Meadowbank Estate wedding photos: Rana and Con stand at the top of stone steps against an ivy covered facade, her veil cascading below, Melbourne
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Real church wedding · Broadmeadows, Melbourne

Meadowbank Estate Wedding Photos: Rana & Con

Meadowbank Estate · 1 Eldon St, Broadmeadows VIC · Melbourne

Church & Cathedral Wedding · Cultural & Traditional Wedding · Garden Wedding · Heritage & Historic Venue Wedding · City: Melbourne · Venues: Meadowbank Estate · St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, Yarraville · Victoria Barracks

A drummer at the front gate, a veil that took off down a sunny street and happy tears at the front of a painted church. Rana and Con’s summer wedding wound from St Nicholas in Yarraville to the ivy-covered bluestone of Victoria Barracks, then north to Meadowbank Estate in Broadmeadows for a reception that started with the two of them beside giant LOVE letters in the golden evening light. We loved every loud, joyful minute.

The gallery
Rana and Con's gold lettered church wedding invitation, a diamond engagement ring resting on the card beside white roses.
Two young girls in white tulle dresses and flower crowns hug beside dried pampas grass and a gold stand.
Men dance with their arms out across the kitchen and dining room as the family celebrates at home.
An older couple, she in blue lace and pearls, stand in the hallway with the two girls in white dresses.
Rana stands in her embroidered strapless gown and long veil, white roses in hand, between pampas grass and gold stands.
Rana looks down at her shimmering gown beside a tall window, a bouquet of white roses held at her side.
Rana smiles and touches her earring by the tall window, her veil falling softly down her back.
Rana gazes out of the tall window holding her white roses, her veil trailing behind her, in black and white.
Rana faces the bright window with her bouquet raised, light running down her veil and sparkling gown.
Con laughs in his navy tuxedo and bow tie as an older man in glasses pours him a drink.
An older man in glasses rests a hand on Con's chest as Con holds his glass and grins.
Rana's dad appears in the doorway in a navy suit and pale pink tie, one hand pressed to his heart.
Rana pins a white rose buttonhole onto her dad's lapel as he beams at her through his glasses.
Her dad and a loved one in a blush beaded dress kiss Rana on both cheeks at once.
Con and six men in navy suits raise their glasses together on a sofa before heading out.
Rana poses arm in arm with a young man in a grey check suit, both smiling at the camera.
The young man in grey check laughs beside Rana in front of dried pampas and a potted plant.
Rana and a bridesmaid in a burnt orange satin slip dress stand cheek to cheek against a pale wall.
Rana and her bridesmaid in burnt orange hug and laugh, the bridesmaid's mouth wide open with joy.
Looking straight down on a ring of wrists, watches and whisky glasses as Con's crew gather in navy suits.
Rana with her dad, a loved one in a blush beaded dress, a bridesmaid and the young man in grey check.
Rana and a dark haired bridesmaid in burnt orange satin hold round bouquets of white roses and baby's breath.
Rana and a blonde bridesmaid laugh together, their white rose and baby's breath bouquets held close.
Rana stands with the blonde bridesmaid in burnt orange satin, her long train spread across the floorboards.
Con in a navy tuxedo stands beside an older man in a dark suit in front of framed family portraits.
Rana and four bridesmaids in burnt orange satin throw their white bouquets in the air and cheer.
Con stands with a friend in a blue suit and paisley tie in front of a wall of framed portraits.
Con laughs and points at his friend in the blue suit, who cracks up beside the framed portraits.
Con stands between an older couple, she in teal lace and pearls, under a wall of family photographs.
Con wraps the older couple in a hug, heads pressed together and eyes closed, beside the framed portraits.
Con kisses the older man on the head while the woman in teal lace smiles under his arm.
Con stands with a slim man in a navy suit and patterned tie, both grinning by the portrait wall.
Con and the slim man in navy face each other and laugh in front of the framed family photographs.
Rana walks down the hallway towards the bright front door, her veil and train flowing behind her, in black and white.
Rana lifts her skirt and heads along the timber hallway towards the front door, her veil trailing behind.
Rana glances back over her shoulder at the open front door, train spread on the floorboards, ready for the church.
Four older loved ones line up in front of framed portraits, the man in a white shirt raising his glass.
Rana sits on the sofa with her chin on her hand, smiling up as her gown spills around her.
Rana pulls silly faces with two bearded men in grey suits, all three laughing with their hands up.
