Amber and Don's Whitefish Lodge wedding was on a September Saturday in Crosslake when the weather couldn't make up its mind. The sun came and went all afternoon, and by evening it was cloudy enough that we skipped the sunset walk we'd planned. They didn't care. These two spend their free time four-wheeling and doing anything else that gets them outside, so a few clouds weren't going to bother them.
Getting Ready at Whitefish Lodge in Crosslake
Amber got ready with her bridesmaids, all of them in matching black pajamas. Her gown and veil hung off a log mantel on a stone fireplace with a moose head mounted above it, which is about as north woods as a Whitefish Lodge wedding gets.
There was a lot of laughing that morning. At one point Amber threw her head back and laughed so hard the girls holding onto her started laughing too. Her bouquet was white lilies and roses with some deep red mixed in. Don and his groomsmen were out on the lawn in their black suits, having just as good a time.
A First Look on the Whitefish Lodge Grounds
Don waited on the lawn with his back to us. Before Amber got there, a young man in a white dress and a short veil walked up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. Don turned around and lost it. A bunch of people had gathered on the lodge deck to watch, and most of them were filming on their phones.
Then Amber came out for real, and he turned around already laughing. After that we walked around for a while: out on the lawn, up the big log staircase inside the lodge, down a dirt path along the woods. I gave them a few pointers, but honestly, they didn't need much.
A Whitefish Lodge Ceremony on the Back Lawn
They got married on the back lawn under a stand of tall trees, a few of them just starting to turn orange. The flower girls came down the aisle first, with the bridesmaids in black on one side and the groomsmen in black on the other.
The sun kept going in and out during the vows. When they got to the rings, Amber started laughing and couldn't stop, and the officiant was grinning right along with her. Then the kiss, and then a whole lot of hugs.
Portraits on the Whitefish Chain
Before dinner we went down to a dock on the Whitefish Chain. The water was calm enough that the whole wedding party shows up reflected in it, with Amber and Don kissing in the middle.
By then the clouds had really rolled in, big gray ones with a little light breaking through. Nobody plans for that on their wedding day, but I love what it did to these pictures. Don spun Amber around at the end of the dock and her dress and veil went flying. Then they walked off down the dock holding hands, smiling at each other.
We ended up skipping the sunset walk because of the clouds. It didn't matter. We'd already had the best light of the day out on that dock.
The Reception in the Whitefish Lodge Banquet Room
They came into the banquet room with their arms up, Amber cheering. There was white fabric and string lights hung across the ceiling, and one of the lodge's stone fireplaces off to the side. When Don got up at the head table with the mic, Amber cracked up.
At the cake cutting, Don took a bite way too big for the fork. Then came their first dance under the lights, which is where the picture at the top of this post came from. After that came the family dances, including Don with his daughters and Amber with her son.
Planning a Whitefish Lodge Wedding?
I've photographed a lot of weddings at Whitefish Lodge in Crosslake, and the building does a lot of the work for you. The banquet room has two stone fireplaces and fits up to 300, and the whole lodge is logs and stone. The back lawn makes an easy spot for a ceremony. The Whitefish Chain is only a couple blocks away, so it's worth leaving a little time to get down to the water.
My one piece of advice: don't count on sunset for your portraits. In September the weather up here can change in an hour. Amber and Don's best portraits happened well before sunset, so when the clouds moved in, we already had what we needed.
Saturdays at Whitefish Lodge book up early in the summer and fall, and I only take a limited number of weddings each season. If you're planning one, reach out and tell me about your day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Whitefish Lodge sets its own wedding pricing, and it changes with the season, the day of the week, your guest count and the package you pick, so their events team is the best place to get current numbers. On the photography side, the ceremony and reception can both happen right on the property, and guests can stay in the lodge's 54 rooms, so you're not spending coverage time driving between locations.
There's a landscaped outdoor area for ceremonies. Amber and Don got married on the back lawn under some tall trees. The lobby can also work for an indoor ceremony. Receptions are in the banquet room, which is about 4,500 square feet with two stone fireplaces, a built-in dance floor and room for up to 300 guests.
No. Whitefish Lodge, also called Whitefish Lodge & Suites, is in Crosslake, Minnesota, on the Whitefish Chain of Lakes in the Brainerd Lakes area. The Lodge at Whitefish Lake is a different resort in Whitefish, Montana. They show up together in search results a lot, so double check the state when you're looking at venues, prices or reviews.
Whitefish Lodge is about two blocks from the Whitefish Chain, not right on the water, so the ceremony spot on site is the lawn. On Saturdays in July and August they offer a two-venue option: the ceremony at Manhattan Beach Lodge on Big Trout Lake, about 3.5 miles north, and the reception back at Whitefish Lodge. Amber and Don got married in September on the back lawn and went down to the water afterward for pictures.
