Litchfield Plantation Wedding: I Love You, I Know

May 15, 2017 by Carl Kerridge

Episode IV: Litchfield Wedding

I hope you get the IV reference??. I figured, “First met, relationship, engagement, wedding,” plus the Roman Numeral for the number four has more intensity, don’t you think? Anyways…Our journey begins “Not that long ago, in a galaxy far far away…” ok, maybe that’s all I have for you as far as a Star Wars opening, anything more and it might get a little too nerdy. However, our bride and groom love for both Star Wars and Lego at Litchfield’s Plantation House inspired the entire atmosphere for this wonderful outdoor wedding.

Litchfield Plantation is an elegant setting. When you drive down the pathway, Spanish Moss dangles and shades the road before reaching the Historic Home. All of the small details are treasures in their own right, however, my favorite moments are a little harder to hold on to.

The bridal gift chosen to send to his beloved, makes for a great wedding story.

Sara’s gift had a traditional element just like her wedding, a beautiful jewelry box and keepsake heart locket. It was the “nerdy” gift I liked the best. Every man knows that if you make a girl cry happy tears, you must be doing something right. Christian gave Sara a specially designed mask to use while snorkeling. Complimentary, Sara gave Christian classic lego cuff-links to complete his dapper attire. That’s another aspect I love about this couple, their craving for adventure and fun is inspiring. On the day they took the biggest step of their new adventure, the sun was shining, the temperature was cool, and the view overlooking the marsh settled with a painted sky.

In addition to Star Wars, the couple designed a Lego layout of their wedding day. It was remarkably cool and I couldn’t imagine the hours spent delicately composing the piece. Christian and Sara put together each Lego character to represent each of their guests. The thoughtfulness and connection through such simple gestures were the hallmark of the Moyer-Lara Wedding. They even found a lego male and female photographer for me and Crystal…how cool!!

Sara and Christian choose wonderful elements to incorporate on their wedding day, this Litchfield Plantation wedding highlighted the nerd that we all love and of course, know. Now, let’s see what the honeymoon holds.

….To be continued…

Photography – Carl Kerridge Photography

Planner and Florist – Gigi Noelle Events

Catering – Creative Catering

Hair and Makeup – Bobby Pins & Blushing Brides

Venue – Litchfield Plantation

Cake – Coccadotts Cake Shop

Band – Sonic Spectrum

Horse and carriage – Heritage Carriages

Rentals – Hotz Rentals

Lighting – MC Sound and Light

Southern Bride and Rosewood Manor

March 15, 2017 by Carl Kerridge

Who doesn’t love a southern bride and how she plans her wedding?!

Alison kept traditions in more than one way and they were nothing short of elegant. One of the most thoughtful was the memory of Alison’s mother sewn into her dress. She took her mother’s wedding dress, and had a section monogramed so that she could have it with her as she walked down the aisle. Just beautiful.

Picking a venue in the heart of old South Carolina, Rosewood Manor hosted a grandeur atmosphere for the Scruggs and their guests. Dr. Gary and his staff go above and beyond to create unforgettable memories at their plantation home, it was simply exquisite.

To add to the authenticity of the occasion, Alison and Jamie were wed in Marion’s First Presbyterian Church. It is a classic establishment with warm hues that dance against wood shutters. Not to mention an impressive organ sits behind the alter, overlooking each ceremony that enters its doors. Jamie’s father conducted the ceremony and he choked before pronouncing the couple as husband and wife. With a laugh the couple kissed and began their new chapter together.

A 1977 burnt-orange corvette sat outside the church, ready to take them back to Rosewood Manor to celebrate with family and friends. The Vistas Band performed in fantastic blues-brothers-style and performed pieces that had everyone giggling. Who could forget the duet with the little flower girl? It was a great celebration to ring in the holidays.

Once there, the crowd partied until the cold encouraged everyone to retire and go inside for a night cap. But before Jack Frost could have his say and as every southern bride does know, the night could only end with a sweet tribute to Sweet Home Alabama.

Destination Wedding Photographer

January 19, 2017 by Carl Kerridge

What don’t I love about being a destination wedding photographer?