A family gathers at a front door trimmed with white flowers, with a toddler, two girls in white and a woman in black lace.
Groomsmen in navy suits pose either side of the white BMW with its wedding ribbons in the driveway.
Con high fives a groomsman beside the white stretch limousine as the crew gather in the sunny street.
Groomsmen in sunglasses give a thumbs up beside the white stretch limousine, one standing on the step above them.
Con crouches with his arms out, laughing, while groomsmen in navy suits wait by the stretch limousine.
The groomsmen stride past the long white limousine in a line, heading off for the church.
Rana steps out the front door with her bouquet held high, past white roses on the porch and front garden, off to her church ceremony.
Rana sweeps through the white picket gate with her arm raised as her dad follows behind with a smile.
Rana waves her bouquet as she and her dad lead the street procession past a white weatherboard church.
Rana flings her arms up as her veil flies out, a drummer playing beside her and her dad holding the train.
A drummer strikes up as Rana throws one arm up, the breeze wrapping her veil while her dad carries the train.
Con waits at the front of the church with his groomsmen and a little boy in a bow tie and braces.
From the gallery of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, Yarraville, Rana and her dad walk the red carpet beneath glowing chandeliers.
Her dad shakes Con's hand at the church altar step as Rana waits beside him under her veil.
Con reaches for Rana as her dad hands her over under painted saints and church chandeliers.
Her dad and a loved one in a blush beaded dress stand in the front church pew, watching closely.
An older couple stand in the pews at St Nicholas Church in Yarraville, painted saints filling the wall behind them.
Rana smiles beside Con inside the church, her white rose bouquet held at her waist and the groomsmen nearby.
Rana smiles up at Con as they wear thin jewelled crowns joined by a white ribbon during their church ceremony.
Con and Rana beam under their jewelled crowns and ribbon as girls in white watch from the front of the painted church.
A bald groomsman wipes happy tears from his eyes as the groomsman beside him laughs during the church ceremony.
Two groomsmen with white rose buttonholes grin side by side against carved church timber.
Three bridesmaids in burnt orange satin hold white rose bouquets at the church front, a little girl beside them.
Two groomsmen in navy suits smile and look down during the ceremony beneath the tall church windows.
Three bridesmaids in burnt orange smile as they watch the couple, a chandelier glowing in the church above.
Rana laughs over her shoulder and waves as Con grins, the celebrant in white robes behind them at the gilded church screen.
Rana and Con stand before the gilded carved screen of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church as guests fill the pews.
Guests smile from the church pews, her dad and a loved one in a blush beaded dress in the front row.
Guests clap from the timber pews under painted saints at St Nicholas in Yarraville, the red carpet aisle running back to timber church doors.
Rana hugs a bridesmaid in burnt orange as the church ceremony ends, a blonde bridesmaid smiling behind them.
Con waves and Rana lifts her bouquet as they leave the front of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, Yarraville, under the painted dome.
Con laughs and waves to the room, holding Rana's hand as they walk back down the church aisle.
Con and Rana beam on their way out as guests raise their phones from crowded church pews.
Con and Rana kiss in the open doorway of St Nicholas Church in Yarraville, framed by white columns and the bright street.
The couple kiss between the white columns of their church doorway, train spread down the red carpet, in black and white.
Family and friends crowd the church steps at St Nicholas in Yarraville for the big group shot, a white vintage car out front.
Everyone throws their arms up and cheers beneath the arched church portico, the white vintage car parked at the kerb.
The bridal party, her dad and a loved one gather on the steps of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church under its painted icon.
Con and Rana stand on the church steps with family, including a woman in teal lace and a woman in black lace.
Con and Rana smile on the ivy covered heritage steps of Victoria Barracks after their church ceremony, her train spread behind.
Con holds a toddler beside Rana and two girls with baby's breath posies on the historic stone steps among the gardens.
Her dad, Con, Rana and a loved one in blush pose between ivy covered bluestone planters for heritage garden portraits.
An older couple join Con and Rana on the ivy clad steps of Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road, a historic garden setting.
The older couple laugh with Con and Rana against a deep green wall of heritage ivy during garden portraits.
