sunset

Flowergirl helping the ring bearer with his tie - Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club

Pawleys Island wedding on the marsh with a reception at Pawleys Plantation

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This beautiful wedding at a private home in Pawleys Island was a great way to start my busy spring season. A couple of weeks before the wedding, I met the bride at her wedding location for some portraits. The marsh boardwalks in Pawleys are always beautiful for pictures. I love doing bridal or engagement photos before a wedding to get to know a client and make sure they like my style. This bride seemed happy, so I figured she would like the wedding pictures, and she certainly did. I don’t think she would mind me posting the nice message I …

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She said yes - Myrtle Beach State Park

Surprise engagement proposal on a beautiful winter evening in Myrtle Beach

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I always love the Myrtle Beach State Park at sunset in the winter. This time of the year the sky just seems clearer and the water is more blue. I don’t know if it’s perhaps the lower humidity or just the difference in the angle of the sunset. We had one of those perfect winter evenings for a surprise engagement proposal with this young couple. His girlfriend thought we were just doing pictures of the two of them for Valentine’s Day. From what she said later in the evening, she thought it would be a long while until he could …

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Bride by bedroom fireplace - Rosewood Manor, Marion

Beautiful bridal portraits at Rosewood Manor in Marion, SC

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This was my first time doing photography at the Rosewood Manor Bed & Breakfast in Marion, SC. I understand this is a popular bridal portraits location, in fact there was another bride finishing up her portraits right before we arrived. I actually shot these pictures a few months ago, but as always with bridal portraits, I have to wait until after the wedding to post them. At the wedding held this past Saturday, I really liked seeing how the bride had her portraits in small frames spread all around the Manor. There was also a couple of large 16×20’s matted …

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Man lifting fiance into the air under Live Oaks - Litchfield Plantation

Engagement portraits at Litchfield Plantation in Pawleys Island

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It’s been a several years since I did a photography session at Litchfield Plantation in Pawleys Island. My last wedding back in 2011 at Litchfield Plantation was really beautiful with the bride arriving on a horse-drawn carriage. I was told they were no longer booking events and that they were turning the area into a housing development, but I guess that decision was changed. The recently engaged couple featured in this post had family that owned a home inside Litchfield Plantation, so we were able to do the engagement pictures wherever we liked. I notice on their website that anyone can pay …

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Little boy laughing at family behind the Atalaya Castle - Huntington Beach State Park

Winter family pictures at the Atalaya Castle

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I thought I would make a quick post about one of my family portraits sessions over the Thanksgiving weekend. With the clients featured below, we didn’t pay to go inside the Atalaya Castle at all, but there are still a lot of nice exterior areas for pictures. The front lawn with the castle in the background is very pretty as well as the patio area in the back. I normally really like the walkway in front of the castle and some other spots, but because of the mosquitoes we had to leave that area quickly. Perhaps it’s something to do …

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Sunset by the Waccamaw River - Wachesaw Plantation

Beautiful sunset by the Waccamaw River – Wedding at Wachesaw Plantation

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This was another stunning wedding couple that I had the privilege to photograph at the Kimbels Restaurant at Wachesaw Plantation in Murrells Inlet, SC. I’ve had a couple of weddings there this year that turned out fantastic. This bride and groom, instead of having the wedding ceremony on the lawn at Wachesaw Plantation, held it at a historic location in downtown Georgetown. This couple did the traditional wedding receiving line after the ceremony. Many wedding organizers will pull the family away before the guests exit because it can take a long time to greet everyone on their way out. However, …

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Carrying his bride over the water - Hilton at Kingston Plantation

Hilton at Kingston Plantation wedding with a ceremony on the beach

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This was the first time I’ve photographed a wedding at the Myrtle Beach Hilton at Kingston Plantation, where the couple had a ceremony on the beach sand. At many of my beach weddings, the bride ends up squinting from the sun. Because of the large Hilton tower in the background, this ceremony area was nicely shaded from the afternoon sun. This allowed me to take really nice pictures of the bride looking at the groom during their vows. The only problem with this area of Myrtle Beach is that it’s very crowded. We had a number of beachgoers standing in …

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Sunset kiss in front of the clubhouse, lots of bokeh - Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club

Golf Club wedding at Pawleys Plantation with a first look and great sunset

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The Pawleys Plantation Golf & Country Club has been one of my favorite wedding locations for many years now. They have some new event staff at Pawleys Plantation I met for the first time. They were very friendly and everything went smoothly with the ceremony and reception. They also remodeled the ballroom a while back with a more modern look and nicer colors. I worked again with DJ Scott and Company, Benjy Simmons and Elegant Occasions, some of my favorite wedding vendors.  You can check out more on my recommended vendor list. This couple decided to do a first look to get most of the family and …

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First look behind the clubhouse before the ceremony - Pawleys Plantation

Beautiful spring wedding at Pawleys Plantation Country Club with a first look and great sunset

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This wedding was a great way to begin my 2016 season. I always love going to the Pawleys Plantation Golf and Country Club area to photograph a wedding. I’ve been there so many times that I know the best photo spots and where to get good light during different times of the afternoon. This bride and groom decided to do a “first look” so that we could do all the bridal party and family pictures before the ceremony. Doing most of the pictures before the ceremony can be nice, but you need a location like Pawleys Plantation with lots of …

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Senior portrait closeup of face - Atalaya Castle

Senior portraits at the Atalaya Castle in Huntington Beach State Park

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In the last couple of weeks, I shot two senior portrait sessions at the Atalaya Castle in Huntington State Park Murrells Inlet that I think turned out really well. Both of these clients are really into sports. The first senior girl below is actually being coached to go to the Olympics for the hammer toss, and the second is a softball player. I think both of them would much rather be playing sports than posing for pictures, but I think we got along well and had fun with the pictures. To do senior portraits really well, you have to be …

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