THE PINE TREE BARN ELOPEMENT IN CENTRAL MICHIGAN

Kelly & Mikenzie

I have been counting down the days until Kelly and Mikenzie's wedding day. I had the honor of photographing Kelly and Mikenzie's engagement session at Kensington Metro Park not that long ago, and blogged about it! To check that out, click here! Kelly and Mikenzie were jumping through hoops in order to make this wedding day possible, so when the day finally arrived we couldn't have been more excited.

THE PINE TREE BARN // FLUSHING, MICHIGAN

Mikenzie and Kelly's wedding was held at a beautiful Michigan wedding venue, The Pine Tree Barn. The Pine Tree Barn was founded in 2014 and is the perfect wedding venue if you truly want to immerse yourself in nature. This wedding venue gives rustic a whole new meaning and is truly one of a kind. The Pine Tree Barn is located on 20 acres of well maintained land that is covered in pine, birch, oak and maples trees. On the property there is also a pond and several different ceremony sites to match whichever vibe you're looking for on your wedding day. The actual barn where many of the receptions take place is 4,000 square feet built entirely of White Oak and Pine with Cedar siding. This wedding venue really gives off those warm, cozy feelings which are exactly what you want to feel on a special day much like this one.

Some of the amenities included when you book your wedding at The Pine Tree Barn are:

Venue space with indoor bathrooms and fully climate controlled
Access to staging kitchen
Cocktail tables
8'x3' rectangular tables
Premium wooden chairs
ADA Accessibility
On-site parking attendants

To read more about what The Pine Tree barn has to offer for their wedding packages, click here! If you're wanting to get in contact with The Pine Tree Barn to host your wedding, you can do so just by clicking here!

GETTING READY & THE FIRST LOOK(S)

Getting ready on the morning of your wedding day has got to be one of the most impactful and emotional moments throughout the entire day. I don't know what it is about them, but I think it's the build up on anticipation that really gets everything going. So located in the barn at their wedding venue is a getting ready space where both Mikenzie and Kelly got ready. Surprisingly they had enough restraint to get ready in the space room, without turning around! You may notice that Kelly's mom was helping her put on a very special necklace as she completed the final touches of her wedding look. Both Kelly and Mikenzie's father's have passed, so inside Kelly's necklace was some of her dad's ashes. That way he will be there for her on one of the most special days of her life - I just thought this was an incredibly emotional and touching moment for everyone.

After accomplishing the almost impossible task of getting ready in the same room and not seeing each other, it was time for us to make our way outside for Mikenzie and Kelly's first look. One major theme that Mikenzie and Kelly wanted to stick to was wildflowers. Throughout their engagement session we took photos in a field of wild flowers, and their first look also took place in front of a field of wildflowers. They also incorporated those flowers into their wedding hairstyles which I think really just tied in that bohemian laid-back look they were going for.

Shortly after, Mikenzie and Kelly also did a first look with their wedding party. A first look with your wedding party is a great way to involve them even more on your special day, which is why I love when my couples choose to do this!

PORTRAITS

Depending on your wedding day timeline discussed with your wedding photographer, you either can take your wedding portraits before or after the ceremony. It's entirely dependent on timing and what you prefer and what works best with events throughout the day. After finishing up the first looks, it was time for Mikenzie and Kelly to get some solo portraits of the beautiful couple. You may notice that Mikenzie was sitting down in some of these and that is due to a hip surgery she had done several weeks prior that left her unable to stand for long periods of time. Despite this, we were able to get a chair and make it work and honestly... these are some of my all time favorite photos!

CEREMONY & RECEPTION

This ceremony location at The Pine Tree Barn was to die for. We were in the middle of the forest surrounded by pine trees and it felt like an absolute fairytale. Kelly and Mikenzie walked down the aisle together which I thought was such an intimate twist to usual wedding tradition. Twinkling lights hung above our heads and it really was a peaceful and serene moment that I felt could have gone on for ages and no one would have noticed. Even the attention to detail they had was immaculate. They had hung photos of them and their relationship over the years in the pine trees which I thought was such a cute detail. Why didn't I think of that?? Not only that, but in the middle of the ceremony, one of the flower girls came up with what seemed to be a dream catcher. Every person in the wedding party had tied a string to the dream catcher to essentially form the everlasting bond, which honestly was one of the most unique traditions I have ever seen.

During Mikenzie and Kelly's first look, they exchanged private vows so during the ceremony they both did a unique twist. The officiant instead had essentially spoken for them and said what each person loved about the other, which I thought was such a nice touch. It's a great alternative especially if you are more introverted and are a bit shy in saying your vows out in public.

Their reception of course was just as beautiful as the rest of their wedding day. We enjoyed some delicious food from one of my fave Mexican restaurants, Honcho's and had some absolutely insanely delicious desserts. Shoutout to whoever made those s'mores cookies because they had me coming back for seconds, thirds and fourths -lol. I also was able to sneak Mikenzie and Kelly away for a bit to get some evening portraits. Despite the bit of mist happening, we were able to get some of the prettiest misty forest wedding portraits that still have me swooning to this day.

If you’re loving this Rustic Forest Wedding at The Pine Tree Barn, then maybe you should check out this blog here!

Photos By Gayle does more than just take photos of people. Rather, it is capturing moments of LOVE and HAPPINESS. Singing to the skies, dancing in a field, smiles that hurt because they’re so big. There is nothing else I would rather be doing than photographing these unique details that make you and your significant other a couple. If these photos from Kelly & Mikenzie's wedding puts a spark in you, you know where to click <——— right there!

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