A photographer’s guide
Choosing a venue sets the look of your whole wedding day. Our team has photographed more than three thousand weddings over twelve years, so we see what these places are like on the day, not just in the brochure.
This guide covers 32 wedding venues around Perth and Western Australia that we have photographed. Each one links to a page with more about the venue and to real weddings there, so you can see what it looks like with a real couple in real light.
The right venue depends on the day you want, so they are grouped by area first and by style further down. Facts come from each venue’s own website, so check the details with them before you book.
Close to the city and the obvious first stop: vines, old homesteads and long afternoon light. See also our Swan Valley wedding photography page.
Caversham
Best for: A classic garden wedding
A character home built in 1835 on the banks of the Swan, and the valley’s first wedding reception centre. The European-inspired gardens, four-storey waterfall and three garden ceremony spots give you plenty of variety without leaving the property.
Real weddings: Ben & Immy
Caversham
Best for: Big lawns and a long history
A Caversham winery whose story goes back to 1840. Ceremonies are on the Chenin or Merlot lawns or at the new Hill House, with landscaped gardens and courtyards around the vineyard.
Real weddings: Jayde & Josh
Upper Swan
Best for: Having the whole estate to yourselves
On the quiet side of the valley at Upper Swan: French-inspired limestone buildings and a lake. They host one wedding a day, and there is enough room between the buildings that the day never feels crowded.
Real weddings: Shona & Saif
Swan Valley
Best for: Vineyard portraits at sunset
Long rows of vines and a low western sun. A big part of the appeal is knowing where the light lands late in the day, so build your timeline around it.
Real weddings: Jade & Kyle
Herne Hill
Best for: A private, rustic function centre
A Herne Hill property with a grape-growing history going back to the early 1900s, manicured gardens, a vineyard backdrop and a function room built with timber from a 70-year-old grape drying rack.
Real weddings: Nat & Jordan, Natalie & Bailey
Herne Hill
Best for: Vineyard views from the room
A working winery, restaurant and cellar door with Mediterranean-style earth-rendered buildings, sweeping views over the vines and the Darling Range behind.
Real weddings: Kathryn & Lucas
The Vines
Best for: Guests staying on site
A four-star resort about 30 minutes from the CBD, set in bushland with a golf course, gardens and a private vineyard for ceremonies. Function rooms take 20 to 180 guests.
Real weddings: Kathleen & Haider, Amy & Andrew
Middle Swan
Best for: A big choice of backdrops
A family-owned farm established in 1905, now a winery, brewery and distillery, with gardens, waterfalls, a private lake and vineyards across two venues.
Real weddings: Zaine & Larrissa, Maria & Colin, Amanda & Brad, Simon & Ambah
For skyline views and easy logistics, with guests already in town. More on our Perth city wedding photography page.
Perth
Best for: Skyline views and native gardens
Above the city and the Swan River, with ceremony venues from small and intimate to much grander, booked through the Botanic Gardens and Parks Authority. The Botanic Garden is right there for photos.
Real weddings: Brittany & James, Hayley & Connor
Burswood
Best for: A riverside reception
A lawn on the water’s edge for ceremonies, the Swan Room and River Room inside, and the city skyline across the river. A short walk from Crown and Optus Stadium, so it is easy for guests.
Real weddings: Ashley & Djordje, Daniel & Tracee
Perth
Best for: A hotel wedding in the heart of the city
A five-star hotel in the historic State Buildings on St Georges Terrace. Postal Hall takes up to 160 seated guests under a soaring ceiling, the rooftop restaurant Wildflower looks across the Swan River, and the white heritage balconies inside make bright, clean photos at any time of day.
Real weddings: Hayley & Connor
Perth
Best for: Small weddings and elopements
A heritage building from 1898 on Francis Street, run by the Perth Marriage Office for intimate ceremonies. High ceilings, jarrah floors and a white bay window that fills the room with light.
Real weddings: Sydney & Pat, Tara & Corey, Hue & Stephen
Claremont
Best for: A traditional church wedding
A Victorian Gothic Revival church in Cottesloe limestone, with its foundation stone laid in 1892. The timber roof, arches and stained glass are the draw, with the river close by for portraits afterwards.
Real weddings: Annette & Andre
White sand and the Indian Ocean. Late in the day is the time to plan around, when the sun drops into the water. More on our Fremantle wedding photography page.
