Wooltower Wedding Video
Capturing Timeless Wedding Stories in Broughshane
When it comes to rustic charm, breathtaking scenery, and a venue with heart, the Wooltower in Broughshane, County Antrim, is one of the Northern Ireland’s most sought-after wedding venues. As a wedding videographer who has had the privilege of filming there multiple times, I can say without hesitation that it’s one of those rare places where history, character, and natural beauty blend seamlessly to create the perfect backdrop for your love story.
From intimate ceremonies in their new purpose-built ceremony space to big celebrations in the stone barn, the Wooltower offers and unforgettable setting for couples. In this post, I want to share some of my experiences filming weddings here, including Anna & Emmet’s incredible day and Katie & Lee’s beautiful celebration.
Why choose the Wooltower for your wedding?
The Wooltower isn’t just a venue- it’s an experience. Tucked away in the countryside outside of Broughshane, it carries with it the weight of history (an old, finely restored mill building) while offering modern comforts that couples and guests absolutely adore.
When it comes to wedding videography, what I love most is how every corner of the Wooltower seems designed for cinematic storytelling. The rustic stonework, exposed beams, and riverside views are endlessly photogenic and make a great backdrop to your highlight film and documentary packages.
Anna & Emmet’s wedding at the Wooltower
Anna and Emmet’s wedding was the perfect example of how the wooltower brings together beauty, emotion and atmosphere. Their ceremony took place in the venue’s new ceremony space - a bright and elegant room designed specifically with weddings in mind. As soon as I walked in with my cameras, tripods and camera-stabilisiers I knew we were in for something special.
The space allows natural light to flood in, which meant their ceremony film glowed with warmth and authenticity. It felt like the perfect mix of contemporary design and rustic charm, which suited Anna and Emmet’s style beautifully. The bride and father-of-the-bride, along with bridesmaid’s can go into the ceremony space at the back of the room before walking up the aisle. For this wedding film I was able to film them walking out through the curtain and edit it nicely into the highlight film to make it look like I was in two places at the same time.
Adding to the uniqueness of their day was their celebrant, Reverend Vanessa Cooney from lifeceremonies.ie. Vanessa has such a gift for creating personalised, heartfelt ceremonies that truly reflect the couple. The way she told Anna and Emmet’s story had the entire room captivated, and it gave me so many moments to capture that were raw and deeply meaningful.
After the ceremony, we made use of the grounds for intimate portraits and video sequences. It was great to work with an experienced photographer and thankfully the couple hadn’t hired a wedding content creator. The mill building, riverside walks, and countryside surrounding Broughshane gave us a variety of stunning backdrops without needing to leave the venue. It’s these little pockets of scenery that make the Wooltower such a dream for a wedding videographer.
Katie & Lee’s celebration at the Wooltower
Following a catholic ceremony in a chapel in Newtonabbey, they went to the Wooltower for the rest of their big day. From the moment we arrived in the wedding cars the atmosphere was full of love and affection, thanks partly to the expertly run venue that run their wedding day timeline to the minute, whilst keeping the needs of their couples at the forefront of their service.
One of the highlights of filming their wedding was capturing the dynamic between them and their guests. There’s something about the wooltower’s layout that makes everyone feel connected as the celebrations spill out from their indoor/outdoor bar area into the seating and garden areas. Each wedding, no matter the size, still feels like a family gathering. Katie and Lee (both radiologists in Belfast) laughter and energy were infectious, and their video became a real celebration of joy, movement and connection.
I had the pleasure of capturing the look on the couple’s faces as they walked upstairs to the reception and speeches room. The exposed beams adorned with fairy lights make the place look stunning. It’s a large room but even smaller weddings don’t get lost in the space. It gave us some stunning and cinematic shots too when we moved downstairs where the wedding band the professionals were playing - filling up the dancefloor nicely, with the room showing off the venue’s charm after dark. For lighting speeches I was able to use my new peak design suction cups to put two amran 60d lights onto the windows behind the subjects at the top table, so even on the edges when the father of the groom was speaking I’d still have some rim light to make him ‘pop’ during the colour grading process.
I can then put two lights on a warmer kelvin, front facing the top table. Thankfully the microphone used for speeches is hard-wired, so I’m able to split the signal for clear and crisp audio into my zoom F6 field recorder. Yes, this gives me more work to do when I’m backing up my footage - with one extra SD card to copy (I use the sony tough cards, 256gb with a write speed of at least 199mb/s) - but it’s worth it for the clean audio. I’ll still put my DJI audio recorder or rode wireless pro on top of the microphone for redundancy.
