Cleveland Estate Wedding Photos
An 1887 gothic homestead, a small lake and a hundred acres of vines at the top of the Macedon Ranges
Cleveland Estate, formerly Cleveland Winery, is a winery and hotel on Shannons Road at Lancefield in the Macedon Ranges, about an hour from Melbourne. More than a hundred acres of vineyard and country garden surround an 1887 gothic-style homestead, with a small lake below the vines. Ceremonies are held in the vineyard, by the lake, in the cottage gardens or inside the homestead; receptions of up to 200 use the Great Room, the Carriage House or the Lake-view Room. Fifty suites are on site.
Veri photographed Dee and Michael’s wedding here when it still traded as Cleveland Winery: getting ready, ceremony, portraits and reception all on the estate. The layout suits a day with no driving. The couple dressed in the accommodation, walked to the ceremony, and the vineyard rows and lake edge were a few minutes from the reception room for portraits.
Photographing a wedding at Cleveland Estate
Lancefield is high and cool, and the light in the vines is best in the last ninety minutes of the day, when the sun sits low along the rows. The homestead’s gothic gables are the frame for the wedding party, and the lake gives a reflection for the couple if the wind drops. Autumn turns the vines red and gold from April. The homestead and the Carriage House both cover rain, and the verandah works in drizzle. The gallery above is Dee and Michael’s full day.