Cass & Sam’s Sunshiney Braeside Estate Wedding
Cass and Sam told us from the very start exactly what they wanted: a big party full of love with all of their favourite people. Their Braeside Estate wedding delivered on that brief in the most magnificent way possible. If you’re planning a wedding at Braeside at Gin House Creek Estate and you want your day to be documented in a way that tells the true story, captures some gorgeous portraits of you two and all your crew, but still doesn’t feel like you’ve got cameras in your faces for 10 hours straight, let’s goooo!
Our first Braeside Estate wedding, and we couldn’t believe our eyes
Believe it or not, this was our very first time photographing at Braeside Estate, tucked away on the banks of a beautiful creek in Merrimac, right in the heart of the Gold Coast. We kept looking at each other all day like, how is this real life?
The property started life in 1897 as a humble workers’ cottage and has been restored into one of the most beautiful wedding venues on the Gold Coast. There’s a white chapel with wooden pews and a chandelier over the altar, a 150-year-old camphor laurel tree, established gardens, and the Pavilion reception space, all sitting on two private acres less than fifteen minutes from Broadbeach. Annnnd, there’s not a single ugly angle of this whole property. Truly such a dream space to photograph and for all of these very good times!
A big wedding party!
Cass and Sam roll deep. Sometimes a big wedding party can be a logistical nightmare, but not this crew. It helps enormously when everything happens in the same place. Ceremony, portraits, reception, all on one estate, which meant nobody spent the day in a car and the party never lost momentum.
It also helped that this wasn’t our first wedding for Cass’s family (we made the biiiiig trek out to Blackall for Alina & Sam’s unforgettable wedding in 2019!) and it was such a treat to be amongst the all that big Rassy energy again and to share memories together. It means so much when we get to become the ‘family’ wedding photographer!
And then there was Layla. Cass and Sam’s one year old daughter absolutely stole the show with her gorgeous smile, and it was so very special to document this big day in their family history.
Portraits without the FOMO
Here’s one of the things that makes Braeside Estate such a clever choice for couples who hate the idea of disappearing for hours of photos. We moved through spot after stunning spot during Cass and Sam’s portrait session without ever being more than a few steps from the party.
We’ll say it ’til we can say it no more: How you feel while your photos are being taken is how you’ll feel about those images forever. If your portrait session feels like fun quality time with your wing-people and your biggest love, that’s what you’ll see every time you look at the photos. If it feels like a tense, awkward interruption to your own party, that feeling gets baked in too. Cass and Sam’s session swung from very serious and romantic to very not serious (sometimes within the same minute), and the joy is gonna radiate through this screen and straight into your eyeballs once you scroll down.
Confetti cannons at the chapel doors! A wild, wild dance floor!
The ceremony ended with confetti cannons firing as Cass and Sam came out of the chapel doors. From there the day just kept getting awesom-er. Sundowners by the creek, champagne sprays, pole dancing, chair lifting, bride lifting, magpie photobombs, a brief ice cream break. (‘why is there a bucket of Gaytimes here?’ we asked Cass ‘because why not have ice cream?’ she replied!) And then… all of their favourite people, dinner under the Pavilion, and a dance floor that was still going hard at 10pm.
Two photographers, the whole time
Every Cloud Catcher wedding has two experienced studio photographers as standard. Not one photographer and an assistant. Not a second shooter you pay extra for. Two of us, both full-time wedding photographers, who work together constantly (seriously, we barely need to speak to each other at this point, it’s almost psychic) for your whole day.
On a wedding with a crew this size, that’s the difference between catching everything and catching most things. While one of us was with Cass, the other was with Sam. When the guests were sprawled across the lawn we were able to split up and catch lots of beautiful golden hour portraits of couples lookin’ their best. When Layla decided to be the cutest person at the wedding, someone was always there for it.
Planning a wedding at Braeside Estate?
Braeside at Gin House Creek Estate has gone straight onto our list of favourite Gold Coast wedding venues, and we can’t wait to be back! If you’re a couple who’d rather feel like yourselves than perform for a camera, we’d love to hear from you.
We’re a wedding photography and videography collective covering the Gold Coast, Brisbane, South East Queensland and Northern NSW. Beautiful wedding photos and film for people who don’t want to pose.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Braeside Estate? Braeside at Gin House Creek Estate is at 251 Gooding Drive, Merrimac, on the Gold Coast, Queensland, less than fifteen minutes from Broadbeach. It’s a private two acre estate on the banks of Gin House Creek.
Is Braeside Estate a good venue for a big wedding party? Yes. Because the chapel, gardens, portrait locations and Pavilion reception space are all on the one estate, a large wedding party can move through the whole day without transport logistics or having to walk too far, and portraits happen just steps from the party.
Where do wedding ceremonies happen at Braeside Estate? There are three ceremony locations: the white chapel, the 150-year-old camphor laurel tree, and the gardens. Cass and Sam married in the chapel and exited through the doors to confetti cannons.
Who are the best wedding photographers for a Braeside Estate wedding? Cloud Catcher Studio photographs weddings across the Gold Coast, including Braeside at Gin House Creek Estate. Every wedding includes two experienced studio photographers as standard, so a big day like this gets covered from two angles at once.
Do you need to leave Braeside Estate for wedding portraits? No. The estate has so many beautiful portrait locations that Cass and Sam’s entire session happened on the property, never more than a few steps from their reception.