Their really is only one thing about being a destination wedding photographer that I don’t love – hauling lots of equipment through airports and hoping it arrives safely. But the rewards pay that off from the minute I check in.

There are plenty of reasons for couples to consider destination weddings: A mini vacation, family resorts and maybe beaches or mountains that you don’t live close to. Not only that, they can mean more exciting wedding pictures for the bride and groom! Who wouldn’t want that?

As a veteran photographer, I’m going to be honest and confess that I am guilty of shooting at designated spots that I know all wedding parties will love. I call them my “frequent flyer zones”. They are beautiful spots, have great available light and they always work! However, after 15+ years in this business, I can tell you from personal experience that I value new and inspiring locations that offer exciting challenges. Being a destination wedding photographer and traveling to a new location offers an opportunity to break out of the box, open your eyes to a fresh terrain, and tempt the visual senses. If you are one of our wedding couples planning your destination wedding, you have challenged us to work with this blank canvas and make it awesome. It’s thrilling and of course we accept!

One of the best things about being a destination wedding photographer is that when we get home, there’s a sense of newness to everything around us. Those frequent flyer zones? Well, all of the sudden we have a new set of eyes for those too. We find ourselves seeing everything “for the first time” again. Experiencing the magic of your wedding day makes its impact on us. We are able to serve you more dynamic and incredibly creative memories just because we’ve restored our mind, body and spirit. It drives the heart of every destination wedding photographer to guarantee you a successful wedding with photojournalistic and fine art images.

As water is the essence of the body and wisdom the essence of mind, then travel is the essence of spirit. To book your destination wedding with us please contact us via email – [email protected] – and we can make the travel arrangements!

St. Augustine, Florida

Norwich, England

New York, New York

Allahabad, India

Airlie Gardens, Wilmington, North Carolina

Montreal, Canada

Loveland, Colorado

Belin Methodist Church, Murrells Inlet, South Carolina

West Point, New York

Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Winter Garden, Colorado

Dunes Club, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Wachesaw Plantation, Litchfield, South Carolina

Pawley’s Island, South Carolina

Sunnyside Plantation: When a Hurricane Attends a Wedding

October 22, 2015 by Carl Kerridge

In this case, Joaquin was fashionably late and luck acted like a lady at Sunnyside Plantation

I work in a lot of different conditions and scenarios. I am a documentary-styled photographer, after all. I constantly try to push my limits and break my barriers by shooting in new and challenging settings. However, Hurricane Joaquin definitely tested my normally cool and calm demeanor. I was worried the entire week prior: Would my couple be able to host their celebration outdoors? Would the 20 inches of planned rain stall off long enough for them to say, “I do”? Would we get flooded out and have to scramble up the moss covered live oak trees? or Would they simply have to move the 200 guests to another last minute location?

Luckily, that was not the case. Rain sprinkled as the bride got ready and miraculously everyone remained calm and collected at Sunnyside Plantation. We danced around the wedding family – sneaking candids and spicing up our photography with the bride’s custom engraved Converses and “Gangsta” socks.

The ceremony began with the groom and the couple’s two dogs walking to the alter. When the bride emerged from Sunnyside’s front door, everyone broke into smiles and cheers. When their officiant asked, “Who gives this woman to this man?” never has their been a more appropriate response! From the side of the guests’ seats a “woof woof” arose that declared with certainty that “Who” was Him! We all broke into laughter, the timing was perfect! Catch the wedding video to see for yourself!

Oysters and craft beer entertained the guests for the cocktail hour. In the meantime, we photographed the newlyweds against Murrells Inlets’ marsh under heavily overcast skies. As always, we hugged and congratulated the couple, encouraging them to share a few moments by themselves. As we returned to the tent, the family shenanigans had begun with a group pyramid pose – apparently their family tradition at every gathering.

Joe Durivage of Myrtle Beach DJ’s disco’ed the dance floor with over 120 songs, encouraging everyone to bust a move and get their groove on. Everyone was dancing, even the whip and nae nae rain dance appeared and my assistant and I naturally boogied down with the crowd (I’m not known as the dancing photographer for nothing). Southern hospitality, BBQ, and speciality drinks combined with the ‘happy go lucky’ attitude of all the guests made this one of the most fun weddings ever.