Con and Rana stand on the historic bluestone steps with the older couple, ivy and gardens all around them.
A family group with a toddler and two girls in white fills the heritage steps at Victoria Barracks Melbourne, ivy all around.
Bridesmaids, groomsmen and loved ones laugh together by the hedges in the gardens of the historic barracks.
The bridal party gathers between two old lamp posts on the ivy steps at Victoria Barracks in Southbank for a heritage garden portrait.
The bridal party cheers with bouquets raised on the historic steps, ivy covered bluestone and garden plants around them.
Con kisses Rana as her dad and the bridal party laugh around them, heritage ivy and the gardens behind.
A family with a toddler and two girls holding posies joins Con and Rana on the historic ivy steps at Victoria Barracks.
Con walks towards the camera smiling in his navy tuxedo, heritage bluestone soft behind him during garden portraits.
Rana climbs the ivy covered steps at Victoria Barracks Melbourne, her long veil and train trailing down the historic stone.
Con and Rana stand at a red rail beside a towering ivy wall, her veil drifting through the heritage gardens.
Con kisses Rana under ivy and barred windows as her veil billows across the frame in a historic garden portrait.
Con and Rana pose at the top of the heritage steps at Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road, her train cascading down.
Con smiles at Rana as her veil streams out in the breeze, ivy and a historic barred window behind their garden wedding portraits.
Con and Rana kiss at the top of the ivy steps at Victoria Barracks in Southbank as her veil sweeps wide over the gardens.
Con kisses Rana's hand as she lifts her skirt, heritage bluestone draped in ivy behind this garden portrait.
Con and Rana walk hand in hand past the ivy covered bluestone of Victoria Barracks, her veil streaming, a historic garden wedding.
Con and Rana stroll hand in hand past a heritage bluestone wall and an old cannon, Con carrying her bouquet.
The bridal party lines the bluestone steps of Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road between historic cannons, her veil across the steps.
The bridal party throws their arms up on the heritage entrance steps, Rana's veil flying between the old cannons.
Bridesmaids and groomsmen pair up on the ivy steps at Victoria Barracks Melbourne beneath historic lamps for garden portraits.
The bridal party laughs and dances across the garden lawn, ivy covered heritage bluestone rising behind them.
The bridal party leaps and cheers among the gardens at Victoria Barracks in Southbank, a palm and historic ivy facade behind.
Con and Rana stand by red timber doors at the top of the heritage steps, her train spilling down for a garden wedding portrait.
Con kisses Rana's cheek behind a red iron rail, the historic ivy wall soft behind them in the gardens.
Con dips Rana for a kiss on the path below the heritage lamps at Victoria Barracks, her train spread beside the garden beds.
Con and Rana walk hand in hand along the garden path, the bridal party and a historic ivy facade behind them.
Con kisses Rana's cheek on the lawn at Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road as her veil blows in a heritage garden portrait.
Con kisses Rana's cheek on the lawn as her veil lifts in the breeze, the historic barracks gardens behind, in black and white.
Rana and Con rest their foreheads together, her smile wide above a bouquet of white roses, in a soft garden portrait.
Foreheads touching, Con and Rana smile over her white roses in a quiet garden wedding moment, in black and white.
Con and Rana touch foreheads wrapped in her drifting veil on the lawn of the heritage grounds, a tender garden portrait.
Con and Rana kiss inside her veil on the lawn at Victoria Barracks Melbourne, historic ivy and red leaves on the bluestone behind.
Rana smiles up at Con as her veil drifts around them, tall trees soft behind these garden portraits.
Con and Rana laugh face to face under her veil during their garden wedding portraits, in black and white.
Under the veil, Rana laughs up at Con's grin as sunlight glows through the tulle in the gardens.
Con and Rana kiss under her veil with trees and lawn glowing behind them in a garden wedding portrait.
Con and Rana kiss beneath her veil, the gardens soft in the distance, in black and white.
Con kisses Rana's cheek in front of a white arched shopfront on Flinders Lane, her train swept across the footpath.
Rana laughs as Con leads her by the hand along a white arched city facade.
Rana and Con laugh as they walk hand in hand past tall white shuttered windows in the city.
Con leads Rana by the hand around a white stone corner, her sparkling skirt swinging as she smiles.
Con and Rana share a smile beside a long white arched facade, her skirt lifted in one hand.
Con and Rana sit at a white table by giant LOVE letters at historic Meadowbank Estate, the garden hedge glowing gold before the reception.
The wedding story

