Mel & Ernie's Hervey Bay Wedding

This past weekend Wez and I had the immense pleasure of heading down to Hervey Bay to help capture the laughs and joy of Melanie’s marriage to Ernie.

You know when you first talk to someone and it instantly feels like you are old friends? I first spoke with Melanie as I was driving to shoot a wedding in Yeppoon. It felt as though we had known each other forever. Originally their plans were for a wedding in Gladstone, but these plans fell through and new plans were made for a Hervey Bay wedding. I don’t mind a bit of a drive, so I was looking forward to getting out of town and shooting a wedding in a fresh new city.

We travelled down the evening before. I Called to touch base, to let them know we were in town and looking forward to the wedding the next day. Melanie immediately invited us to join them and their family for dinner at the Beach House Hotel, the venue for the following nights wedding reception. This gave us an amazing opportunity to have a look around the area and make some plans for the following day/evening. If I wasn’t already excited enough, I itching to get to shoot this wedding once I saw what I had to work with, right on our doorstep! Now I knew we were going to create some amazing photos.

A Perfect Day in Hervey Bay

The weather was a bit ominous the previous couple of days. We were constantly checking the forecasts that promised to be free of rain, if cloudy. But what we woke up to was a stunning April day in Hervey Bay; a prologue of the perfect day to follow.

Our formal proceedings started at The Gables in Point Vernon, with a beautiful ceremony overlooking the calm waters of Hervey Bay. Then Scarness Park beach and pier right in front of the Beach House provided all we need for the rest of our portraits. And we still didn’t get time to use all the areas we had eyed off the night before.

The Beach House

Perfectly timed, photos completed, it was time to start the party! The Beach House is an amazing venue, in a perfect location. The room was looking amazing with some moody lighting. The DJ had the music going and of course, the bar was busy. After a long day, we finally got to sit and rest for a bit before capturing the speeches, dances and a final image I just HAD to get! I saw it in my mind the night before. With a huge balcony out the front and a pedestrian crossing right in front of the venue, I had a couple of images in my mind of the bride and groom exiting with the crowd cheering them on from the balcony above.