May & Austin’s Elegant August Wedding at The Lageret

Lavender bridesmaid dresses, white roses with a hint of blue, and exposed brick glowing warm under string lights. May and Austin’s Lageret wedding was one of those days where every single detail felt intentional but never fussy. From the moment we walked into the getting-ready suite and saw the floral invitation suite laid out on a weathered wooden table, we knew this gallery was going to be something special.

The Kind of Details That Stop You Mid-Frame

May’s gown from Premiere Couture hung against the white brick of The Lageret’s prep space. Soft light poured in from the left, gentle enough that we barely had to think about exposure. Just click and go. Her floral tiara, the gold-trimmed ring box, the ceremony programs printed in blush and lavender tones. None of it was overdone. All of it photographed beautifully.

Meanwhile, Austin and his groomsmen were downstairs in the industrial lower level, all dark concrete and heavy beams. The contrast between the two spaces gave us completely different palettes to work with. Upstairs felt romantic and airy. Downstairs had this moody, cinematic quality that made seven guys in black tuxedos look like a movie poster. That range is one of the reasons we have a thing for The Lageret.

Drapery, Brick, and a Ceremony Worth Lingering On

The ceremony space inside The Lageret is already striking on its own. Flora By Jamae took it further with flowing white drapery stretched across the timber trusses and a lush floral installation above the altar. Natural light came through the tall windows on both sides. That combination gave us everything we needed: soft, directional, warm. No flash required.

May came down the aisle on her father’s arm, and the grin on Austin’s face was immediate. His groomsmen behind him were trying to play it cool, but a few of them cracked. Those reactions are the frames we pull in tight for. No amount of posing can replicate genuine emotion like that. If you’re considering The Lageret for your own ceremony, know that the light in that main hall during late afternoon is as good as it gets.

Ivy Walls, Lavender Dresses, and a Wedding Party That Showed Up

After the ceremony, we took the full wedding party outside to the ivy-covered stone walls behind the venue. Every groomsman was cracking jokes before we even got them in position. Those soft lavender Azazie gowns against the deep green ivy? A photographer’s dream. The colors practically chose themselves.

Then came the group shot where May and Austin kissed in the middle and the entire wedding party erupted. That kind of energy is impossible to stage. You just have to be ready for it, and we were. It ended up being one of our favorite frames from the entire day.

Golden Hour on a Stoughton Side Street

Once the wedding party headed back inside for cocktail hour, we stole May and Austin away for portraits. The light was turning golden. We worked our way from the ivy walls to a weathered metal building down the road, then to a red barn door that gave us an incredible pop of color. Austin kept making May laugh, and she kept pulling him closer. These two were completely relaxed. Honestly, that is when we do our best work.

Our black and white frames from this session hit differently. May’s hand on Austin’s face, both of them leaning in, the texture of the old concrete wall behind them. Sometimes stripping the color out lets the emotion speak louder. This Lageret wedding gave us so many moments worth converting to monochrome.

Reception Details That Tell the Story

Back inside, The Lageret was transformed for the reception. String lights draped across the timber trusses. Gold chargers sat on every table alongside white hydrangea centerpieces with hints of lavender. Glass orb terrariums hung from the beams. A welcome chalkboard read “May and Austin, August twenty-second, two thousand twenty-one,” and next to it sat a photo guest book already filling up with Polaroids.

One detail we loved: framed wedding portraits of their parents and grandparents displayed on an exposed brick ledge. It was a quiet, meaningful touch that said a lot about who these two are. The charcuterie spread was impressive. And the white cake from The Looking Glass Bakery was topped with fresh flowers that tied everything together.

The First Dance and the Energy Shift

Austin dipped May during their first dance, and the room went loud. Guests crowded the doorway behind them, phones out, cheering. Warm overhead light reflected off the hardwood floors, giving the whole scene a glow. That shift from polished ceremony to late-night party energy is something we live for, and this crowd delivered.

If you’re looking for a venue that balances industrial character with warmth, The Lageret checks every box. The light is generous. Backdrops are endlessly varied. Stoughton’s surroundings give you portrait locations you won’t find anywhere else. This is the kind of Lageret wedding photography we love being part of. To see more of our work across Wisconsin, check out our wedding photography portfolio.