Intimate wedding on the beach at the North Beach Resort & Villas

I’ve done many weddings and family portraits session on the beach behind the North Beach Resort (formerly North Beach Plantation) towers. These towers are located at the very south end of North Myrtle Beach across from Barefoot Landing. This wedding was unique for me, in that the reception was also held in the Blu Lounge inside the Indigo Tower. Most of my weddings at this location have their reception back at 21 Main Events. This reception in the Blu Lounge was still catered by the 21 Main Events staff, so of course the food and service was really good.

First look at the Gazebo

Carrie and Jeff were a very sweet couple that were a lot of fun to take pictures with. They decided to do a first look at the beautiful gazebo in front of the towers. This is a great spot for doing pictures earlier in the day when the sun is still high. The gazebo gives some great shade, and the palm trees and foliage in the background aren’t too blown out even in the bright sun. I do wish I could turn off the one fountain directly behind the gazebo. It can cause some issues popping up right behind their heads.

I love when I have a little extra, relaxed time for pictures like I did after this first look. I got some great pictures of the couple together, and then some portraits of them separately as well. Carrie had a beautiful dress and a unique bouquet. I believe you call this a dried flower arrangement, I seen it a few times before as well. The wedding arch and reception table had similar types of muted floral decorations as well. It all looked very classy and modern. I’ll update this post with the florist info when I’m able to get it.

Ceremony and sunset pictures on the beach

The ceremony was held on the beach right behind the towers. It’s always difficult, on a public beach, to not have some people walking in the background. Thankfully, for the first kiss and pictures of them walking down the aisle together, the ocean was clear of onlookers. Even if there are some people in the background, I can usually Photoshop them out if needed. Immediately after the ceremony, I took the family portraits, and then sunset pictures with the bride and groom.

We got some cute pictures sitting in the dunes right behind the resort. I always love having the bride lean over behind the groom and throw her arms around him. You might not realize all that is going through a photographer’s mind when taking pictures, but notice how the rings and bouquet are clearly being shown off. Right before sunset, the warm but harsh light makes the ocean look really blue. The strong setting sun can cause some harsh shadows but using some fill light from my off camera flash helps to soften and fill these in. This helps to get beautiful pictures like the one below of the dip back for a kiss by the ocean.

I love walking down the beach a little south of the towers. There is a spot where a creek runs out into the ocean and the sun sets right behind the water. This is a great spot to take pictures right as the sun sets behind the dunes and trees. My favorite this time, was the closeup of the groom touching his wife’s face and looking into each other’s eyes. I always take plenty of full body pictures to show off the bride’s dress, but there is always something special about a real close up capturing the expressions.

I hope you enjoy the pictures below. If you are planning a wedding at the North Beach Resort & Villas please let me know. Even though this is my first official wedding in the Blu Lounge, I’ve done many weddings at 21 Main Events I would be happy to share.