Backyard wedding photos Cairns – Sam & Julz

Backyard wedding photos Cairns  | Cairns DIY wedding photos | Rustic weddings | Cairns waterfall wedding photos

When Sam and Julz went on their first date – they ended up rock hopping up a river.
They kept going, until eventually they reached a waterfall – the top of the Barron Falls, in fact!

I call it ‘casual epicness’ … they don’t make a fuss of things that would blow most people away.

For example, in a short timeframe leading up to their wedding, they handmade almost everything. Even milling the timber benches for the ceremony & reception seating from trees on their property – sanding and polishing them, and creating the most beautiful pieces of finished furniture. No big deal. Casually epic.

On the wedding day – they told us they’d love to bring things full circle to where they started off, and head into Behana Gorge for some waterfall shots. Naturally, we were a little concerned – it’s a big undertaking – lots of steep rock faces, slippery surfaces, etc.
What we hadn’t factored in was this level of epic dedication they both have. The only thing I needed to be concerned about was ‘can I keep up with them as they rock hop ahead of me?’.

Or that time we stopped in the middle of the road for a few shots in the golden sunlight streaming through the cane, with the Pyramid looming in the background. “Hey Julz, want to jump on the roof?” says Sam, casually. Now – most brides would view this request with raised ‘are you kidding me‘ eyebrows… but Julz – being the amazing adventurous bride that she is – shrugs, and says ‘sure’ … and before I can even lift my camera, she has already clambered up on top of the Landcruiser.

Preparing their backyard section for the wedding was no small feat – but they totally pulled it off, and with a backyard that looks like this – who wouldn’t want to have their wedding there??

These guys just know zero boundaries, and aren’t constrained by limits or the need to work inside the box.

All of this meant that being their wedding photographers was an absolute dream. We had such a fun day hanging out with them, being carried along with their enthusiasm and obvious love for each other. We also loved that they – and most of their guests – went barefoot for the wedding day!

The one potential spanner in the works for their entirely outdoor backyard wedding ceremony and reception was the weather. The fairy light canopy was open air, and looked amazing – but offered no shelter from the rain. After some heavy showers in the lead up week, everyone was relieved to see the sun streaming through on the wedding day!

As dark fell, they shared delicious wood fired pizzas and drank from freshly chopped coconuts, before listening to some beautiful speeches. Then they danced the night away, under a canopy of fairy lights overhead. We wrapped things up with some amazing homemade fireworks, and a sparkler exit!

This is just a little preview of their day – there are more than 500 photos still to follow in the final collection!

VENDOR SHOUTOUT :

We love working with an epic crew! Props to :

Wedding Planner ↠ Bec @ Maid of Honour
Lighting Hire ↠ Big Screen Events
Amazing wood fired pizzas (so good!) ↠ Coral Coast Catering
Celebrant ↠ Leisel Pisani
Hair & Makeup ↠ Hairdressers at Work
Florals ↠ Flowers n Lace
Grazing Table ↠ Petals & Pinecones
Music ↠ Mikey Mike Music
Cake ↠ Sara’s Cakes Cairns
Dounts ↠ Krispy Kreme

 

If you’re looking for a bit more backyard wedding inspo – check out Brock & Dimity’s wedding in their parents backyard on the Tablelands, and for some more rustic goodness, check out Jessica & James at Laloli Gardens.

We are Cairns based wedding photographers who also spend a portion of our year down on the Sunshine Coast. So if you’re planning to get married (or you know someone that is) in Cairns, Port Douglas, Sunshine Coast, Brisbane, Gold Coast – or anywhere else in Australia for that matter … let’s chat more!

Our style is laid back and natural – with a focus on candidly telling the story of your day as it happened, rather than creating it by being all posey & cheesy.

If you’ve enjoyed Sam & Julz backyard wedding photos – let them know! Show them some love in the comment section just below here ↓ .. we know they’ll be stoked to hear from you!

xoxoxo Isaac + Amy