Hi, I’m Megan—the lead wedding photographer, creative mind, and self-proclaimed bride enthusiast behind Megan Holmes Photography.
For the past six years, my husband, Langton, and I have had the privilege of photographing weddings together. While we work side by side, we each bring something completely different to a wedding day—and that balance has become a huge part of the experience we give our couples.
Meet Megan
As the lead photographer, I specialize in the **client experience, communication, and creative direction** of Megan Holmes Photography. From our first conversation to building your photography timeline and eventually walking alongside you on your wedding day, I want you to feel like you have someone in your corner who understands both the photographs you want and the experience you want to have while creating them.
I’m the creative designer of our team. I’m constantly looking at the light, the location, the movement of a dress, the little details and all the possibilities a space gives us. But more than anything, I genuinely **love brides and weddings**. There is something incredibly special about getting to be part of this season of someone's life, and six years later, that excitement hasn't gone away.
Outside of weddings, I am fueled by coffee and will absolutely stop at a tiny hole-in-the-wall coffee shop in the middle of nowhere just to see what they're brewing.
In my free time, you'll probably find me thrifting for my next great find or putting on my teacher hat as I homeschool my children. Life is usually a mixture of photography, family, creativity and whatever project I've dreamed up next.
Meet Langton
Langton is our second photographer, resident technology expert, licensed drone operator and the other half of what makes our wedding-day coverage work.
He specializes in the technical side of our business, helping ensure we're working with quality equipment and that our gear is maintained, updated and ready to perform when it matters most.
But his role on a wedding day goes far beyond equipment.
Langton has an incredible eye for the **artistic and emotional elements happening around us**. While I may be focused on our bride and groom, he's watching the people who love them.
The tear in Dad's eye.
Mom's expression as her daughter walks down the aisle.
A grandparent quietly watching from across the room.
Your best friend losing it during the vows.
His job isn't only to photograph the emotions between our couple. It's to preserve the way your wedding day was experienced by the family and friends who came to celebrate alongside you.
He's also our licensed drone operator, allowing us to add another perspective to a wedding gallery through sweeping aerial imagery and iconic portraits that showcase not only our couple, but the beautiful place they chose to get married.
When he isn't photographing weddings, Langton is a graphic designer by day, carpenter for any and all of Megan's house projects by necessity, and somewhere in between all of that, you'll probably find him out on the disc golf course.
Two Photographers, One Story
Having two photographers isn't simply about having another camera at your wedding.
It allows us to tell the same story from two perspectives.
While one of us is photographing the moment everyone is watching, the other can be documenting the reaction happening across the room. While I'm working directly with our couple and keeping their experience moving smoothly, Langton has the freedom to watch for the quieter, unscripted moments happening around them.
After six years in wedding photography, we've learned that some of the most meaningful photographs aren't necessarily the ones you planned for.
They're the ones you didn't even realize were happening.
And together, we get to preserve both.
The Complete Bride’s Guide to Planning a Wedding or Bridal Session at Abney Hall in Greenwood, SC
As wedding photographers, we look at a venue a little differently. We notice where the light falls, how your wedding day can flow from one space to another, where quiet moments can happen, and how a timeline can either give you room to enjoy your venue or leave you feeling like you rushed through it.
So rather than simply showing you pretty photographs from Abney Hall, we wanted to create a guide that can actually help you plan.
Whether you’re considering Abney Hall for your wedding, have already booked your date, or are dreaming about having your bridal portraits here, here are a few things we recommend keeping in mind.
Why Abney Hall Works So Beautifully for a Wedding Day
One of the biggest advantages of choosing a property like Abney Hall is variety.
Your wedding photographs don’t have to rely on one beautiful corner of the property. The architecture, interior spaces, grounds, greenery, and changing light throughout the day give us opportunities to create a gallery that feels varied while still telling one cohesive story.
That variety is valuable for more than photography.
Having beautiful spaces available throughout the property gives couples options when planning different portions of their wedding day and can be especially helpful when South Carolina weather decides not to cooperate.
When you tour the property, try not to look at each space individually. Instead, imagine how your entire wedding day could move through it.
Where will you spend your morning?
Where will your family gather?
Where do you imagine seeing your future spouse for the first time?
Where will your guests be while you're taking portraits?
Thinking through the experience of the entire day can help you make the most of the venue you've chosen.
Getting Ready at Abney Hall
Your wedding morning sets the tone for everything that follows, and one of our biggest recommendations is to avoid packing too much into those final moments before your ceremony.
If photography coverage begins while you're getting ready, try to have most of your hair and makeup completed before we reach the portion of the day when you'll be getting into your dress.