If I described how the night felt as I was packing up, it would be like this: a cake topper with the bride and groom high five-ing one another. That is Allison and Roddy: best friends, husband and wife, and devoted dog lovers. Congratulations and best wishes to the awesome couple!

Wedding photography in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina wedding photographer, wedding photojournalism, event photos, Sunnyside Plantation, Murrells Inlet wedding, Fine art wedding images

Vendor list

Sunnyside Plantation – http://www.facebook.com/SunnysidePlantationSC

Inlet Affairs – http://inletaffairs.com/

Myrtle Beach DJ’s – http://www.myrtlebeachdjs.com/

5 Reasons Why You Should Schedule a Bridal Portrait

September 17, 2014 by Carl Kerridge

Why schedule a bridal portrait? It goes without fail that every time I shoot a wedding one of the things a bride always shares with me is that the day just goes by so fast. I wish I could stop time for my brides sometimes. It is so easy to get caught up in all little things it takes to pull together the big day.

I like to think I can slow down time a little during my portrait sessions. My brides and I can spend several hours together – and my brides are able to well, be a bride during that time. It takes time to capture someones true essence and their inner beauty. These are two qualities that are very important to me to uncover during my portrait sessions. Here are my top five reasons why you should schedule a bridal portrait before your wedding.

1. Trial run for the real thing

My wish, for every bride I have the opportunity to work with, is for them to have a stress free and smooth sailing wedding day with no snags or unnecessary distractions. Scheduling a bridal portrait enables my brides to have a chance for a trial run with their hair, makeup and dress. When my wife did her portraits (not with me, obviously!), she discovered that she needed to find a new hairdresser AND that her dress needed to be altered because it was not falling right. Had she not made the time to have her portrait made, she would have been contending with these issues on our wedding day. I recommend scheduling your portrait at least six weeks before the big day so you have time for dress alterations and making changes to your vendors (hair and makeup) if necessary.

2. Spending Quality Time with Your Photographer

I take pride in knowing that many of my brides (and grooms!) feel like friends by the time their wedding day rolls around. I want to get to know them to the best of my ability so I can capture images that speak to directly who they are and what their relationship is all about. This involves being very comfortable with one another. If you are someone who does not like to get their picture taken, it may take some time to warm up to the camera and feel comfortable in front of it. I mean, this is YOUR DAY! During the portrait session we are able to spend several hours together, getting to know one another and definitely doing a lot of laughing. So, by the time I see you on your wedding day, it is like you are old friends with me and my camera.

3. No Pressure

Emotions run high on the day of the wedding. Time is almost never on our side. Even my most organized brides can never anticipate the energy and emotion that is running through them as they get ready to say “I Do”, forever. During the session there is no pressure on your to be somewhere, there is no one asking you any questions. We always make time for a bridal portrait on the day of the wedding, even with my brides that schedule portraits ahead of time – but you will never get a two or three hour chunk of time to get it, just right.

4. Feel Confident

There is nothing more beautiful, from my perspective, than a confident bride. Having a bridal portrait means that you get to see pictures of yourself in your dress before your wedding day. I love working closely with my brides during the portrait sessions to help them learn the best way to stand and pose. The style of your dress, your body type, if you have veil or not and also your shoes all play into creating the “look” you want to achieve on your wedding day. During your portrait sessions, we have the time in a relaxed space to play with all of these things until we get them right.

5. The WOW Factor!

There is nothing quite like seeing the look on your guests faces when they walk into the reception and there is a gorgeous framed print of your bridal portrait there to greet them. I have always encouraged my brides to select several of their favorite images from our bridal sessions and have different sized frames and a mix of color and black and white. And, mothers and grandmothers are always happy to take these beautiful framed pictures home with them after the wedding!

I hope you enjoyed this collection of bridal portraits, most were taken before the wedding but a couple were taken day of. I included a variety of styles from traditional to modern, artistic and creative to just plain beautiful.