers, invitations, and jewelry, when we arrived. My wife was also assisting me at this wedding, so she went downstairs for getting-ready pictures of Che and his groomsman. This wedding was small, with just one bridesmaid, one groomsman, and a small group of close family and friends. I always enjoy these smaller groups. It’s less hectic and more relaxed.

This wedding was also my first trying out my little Insta360 GO3 camera clipped to my shirt for some behind-the-scenes shots. This tiny action camera is fun for capturing a bit of my work to post on social media. I will include my Instagram post from this wedding.

The ceremony on the beach was beautiful even though it was quite a windy day. I loved the muted colors of the dried flowers and Pampas grass on the aisle and surrounding the wedding arch. These flowers fit well with the colors of the beach.

We got some nice pictures of the veil blowing in the wind, but Kristi was struggling with it a bit. She told me earlier in the day to ensure I got photos of the “On My Way To You” detail sewn into the veil. My wife got an excellent shot I know the bride will love. Her father was walking her down the aisle, and the lettering from the veil made a readable shadow in the sand. My wife might not be an expert with all the camera settings, but she has a good eye for pictures.

In this picture, someone was holding the side of the veil to keep it from blowing in the wind, but I removed the person using some new generative AI in Photoshop. Removing people from pictures is much easier than it used to be when I had to clone everything manually. The AI removal usually gets most of the way there, then requires some manual cleaning up.

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Wedding reception and bride and groom portraits at The Village House in Litchfield

After the wedding ceremony, we traveled to the nearby venue, The Village House in Litchfield. I’ve had a couple of weddings here, and it’s a beautiful venue. Check out this recent wedding where we took many pictures in front of the large windows in the ballroom. When we arrived, I wanted to get a few more family and wedding party portraits at the Village House because we had all the soft shade under the trees. Taking pictures in the harsh sun on the beach is always tricky, and I like to avoid squinting eyes and harsh shadows as much as possible.

I also noticed a gate in the back of the venue was now open, and we could walk to a small lake behind the Village House. We found some spots with the light from the sunset filtering through the trees, which is always a beautiful background for bride and groom portraits. This lake is a lovely area for pictures, and I’ll have to remember to bring couples back to this area for my future weddings.

After dinner, they had about an hour to dance. This wasn’t a huge partying group, but I still got some nice pictures of all the couples dancing together. The reception ended with a sparkler exit. I had everyone gather in behind them for one final kiss of the evening after running through the sparklers. It was very nice to be back for another wedding at The Village House in Litchfield. I hope to have a lot more in the future! If you are planning a wedding at this venue, please let me know. I would be happy to help.