Carey MacArthur Carey MacArthur

Waterfront Wedding at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club, Long Beach Island

Late September light, a tent on the water, and a celebration as timeless as the bay itself

Alex and Mike on the water's edge at sunset with Golden hour fading into blue sea

Alex and Mike have always belonged to the water. When we first met for their engagement session on the Asbury Park jetty, they told me about how they'd both grown up loving the beach, how the ocean was woven into the fabric of their relationship. Alex's mother had orchestrated their first meeting - inviting Mike to a family dinner without mentioning Alex would be there - and sparks flew immediately. They were both beach people, both drawn to the water, both rooted in this particular stretch of New Jersey coastline. So when it came time to plan their wedding, there was never any question about the kind of place they wanted. It had to be on the water. View their complete engagement gallery here.

Every detail thoughtfully considered - butterfly china, sea-green linens, and touches of whimsy throughout

Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club on Long Beach Island was the perfect answer. The venue sits right on the bay, with docks stretching out into the water and boats passing by throughout the day. Alex and Mike worked with planner Sarah Mastriano of A Lovely Universe to create what Sarah later called "not your average tristate area wedding" - every design detail was carefully considered, from the sea-green linens that matched the color of the bay to the pearl-dotted veil that echoed the texture of the water itself. The tent was positioned so that every table had a view of the water. Boats drifted past during dinner. The whole celebration felt like it was floating between land and sea.

That first look joy - the moment Alex and Mike saw each other on their wedding day

I understood their attachment to this place immediately. I grew up spending summers in Ocean City, just down the coast. My grandmother bought a beach house for our family when I was young, and the Jersey Shore became woven into the fabric of my childhood. There's a particular kind of belonging that comes from having a beach town that's yours - not the one you visit once on vacation, but the one where you know which ice cream shop opens earliest, where the best breakfast is, which stretch of beach is less crowded. Alex and Mike had that with Long Beach Island, the same way I had it with Ocean City. We spoke the same language of boardwalks and salt air and the way the ocean looks different every single day.

The tent on the bay - where land meets water and every table has an ocean view

Their wedding took place at the end of September, when summer crowds have thinned but the weather is still warm and the light turns golden earlier in the afternoon. We started the day with a first look on the yacht club docks, the bay stretching endlessly behind them. The joy on their faces when they saw each other was immediate and unguarded - all the camera-shyness Alex had worried about during the engagement session had evaporated completely. Before the ceremony, they shared private vows on the deck overlooking the water, just the two of them, an intimate moment before the public celebration began.

Sharing vows privately by the water before walking down the aisle.

The ceremony itself was brief - less than five minutes - but the emotion was palpable. They'd already said everything they needed to say to each other privately. This was the public declaration, the gathering of everyone they loved, the formal beginning of their marriage surrounded by family and friends under a tent with the bay as witness. Daybreak Flowers created arrangements that felt organic and slightly wild, and the butterfly-patterned china added an unexpected whimsy to the sea-green tablescape. The menu was inspired by their favorite NYC restaurants - thoughtful, personal, completely them.

The bay's texture mirrored in Alex's pearl-adorned veil - every detail echoing the water

As the sun began to set, we stole away for portraits. The light turned soft and blue, that brief perfect window when everything glows. There's something mythological about couples photographed by the sea - the ancient pull of water, the way humans have always been drawn to coastlines, the endless stories about what lives beneath the waves. Alex and Mike against the bay felt timeless, like they could have been standing there a hundred years ago or a hundred years from now. The ocean doesn't care about trends or aesthetics. It just is. And when you photograph people against it, they become part of that permanence.

First look on the Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club docks with the bay stretching behind them

The celebration continued long into the night - dancing under cafe lights, toasts that made everyone laugh and cry, the kind of joy that comes from bringing everyone you love to the place you love most. Alex and Mike had created exactly what they wanted: a wedding that felt like them, rooted in the water, surrounded by the people who matter most.

Alex dancing to Pink Pony Club - the dance floor erupting under cafe lights

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