Port 393 Holland – Summer Wedding – portraits at Windmill Island Gardens – Carly and Alex

Close to the sunset side of Lake Michigan’s shoreline, Port 393 is an elegant option for those who love the idea of a beach wedding but need an indoor guest-friendly space. Located in fabulous Holland, Michigan, this venue can host your entire day. They have a getting-ready suite, a rooftop ceremony location, a perfect bar room for cocktail hour, and a full-size reception area for the rest of your party. All within a quick 15 minutes or so to popular locations like “Window on the Waterfront” (where a million tulips will bloom in early summer), “Windmill Island Gardens” (windmills, bridges, and weeping willows landscape these gorgeous grounds), Ottowa Beach, Tunnel Park, and Hope College campus too!

I’ve been so happy to see the fancy shoes + comfy shoes fad catch on. We all deserve to be comfortable for the biggest party of our lives, and your comfy shoes are just as special as your heels! Check out Carly’s adorable floral sneakers! And speaking of florals…

Carly and Alex each had many friends and family in their bridal party, but every single one embraced the role with perfection! Look at the joy the bridesmaids feel seeing Carly in her dress! Follow up the emotions with a pre-ceremony groom’s portrait, a sweet first look for dad, and pre-ceremony bridal portraits and the ceremony begins!

This whole wedding vibe was about fun, laughter, love, and friendship. You can see the graceful accommodations the whole team made when the little ones didn’t want to be held (or stand formally) for portraits. Not a problem, we’ll all go low then! I love it when happiness takes precedence over formality.

Next on the list, is a quick trip to the waterfront, and then on to Windmill Island Gardens – which is not only a stunningly photographic location, it also happens to be where Alex proposed to Carly the year before!

Bride with her Bridesmaids behind her for formal wedding photos

After the photo tour, we headed back to port 393 for an amazing reception! Such a cute tradition to have the newlyweds sign the wall! The guests had tons of fun and our closing scene was “shots on the roof” at dusk! If you are a July bride, don’t forget that nightfall in mid-July doesn’t happen until around 10pm, but twilight, dusk, and golden hour can make the most beautiful portraits!