Wedding at Catalyst by Nature Link | Rachel Graff Photography

Molly and Luke’s lakeside wedding at Catalyst by Nature Link was Minnesota summer perfection. The warm, sunny weather and nautical color palette came together to create the perfect summer wedding day.

I met Molly when she was the maid of honor in Olivia and Jeremiah’s wedding at the Hutton House four years ago. Since then, we crossed paths at a few other weddings within their friend group. So when Molly and Luke got engaged, I was thrilled to see her inquiry come through in my inbox. They ended up booking me over a year and a half in advance of their wedding day. I don’t typically do this, but I make exceptions for couples who already feel like friends!

Molly and Luke frequently visit the Brainerd Lakes area of Minnesota to visit their family cabin, so Catalyst by Nature Link in Nisswa, Minnesota was an obvious choice of wedding venue. Not only is it a gorgeous, modern venue, but it sits right in the heart of an area so special to them. This was my first time shooting at Catalyst, and I was so impressed by the space. The indoor ceremony location with the fireplace and floor-to-ceiling windows provided a stunning view of the lake. It was also perfect for indoor portraits, because it was scorching hot on this June wedding day.

This wedding day was full of so many sweet emotions. One of the highlights of the day was the couple’s first look. There were so many happy tears. You could just feel the love and excitement radiating from these two! Another highlight for me was cocktail hour. Molly and Luke met bartending together, so naturally the couple had to spend part of cocktail hour serving up drinks to their guests! It was so fun to watch, and guests clearly loved it.

The day ended with some fun sunset photos on the beach (barefoot of course!) and ice cream from an ice cream cart. It was the perfect end to a hot, humid June day spent lakeside in Minnesota.