How to get to the Wooltower
For anyone planning a wedding or attending as a guest, the wooltower is easily accesible yet feels like a countryside escape.
The venue is located in Broughshane, County Antrim, often reffered to as the ‘Garden Village of Ulster’ thanks to its award-winning floral displays and picturesque charm. The wooltower itself sits just out the village at the Raceview Mill (BT42 4JJ), surrounded by lush fields and the flowing Braid River, which adds so much to the atmosphere.
By car: The Wooltower is around 40 minutes from Belfast, making it a straightforward drive for guests travelling from the city or from Belfast International Airport. It’s also about 20 minutes from Ballymena, which has excellent transport links.
Parking: The venue has ample on-site parking, so guests don’t have to worry about finding a space.
Public Transport: While the Wooltower is more easily reached by car, Ballymena train station is the closest major hub, with onward travel options by taxi or bus.
What makes the journey so special is that the drive itself is stunning. As you leave the towns behind and enter the Antrim countryside, the landscape opens up into rolling hills and riverside views that set the perfect tone for a wedding celebration.
Why the Wooltower works so well on film
As a wedding videographer and vendor who is recommended by the venue, I can give you a few reasons why this place stands out from the crowd:
Light and space: from the new ceremony room to the open-air countryside shots, natural light is abundant - something every videographer dreams of. This makes my lens choice nice and easy, often stopping my F-stop as wide as possible to get lovely bokeh or even light flares (depending on which ND filter I use)
Versatility: Whether it’s using the roller shutter door with ‘the weaving rooms’ nicely painted on, the gardens, the rustic barn-style reception, or golden hour footage by the river, the variety of space keeps the footage rich and dynamic.
Atmosphere: The venue has a way of bringing people together, which is always brilliant for candid photography and videography. For these type of shots me or my second shooter will put on a longer lens to adopt a more documentary approach (compared to the story-boarded and directed intimate portraits sessions). There’s warmth in the architecture, the staff and the surroundings.
Each wedding I’ve filmed here has looked completely different, yet all of them share the same cinematic story-telling quality that the venue naturally provides.
A history of raceview mill
One of the things that makes the wooltower so special as a wedding venue is its story. The name comes directly from its historic past, what we now know as a stunning wedding destination was once part of raceview mill, a working mill in Broughshane. The site has been at the heart of the village for centuries, and for much of its life was a thriving hub for linen and wool production.
The ‘wooltower’ itself was the building where fleeces were stored, sorted and processed during the mill’s busiest years. It literally was a tower filled with sheeps wool, standing as a symbol of local industry and craftsmanship in the 18th and 19th centuries.
A sheep’s fleece grows naturally throughout the year, and when spring or early summer arrives, farmers carefully shear the sheep - removing the wool in one process. This doesn’t harm the animal, in fact it keeps them cool and comfortable during the warmer months. For farmers, this cycle is not only natural but also sustainable. In Northern Ireland wool has traditionally been a cornerstone of the economy.
Over time,as the textile industry declined, Raceview Mill and its buildings fell into disuse.
Thankfully, instead of letting this historic landmark fade away, it was lovingly restored and repurposed. Today, the Wooltower has been transformed into a unique wedding venue, carefully preserving its rustic stone walls, timber beams, and authentic character. Couples celebrating their day here aren’t just getting married in a beautiful building - they’re becoming part of a story that stretches back generations.
The venue’s name is a tribute to this heritage, and it’s one of the many reasons the Wooltower feels so authentic. Every detail, from the preserved stonework to the rieverside setting is steeped in history, while offering modern couples the perfect space to make their own memories.
Final thoughts - your wooltower wedding reels on social media
If you’re planning your wedding at the wooltower in Broughshane, you’ve chosen a venue that is not only stunning in person but also absolutely perfect for film. Whether you’re drawn to the riverside setting, the rustic barn, or the light-filled ceremony room, every element of the Wooltower works in harmony to create a story worth remembering.
As a recommended and award-winning videographer, my goal is always to capture your day in a way that feels natural, personal and timeless. Anna and Emmet and Katie and Lee’s weddings both showcased just how magical this venue is, and I can’t wait to film more stories here in the future.