This leaves time for photographs of your details, your dress, your bridesmaids, and those little interactions happening around you without everyone watching the clock.
Before your photographer arrives, consider gathering your important details together in one place.
This might include your invitation suite, rings, jewelry, shoes, perfume, veil, vow books, heirlooms, and any other meaningful pieces you'd like documented.
It is also helpful to designate one area for everyone's bags, drinks, clothing, and personal belongings. Getting-ready rooms naturally become busy, and keeping one area relatively clear can make a tremendous difference in your photographs.
Most importantly, give yourself time.
Some of the sweetest photographs from a wedding morning happen when no one is posing at all.
Don't Forget About the Interior
One thing we encourage our Abney Hall brides not to do is think of the interior simply as a rain backup.
The indoor spaces are part of the character of the property and deserve a place in your gallery even when South Carolina gives us a beautiful sunny day.
Indoor portraits can give your gallery a completely different feeling from photographs taken outside. They can feel timeless, intimate, elegant, and editorial while still telling the story of where your wedding took place.
And, of course, having beautiful interior options becomes especially valuable if the weather changes.
Rain doesn't mean your photography plan has failed. It simply means we may adjust it.
Planning Your Wedding Timeline Around Photography
One of the best things you can do for your wedding photographs happens long before we ever pick up our cameras: build breathing room into your timeline.
If you chose Abney Hall because you love the property, give yourself enough time to actually enjoy it.
We don't want you to spend your entire wedding day taking photographs, but we also don't want to have fifteen minutes to photograph a property you spent months dreaming about.
Your photographer and coordinator can help determine how much time should be reserved for things like getting ready, a first look, wedding-party portraits, family photographs, couple portraits, and sunset photographs.
A little extra time between major portions of the day can also protect your timeline when something inevitably takes longer than expected.
Hair and makeup might run behind.
A boutonnière may take longer than anticipated.
Someone may temporarily disappear right before family portraits.
That's normal.
A good timeline accounts for real life.
Should You Have a First Look?
There isn't one right answer.
A first look can allow you to complete many of your portraits before the ceremony, giving you more time with your guests afterward. It can also give the two of you a private moment together before the day becomes busy.
But if you've always dreamed of seeing each other for the first time as you walk down the aisle, that matters too.
Instead of choosing a first look simply because someone tells you that you "should," talk with your photographer about what you value most.
We can build your photography timeline around either choice.
Make Time for Portraits Later in the Day
The light at 2:00 in the afternoon doesn't look the same as the light later in the evening.
That doesn't mean we can't take beautiful photographs earlier in the day. It simply means different light creates a different feeling.
If you love soft, warm, romantic photographs, consider reserving a small portion of your timeline for portraits later in the day when the light is softer.
This doesn't need to become another long portrait session.
Sometimes stepping away together for ten or fifteen minutes is enough.
It also gives you a chance to leave the reception for a moment, be together, and realize:
We're married.
Those few quiet minutes can become one of our favorite parts of a wedding day.
Planning Bridal Portraits at Abney Hall
If you're considering bridal portraits at Abney Hall, the venue has thoughtfully curated a three-hour booking window for bridal sessions, giving you the opportunity to slow down and truly enjoy the property rather than feeling rushed from one portrait to the next.
Three hours may sound like a lot of time for photographs, but remember that your booking window includes more than the time spent in front of the camera. You'll want time to arrive, get settled, put on your gown and accessories, make any final hair or makeup touch-ups, move throughout the property, and pack everything back up when you're finished.
This is one of the reasons we recommend planning your photography coverage intentionally within that window. You don't necessarily need three full hours of active photography to create a beautiful and varied bridal gallery. Instead, the extra breathing room allows your session to feel relaxed.
Your bridal session is also one of the few opportunities you'll have to put on your complete wedding look without a ceremony or reception waiting for you afterward. Take advantage of it!
When possible, consider scheduling your hair and makeup trial for the same day. Bring your dress, veil, shoes, jewelry, bouquet, and any other meaningful details you'd like incorporated into your portraits.
A bridal session can even serve as a little wedding-day test run. You'll have an opportunity to discover things you may not notice during a fitting.
Can you comfortably walk in your shoes?
Does your veil stay secure?
Can you sit and move comfortably in your dress?
Do you love how your hair and makeup photograph from different angles?
Does anything need one final alteration?
Once you're ready, having access to both the interior and exterior of Abney Hall allows us to create variety without needing to travel between locations. We can choose spaces that complement your gown, take advantage of the best available light, and create portraits that showcase both you and the character of the property.