Our Meadowbank Estate wedding photos: a drummer at the gate, ivy at Victoria Barracks and LOVE letters at golden hour

Getting ready at home · Drummer at the front gate · Ceremony at St Nicholas, Yarraville · Group photo on the church steps · Ivy and bluestone at Victoria Barracks · LOVE letters at Meadowbank Estate

Read the full story

Dancing before the dress

Our day with Rana and Con started with their invitation, gold lettering and a diamond ring resting on the card, and a kitchen full of men already dancing with their arms out. Then the quiet bit: Rana in her embroidered strapless gown by a tall window, pampas grass and a potted plant beside her. We turned her towards the glass and let the light run down the veil, because one big window gives softer, more flattering light than every lamp in the house switched on. She touched her earring, looked outside and smiled to herself.

Burnt orange and white roses

A loved one appeared in the doorway with his hand on his heart, and two more kissed Rana on both cheeks at once. Then the bridesmaids arrived in burnt orange satin, each holding a round bouquet of white roses and baby’s breath. That colour is a gift against an ivory gown: warm, rich and easy to read from across a room. We lined them up against the pale wall, then let them throw their bouquets in the air and shriek. The posed frame is lovely. The one where everyone loses it is the keeper.

Watches, a Hummer and a BMW

Across town, Con’s crew were in navy suits. We stood over the group and shot straight down on a ring of wrists, watches and raised glasses, a detail frame that tells you who was in the room without a single face. Family gathered in front of a wall of framed portraits for a run of hugs and cheek kisses, and the boys pulled silly faces before heading out. Rana and Con had asked for one special photo outside: the white BMW and the white stretch Hummer, with the groomsmen striding past in a line like a movie poster.

A drum at the front gate

Back at Rana’s, the front door opened onto a white picket fence wrapped in white flowers, and the street was waiting. A drummer struck up as she stepped out, the bridesmaids cheered, and Rana threw one arm up while the breeze grabbed her veil and sent it flying. A loved one in a navy suit ran behind with the train in his hands. We worked wide here and stayed low, so the sky, the drum and that veil all fit in one frame. Bright midday sun is harsh, but movement like this forgives almost anything.

Under the painted ceiling

At St Nicholas in Yarraville, Con waited at the front with his groomsmen and a little boy in a tiny bow tie, all of them under painted saints and carved timber. We climbed up to the gallery for the entrance, because from above you see the whole story: the red carpet, the chandeliers, every guest turning, and Rana’s veil trailing behind her as her dad walked her down the aisle. Then we came back down to the floor for faces. Loved ones in the front pew stood shoulder to shoulder, smiling at the couple.

Happy tears at the front

Con could not stop grinning at Rana, and a moment later a groomsman was wiping his eyes while the one beside him laughed. The bridesmaids in orange watched from the side, Rana laughed over her shoulder, and a sea of guests leaned in from the pews. When it was over, Con waved to the room on the way out with Rana on his arm. We caught them kissing in the open doorway, framed by the columns and the bright street. Then everyone spilled onto the steps for the big group photo with a white vintage car parked out front.

Ivy at Victoria Barracks

The bridal party gathered on the church steps, then we headed into the city to Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road. The old bluestone there is almost buried under ivy, and it makes a deep green wall for portraits. We used the stone steps for family groups, then cut Rana loose with her veil. It caught the breeze and stretched right across the frame while Con kissed her and then her hand. The bridesmaids in orange against all that green, the old cannons on the forecourt and the boys leaping on the lawn made for a very happy half hour.

Veil games and white arches

Then we slowed right down. Rana and Con stood close under the veil while we shot through the tulle, which turns the background into soft white and keeps every bit of attention on their faces. A few of those frames we kept in black and white. The late sun came through the trees behind them, and Rana tipped her head onto Con’s shoulder in the warm glow. Before leaving the city we walked them along a white arched facade, laughing and holding hands, a clean bright backdrop that suits a structured gown and a navy tuxedo.

LOVE in lights

Rana and Con wanted a few minutes on their own at the reception before anyone else arrived, and we were glad they did. Out in the courtyard at Meadowbank Estate, giant light-up LOVE letters stood in front of a clipped hedge glowing gold in the evening sun. They sat at a little white table, foreheads almost touching, and the whole frame turned warm. Our Meadowbank Estate wedding photos often end the light this way: a quiet pause between the city portraits and a loud reception, with the low sun doing all the work.

Photographer's venue notes

Meadowbank Estate, Broadmeadows: golden hour by the LOVE letters after an ivy and bluestone city loop

Read the venue notes

A day in four stops

Rana and Con’s day travelled further than most. After the morning at home and the lively send off in the street, the ceremony was at St Nicholas in Yarraville, then we drove into the city for portraits at Victoria Barracks and along a white arched facade before heading north to Meadowbank Estate. They reached the reception ahead of their guests, which gave us a few calm minutes in the courtyard beside the giant light up LOVE letters, with a little white table set in front of the clipped hedge.

Summer light from noon to evening

It was a bright summer day, and the sun shaped the plan as it moved. Around midday at the house the light was strong, so we leaned on movement, the breeze and the veil rather than stillness. At the barracks, the ivy wall gave deep, even shade for groups while the veil caught the sun each time it lifted. Later, low sun came through the trees behind the couple for the softer frames under the tulle. By the time we reached Meadowbank, the evening light sat warm and gold across the hedge behind the letters.

Why the courtyard worked

The LOVE letters gave the reception a clear, graphic shape, and the clipped hedge behind them glowed in the low sun, so we placed Rana and Con at the white table with the light behind them and the letters lit to one side. Sitting rather than standing let her embroidered gown settle and kept their faces close, which suited the quiet mood after a loud, busy day. We shot from a little below eye height, so the letters rose behind them and the gold hedge filled the rest of the frame.

Planning a multi stop wedding

If your ceremony and reception are far apart, choose a portrait stop on the way that offers shade, a wide set of steps and room for the whole bridal party to jump. Then plan to reach the reception before guests arrive; ten minutes alone at the venue is often the most relaxed part of a big day. Keep cold water in the car as well, because a heavy gown, a summer afternoon and a few flights of stone steps add up quickly, and a fresh couple always photographs better.

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