Joannie & I had the pleasure of creating Brett and Haylee’s wedding photographs at their beautiful Brackett’s Crossing Country Club wedding in Lakeville, MN on Friday, June 24th.
Newlyweds Brent & Haylee.
Their wedding day was a hot and breezy one with clear skies and temperatures in the mid 90’s with a refreshing, but “messy hair” wind throughout the day.
Brent & Haylee.
Joannie & I arrived extra early to check out everything and to get set up. We’ve photographed Brackett’s Crossing Country Club wedding receptions on more than one occasion, but never an actual wedding ceremony there until now, so I didn’t want any surprises.
The girls!
Time To Get Ready
Upon our arrival, Brett and some of his groomsmen and family members were helping with the decorating and installing the chair covers in the ballroom. Brett shared with me that he now understood why companies charge what they do for that after his experience.
Joannie & I began in Haylee’s getting ready room with some nice photos of her gorgeous wedding dress and pretty wedding accessories and of the girls getting ready. I spend some time across the hall in the boy’s ready room. Then I went to set up for the first looks with Haylee’s dad and Brett at a pretty spot outside in the shade.
The pretty dresses.
After Haylee’s first look with her father and then with Brett, we spent some time with just her and Brett taking some fun and casual bridal portraits and even a couple of infrared wedding photographs when a couple of clouds happened by.
Color infrared of Brent & Haylee.
Infrared Wedding Photos
It’s been a tough year so far for infrared wedding photography. Every wedding has been cloudless, which leads to pretty boring skies for infrared. When a couple of clouds showed up in the sky, I took advantage of the opportunity which didn’t last very long.
The wedding party photos were up next. We had a great time with them creating lots of fun poses in a couple different locations in the shade around the clubhouse. The whole time we battled the wind with the girl’s hair. The ladies were troopers, that’s for sure!
The wedding party.
Lightning McQueen
We used our custom golf cart light stand, “Lightning McQueen” all day long. But with the windy conditions, we just couldn’t use a softbox as much as we would have like to. Lightning still helped give us nice fill light while we kept everyone in the shade as much as possible.
Da Boys!
Family portraits were up next. We had a lot of fun taking them, especially with “Duluth”, the nickname given to one of Haylee’s aunts. I enjoyed giving her a hard time the rest of the night and she felt obligated to give it right back! She’s a sweet and funny lady.
It’s Wedding Time
Now it was time for Brett and Haylee’s Brackett’s Crossing Country Club wedding ceremony! As a nice personal touch, Haylee’s cousin, Steve Pankow performed their ceremony. Because it was so hot and there was no shade, Steve was thoughtful enough to keep it short and sweet. I’m guessing maybe about 6 minutes or so. That was long enough to get the job done very well, and Brett & Haylee were now married! Nice!
Joannie & I prepared for the Grand March and also took lots of fun candid group photos during the fun social hour that followed. Guests gathered both inside and outside at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club to enjoy cocktails and hors-d’oeuvres.
A wonderful dinner and reception followed with several entertaining speeches and toasts. A packed dance floor finished out the night right after the first dances with Haylee & Brett, Haylee and her dad and an unexpected choreographed dance with Brett & his mom. Very cute!
Sunset kiss.
Sunset Wedding Photos – The Sweet Light
Before saying our goodbyes, Joannie & I took Brett & Haylee outside for a handful of photos of just the two of them after the sun had set. It was our only soft light wedding portraits on this very sunny day. The photos turned out great and I think they enjoyed the few minutes alone.
I “heart” you.
Brett & Haylee, thank you for asking us to be your wedding photographers! Joannie & I had a wonderful day with you and your families, friends and yes, with “Duluth” too! We hope you enjoy your Brackett’s Crossing Country Club wedding highlight video we’ve created for you. We look forward to sharing the rest of your beautiful wedding photographs with you very soon! –M&J