I had the distinct honor of shooting my sister and new brother-n-law's wedding on Lake Michigan on August 8th, 2015. It was an absolutely brilliant day with perfect lighting for shooting. I was ALSO a bridesmaid, so my husband Jaime took over the cameras during the actual ceremony-- THANK YOU, JAIME!-- There is so, so, so much that I could say, but I'll let the pictures do the talking. In the mean time, here is some advice from the bride regarding weddings on the beach--

"Everything went really smooth, and I think my saving grace was that I'm on a teachers schedule so I had a lot of time to plan this summer. If I had one big piece of advice it would be to tell people, take some time off of work (if you have the luxury) to plan because there are so many details that you forget about! 

Also, we had some logistical mishaps with the party bus! Because we all drove to PJ Hoffmaster, we had to find people to drive our cars back so we could party on the bus. HOWEVER, we all left stuff in various vehicles and by the time they were all gone, we were left on the party bus with a serious lack of water, beer, wine, and other provisions that were already 1/2 way to the reception. My advice if you take a party bus is to get everyones things in ONE vehicle before hand so its easily retrieved before you get on the BUS! :)

I was so happy that we hired The Tent Chik company to set up and take down all of our chairs! They were awesome, and that was the last thing that we wanted to deal with.  

Oh, and if you get a commercial popcorn machine and spend HOURS AND HOURS cleaning it and purchasing POUNDS of popcorn and spices... make sure that you actually bring it out for the reception. (DOH!)

Lastly, it goes by so fast, so enjoy every minute!"

Wedding: PJ Hoffmaster State Park, Muskegon, MI

Wedding Arbor: Handmade by Duey!

Officiant: Diane Dettling

Reception: Shadow Ridge Golf Club Ionia, MI

Hair: Jessica Roberts from Signature Salon, in Ionia, MI

Dress: Fit to Flare by Oleg Cassini- Purchased from Tradesy.com

Suits: JC Penny

Flowers: By Stacy from Country Cupboard Floral in Portland, MI

Food by: Amy Gregory from Gregorys Catering 

Cake: By Judy Fineis--(Grandma Marie Johnson's world famous carrot cake and mom say's "no you can't have the recipe")

Ceremony Music: Tommy Ciganick

Reception Band: Azz-Izz

Ceremony Photographer so I could be a bridesmaid: Jaime Pollitte (The Hubbs!!)

Party Bus: Muskegon Party Bus