It was my honor to be Emily and Clayton’s Barnsley Resort wedding photographer. Their wedding weekend was super sweet and full of love, offering good energy and perfect weather to boot! This venue had a ton of amazing photo opportunities. And the traditional wedding vibes were made incredibly special and unique with the historic backdrops the ruins and garden grounds offered.
The Venue: A Barnsley Resort Wedding
After shooting engagement photos for Emily and Clayton, I was thrilled when they booked me for their wedding weekend at Barnsley Resort, a gorgeous hotel, restaurant, and event venue located in Adairsville, GA.
Situated in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Barnsley Resort features a pedestrian-friendly English-inspired village, a three-story Inn, two restaurants, a beer garden, eight event venues, a golf course and a spa.
From ATV’s and hiking to biking and horseback riding, Barnsley Resort offers experiences that ensure you make the most of your time on their sweeping 3,000 scenic acres.
In addition to their outdoor adventures, Barnsley’s North Georgia wedding packages offer couples an unmatched elegance, with beautiful landscapes alongside all the amenities of a polished yet comfortable affair.
Wedding Photography Packages: Weekend Coverage
A weekend coverage package can be adjusted to fit a variety of needs, but what that looked like for Emily and Clayton was 2 hours of shooting Friday night for their welcome party (sometimes used for a rehearsal dinner, etc.) and then 7 hours of wedding day coverage on Saturday.
Booking weekend coverage ensures we are able to memorialize all of the love, fun, and merrymaking. Rest assured, all the good stuff from Emily and Clayton’s wedding weekend at Barnsley Resort was captured.
From guest’s arrival to those special behind-the-scene moments with your closest friends and family, weekend coverage extends beyond the standard pre-ceremony, ceremony, and reception pics and can offer your photo album (and in turn, your memories) a more colorful and filled out perspective– setting the stage with details and those special in between moments that truly are the marrow of your celebration.
Now, back to Emily and Clayton’s gorgeous wedding weekend at Barnsley Resort…
Wedding Welcome Party at Barnsley Resort’s Meditation Garden
A welcome party for your wedding is such a great way to greet your guests and begin the festivities. Because Emily and Clayton opted to forgo the traditional bridal and grooms parties, time that is sometimes used for a rehearsal dinner was replaced with a charming and elegant welcome party.
Friday night’s welcome party was hosted outdoors in the Meditation Garden on the Barnsley Resort grounds, and featured a live acoustic guitarist during this super cute and low-key pre-wedding event.
Their wedding date in late-September offered the perfect weather on this expansive North Georgia property. You can see the fall leaves just starting to come through in the color of the trees, while the sun continues to set.
Barnsley’s Meditation Garden features a canopied muscadine arbor and bamboo grove, with a capacity of 80. One of the benefits of having your wedding here is that Barnsley Resort is a fully staffed resort and they’re used to managing large crowds, which means your event is well executed and you can focus on what’s important– quality time with your loved ones.
This welcome party had the basic ingredients of any successful event: lots of staff, good food, great drinks.
But what made Emily and Clayton’s welcome party so magical was the gathering of their loved ones from near and far. From young and old, you could feel the excitement and joy from those who haven’t seen each other in a while, as was evidenced in their loving embrace.
They opted for a fun “photo guest book” station featuring polaroid cameras, perfectly styled monogrammed napkins, and a fun “Beer Garden” flag to set the stage for their comfortable and festive welcome event.
Mom and Dad addressed the group with a welcome speech, while guests enjoyed bocce ball and conversation under the expansive North Georgia sky.
Guests took the cue from the venue, and showed up dressed to impress for cocktails and yard games with true southern flair.
The bride and groom pose for a pic.
Dinner was served buffet style and a few fires were lit throughout the garden space as temperatures began to dip, providing a nice breakout spot as an alternative to the dining tables under the bistro lights.
People were playing games, walking about the property, enjoying food, and taking in the gorgeous sunset– what a beautiful evening to remember.
Wedding Day at Barnsley Resort
THE DETAILS
There’s so much time and love and energy that goes into the choices you’re making for your big day, and I feel it’s really important to commemorate that with images of the invitation suite, dress hanging, and other detail shots.
The bride, Emily, and her mother had matching hair combs in silver and gold, and it was important to them that we capture that special touch as well.
FIRST LOOKS
Emily actually opted for a first look with her father in the Bamboo Garden before her first look with her groom, Clayton. This turned out to be such a sweet and touching daddy/ daughter moment and something I would definitely recommend if that relationship feels special to you.
