Wedding at Westfield | Greenville, SC
Westfield Wedding Photos
Greenville, South Carolina
Do you know how to spot the difference between a seasoned professional wedding photographer, and an inexperienced one? The level of planning that goes into the wedding photography on the wedding day itself…but it’s not what you think. A seasoned pro will do LESS planning for one important reason: Nothing ever seems to go as planned at a wedding. When I was a new wedding photographer, I planned out everything I wanted to do in meticulous lists. But as the years went by, I started relying more on my experience to get what I envisioned, which became a necessity once a problem would pop up. It’s hard to plan to take a specific photo when the timeline goes late by 30 minutes and you no longer have time to try something you wanted to. Or when a freak severe thunderstorm rolls in and changes the entire day!
That’s what happened today at Jayme and EJ’s wedding at Westfield, a new wedding venue here in downtown Greenville SC. While I do still meticulously plan wedding photos, I plan in terms of a Plan A and Plan B for locations and general ideas. So when a dangerous storm unexpectedly came through and flooded everything and leaving storm damage in it’s wake, it didn’t really bother me. I still had ideas of what we could do, though maybe restricted a bit. Afterall, Westfield is a new wedding venue, with unlimited opportunities…both indoor and out.
Now I tend to say new wedding venue a lot since I photograph “new to me” venues all the time. But Westfield actually is new – brand new, since they had just finished up construction the week before Jayme and EJ’s wedding. But it turned out to be the perfect setting for their wedding, and despite the weather challenges, I think everyone did alright! But don’t take my word for it – check out some of my favorite photos from Jayme and EJ’s Westfield wedding below:
As you can see above, Westfield had it all: A beautiful indoor space that worked beautifully as a backup rain plan. A natural outdoor area (that looks great for “after-storm” wedding photography!) located right on the swamp rabbit trail. TONS of open space for a wedding reception, with lots of great opportunities for wedding decorations. And best of all, Westfield is actually part-owned by a local wedding planner, Farrah Redmon Events – So everything ran smoothly. Well, as smoothly as a freak storm resulting in damage and flooding can allow.
As you can also see, Jayme and EJ were all about their wedding’s reception (a favorite of mine!). Not only did Westfield have a huge open space for their wedding reception, but it was also beautifully decorated. They also put a lot of effort into the live entertainment they had. Live bands at wedding receptions are an absolute favorite of mine, because they pump up the crowd like nothing else. Az Izz band did an incredible job, often jumping in and out of the dancing to get involved with everything. All in all, this Westfield wedding ranked in the top 10 most energetic receptions I’ve ever photographed.
Finally, as a runner who loves to run on the Swamp Rabbit Trail, I was able to watch Westfield come to life as it was being built….right along the trail itself. I loved finally being able to photograph a wedding here. Hopefully the next Westfield wedding I photograph will have sunnier skies!
Congratulations to EJ and Jayme!
Special thanks to the wedding vendors who helped make this day possible:
Wedding venue: Westfield Greenville
Wedding planning and coordinating: Farrah Redmon
Catering: Rick Erwin’s
Videography: Jeff Bradt
Live band: Az Izz Band
Wedding hair/makeup: Wisteria Salon
Photography: Matthew Pautz Photography