Rather than trying to fill every minute of your three-hour booking, allow that window to give you something every bride deserves during wedding planning: time to slow down, put on your dress, and enjoy being a bride.
Let Your Dress Influence Your Portraits
Every bride doesn't need to be photographed in exactly the same places.
Your gown, veil, flowers, season, and personal style should influence how your bridal portraits are created.
If your dress has a dramatic train, we may look for a space where we can fully showcase it.
If your veil has beautiful detailing, we may choose a simpler background that allows it to stand out.
If your dress has intricate details on the back, we'll make sure those details have their moment too.
The venue may remain the same from wedding to wedding, but your photographs shouldn't.
What If It Rains?
South Carolina weather can change quickly, and watching the forecast during wedding week can become stressful.
Our biggest advice is not to let one little rain icon determine how you feel about your wedding day.
Having access to beautiful indoor spaces is one of the advantages of choosing a property like Abney Hall.
Depending on the conditions, your photography team may adjust the order of portraits, use the interior, watch for breaks in the weather, or take advantage of outdoor opportunities when they appear.
This is also why communication between your photographer, coordinator, and venue team is so important.
We can adapt.
And sometimes the unexpected weather creates photographs we never could have planned.
Don't Forget About Your Guests
While you're planning beautiful details and photographs, remember that your guests are experiencing Abney Hall too.
Think through how they will move through the day.
Make sure important family members know where they need to be and when. Consider elderly family members or guests who may need additional assistance. Clearly communicate important arrival information and make sure your wedding party understands the timeline before the wedding day.
For questions regarding parking, accessibility, setup, venue access, décor restrictions, or other property-specific details, always check directly with the Abney Hall team for their current policies and recommendations.
Good communication before your wedding day means fewer questions for you to answer while you're trying to enjoy it.
Your Vendor Team Matters
Your vendors don't work independently of one another.
Your photographer needs to know when your coordinator plans to open the ceremony space.
Your coordinator needs to know how long family photographs will take.
Your DJ needs to know when you're stepping away for sunset portraits.
Your hair and makeup team needs to know when photography needs you dressed.
Your florist needs to know when bouquets and boutonnieres need to be ready.
When your venue, coordinator, photographer, DJ, florist, caterer, and hair and makeup team understand the same timeline, your day can flow much more naturally.
Choose vendors you trust and allow them to communicate with one another.
Questions to Ask While Planning Your Abney Hall Wedding
Venue policies and offerings can change, so we always recommend confirming current information directly with Abney Hall.
As you're planning, some helpful questions to ask your venue team include:
- What spaces are included with our rental?
- What time can the wedding party arrive?
- When can vendors begin setup?
- What is our ceremony rain plan?
- Are there any décor or candle restrictions?
- Where should vendors park and unload?
- Are there accessibility considerations we should communicate to guests?
- What does cleanup look like at the end of the evening?
- When can bridal portraits be scheduled?
- Are there areas of the property our photographer should know about beforehand?
Having these conversations early can help you make decisions about your timeline, décor, vendors, and photography before wedding week arrives.
One Final Piece of Advice
Don't create such a perfect wedding-day schedule that you forget to leave room for your actual wedding day.
Some of our favorite photographs aren't written anywhere on the timeline.
It's your mom's face when she sees you completely dressed.
Your bridesmaids trying not to cry.
Your grandmother watching from across the room.
Someone fixing your veil.
Your husband reaching for your hand when he thinks no one is watching.
Your friends laughing together during cocktail hour.
Those moments need room to happen.
A good wedding timeline gives your vendors structure.
A great wedding timeline gives your wedding room to breathe.
Planning Your Wedding or Bridal Portraits at Abney Hall
Choosing your venue shapes so much more than the background of your wedding photographs.
It influences where you spend your morning, where your family gathers, how your guests experience the celebration, where you share quiet moments together, and ultimately where so many of your memories are made.
Abney Hall gives couples the opportunity to celebrate in a property filled with history and character right here in Greenwood, South Carolina.
Whether you're considering Abney Hall for your wedding day or dreaming about having your bridal portraits here, take the time to experience the property, talk with the venue team, and think about how you want the entire day to feel.
Then build a vendor team that understands that vision.
As Greenwood, South Carolina wedding photographers, one of our favorite parts of the planning process is helping our couples create a photography timeline that allows us to document the beauty of their venue without taking them away from the people and moments they came there to experience.
Because years from now, your photographs shouldn't only remind you what Abney Hall looked like on your wedding day.
They should remind you exactly how it felt to be there.