Venue Note: Barnsley Resort is fully staffed, and offers wedding fay drivers in limousine golf-carts. This was an excellent touch for our bride and groom.
While we were able to make use of many of the endless photo opts available at Barnsley Resort, this particular spot by the pond offered us dappled light as a gorgeous and serene backdrop.
CEREMONY
The Ruins at Barnsley Resort played host to Emily and Clayton’s wedding ceremony, portraits, cocktail party, and wedding reception, offering guests an elaborate English garden, with views of the fountain, and beautiful lighting as it cut through the ruin walls.
The ruins were accented with a huge floral installation, set off by the ivy that’s attached to the wall, making it look like the wall covering was in bloom– offering a really nice way to highlight the unique features of their selected venue.
Dad gave her away. Mom did a reading. Everyone was crying. This is the ideal balance if you’re looking for a traditional yet touching wedding ceremony. It was super sweet.
Because we had already done the majority of the portraits with the family photos, we just grabbed a quick few additional portraits of the bride and groom just before the cocktail party.
A GOOD COCKTAIL PARTY
Wedding Planning Tip: Have servers come out just after the wedding ceremony with either a batched cocktail, or glasses of wine and beer poured to help alleviate the bar line right when cocktail hour starts.
An Enchanting Reception at Barnsley’s Manor House Ruins
With a capacity of 200, the original Barnsley Family Estate includes the iconic 19th century Ruins, front Museum Lawn, covered Manor House Pavilion and gorgeous fountain views and formal English boxwood garden.
Barnsley Gardens iconic 19th century Manor House Ruins features
During cocktail hour in the ruins, guests of Emily & Clayton enjoy hors d’or devours and beverages as they stroll the historic ruins, stopping to enjoy the lounge furniture placed throughout the reception area’s ruins and pavilion.
The ruins featured brick flooring, gorgeous wall ivy with florals worked in, comfortable sitting, and bright blue sky, all working together to give off a whimsical romantic garden vibe– perfection.
The cake was as delicious as it was stunning.
From the guest book, to the bentwood chairs with the cross-back, and lots of gold accents– there were beautiful details everywhere.
Manor House Pavilion
Featuring faux grass on the floors, a wood beam ceiling, twinkle lights, white table clothes and florist hung greenery chandeliers, the Manor House Pavilion was stunning. Jutting up alongside the brick walls of the ruins, the Pavilion’s atmosphere seemed effortlessly styled.
Half the table had flower arrangements for their centerpiece, and the other half had candles and greenery. The band was placed up front.
Overall, the reception hall didn’t have a lot of decor (mainly because it’s beautiful and doesn’t need it).
One of the benefits of booking a venue like Barnsley resort is the raw beauty ensures your setting is classic, unique, and historic, and you don’t have to fool with making it up because… it just is.
For dinner, the couple opted for a variety of food stations, featuring selections such as seafood, olives, pasta, etc.
Just after sunset, the bride and groom enter and go straight into their first dance. We get a little kiss and dip action– swoon.
Slow shudder. Warm light. Cool summer air. You can just feel it, right?
People were allowed to enjoy the lounge areas inside the ruins, hit the dance floor, or take advantage of the food stations. The couple and the venue really did offer something for everyone, providing such a comfortable and enjoyable experience for all guests.
Never one to understate the importance of a good live band… the band crushed it. They propelled everybody to the dance floor, and Emily and Clayton’s guest brought it.
Overall, the whole reception was killer– great music, good food, and effortless charm. Everything looked great and everyone had a great time.
And, who doesn’t love a sparkler exit? (Which can be rare to come by these days!)
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Overall, Emily and Clayton had a GREAT wedding! The property is gorgeous, providing an effortless vibe and so many amazing views. Barnsley Resort offers a rich history and endless photo opportunities. And if you’re already sold on Barnsley Resort for your big day, this is probably a great time to get in touch with an experienced photographer who has already scouted the next jaw-dropping photo location on their beautiful grounds.
Barnsley Resort Wedding and Event Vendors
A special thank you goes out to all the vendors who made Emily and Clayton’s wedding day such a classy and beautiful event:
Venue- Barnsley Resort
Caterer- Barnsley Resort
Florals- Meg’s Flower Market
Dress- Happily Ever After Bridal
Suit- Yacoubian Tailor
Hair- Kenzie Brown
Makeup- Criss Skinner
Band- Revel Radio
Cake- TBD (Somebody message me, because this cake was divine!)
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