Cottesloe
Best for: That limestone staircase
On a rise above the ocean, a few minutes back from the beach. Its grand staircase is the reason most couples book it, with terraced gardens, heritage stone and wide lawns around it.
Real weddings: Josie & Alex
North Fremantle
Best for: A beach wedding with style
Right on Port Beach in North Fremantle: white sand and turquoise water out the front, and a blue weatherboard building that photographs like nowhere else on the coast.
Real weddings: Bec & Reagan, Lauren & Zac
Fremantle
Best for: Ceremonies on the sand
Three steps from the sand in Fremantle, with ceremonies on the beach or boardwalk and an upstairs function room with 180-degree ocean views.
Real weddings: Sharrie & Steve
Bush and big views, close enough to the city for guests to get home. More on our Perth Hills wedding photography page.
Darlington
Best for: An all-weather bush setting
An award-winning restaurant and venue with bushland and views all around. Ceremony areas for sunny and rainy days, floor-to-ceiling windows in the reception room, and one wedding a day.
Real weddings: Thyla & Rob
Karragullen
Best for: Relaxed, leafy and a bit different
A family-run cider house in Karragullen with gardens and native bushland. Ceremonies in the gardens, a deck and courtyard for the reception, and the forest for photos.
Real weddings: Will & Mackenzie, Mikaela & Tom
Perth Hills
Best for: Elopements and tiny weddings
A secluded venue for intimate ceremonies and elopements of up to 30 guests.
Real weddings: Jamie & Anthony
Lakes, forest and something you won’t see everywhere else. See our Yanchep wedding photography page.
Wanneroo
Best for: A garden ceremony by the lake
A privately owned five-acre garden on the shores of Lake Joondalup: tall trees, waterfalls, rockeries and winding paths, with Leapfrogs restaurant on site.
Real weddings: Mick & Marian, Caitlin & James
Yanchep
Best for: Something truly unusual
A lake, tuart forest and limestone caves, plus the heritage-listed Yanchep Inn from 1936. Cabaret Cave is Perth’s only venue cave for hire.
Real weddings: Caroline & Linden, Katie & Matthew
Farms, forest and heritage, all within a drive of the city. More on our Peel region wedding photography page.
Whitby
Best for: Having the place all day
A 200-acre property at the foot of the Darling Range. From 10am until 2am the whole place is yours, which changes how the day feels and how it photographs.
Real weddings: Nyomi & Kortnee, Nat & Shanni, Tom & Hayley, Sandrine & Jarrod
Mardella
Best for: A farm wedding, with animals
A farm about 35 km south of Perth with gardens, big old trees and rustic buildings, and alpacas, cattle, sheep and horses in the meadows next door.
Real weddings: Barry & Loren, Ian & Juanita
Pinjarra
Best for: No cars between locations
A whole heritage block in the middle of Pinjarra, with a church, homestead, outbuildings and gardens all on the one walkable site.
Real weddings: Jessica & Ben
Dwellingup
Best for: Forest and big views
On the edge of the Darling Escarpment outside Dwellingup, with jarrah forest around it and the Peel Inlet in the distance.
Real weddings: Zoe & Nathan
Worth the drive for the sense of space. Plenty of guests make a weekend of it. More on our Avon Valley wedding photography page.
Buckland
Best for: A heritage weekend wedding
A grand property between Toodyay and Northam whose homestead dates to 1836. It is BYO, with a barn, cottages and a glamping village, and it looks completely different in summer and winter.
Real weddings: Garth & Natalie, Lucy & Tim
Katrine
Best for: Old stone and golden grass
Stone buildings with red doors, brick walls and timber verandahs near Toodyay, with a rose garden and a creek running through long grass that turns gold at the end of the day.
Real weddings: Aimee & Daniel
Chittering
Best for: A relaxed country reception
A Chittering Valley winery established in 1985, with a restaurant, beer garden and distillery, plus an open grassed area and marquees for weddings.
Real weddings: Stuart & Ruth
A destination wedding without leaving WA. More on our Margaret River wedding photography page.
Margaret River
Best for: A landmark winery wedding
A winery, restaurant and art gallery in Margaret River, where the vines run right up to the ceremony lawn.
Real weddings: Jacob & Taylor
Metricup
Best for: Everything on one property
75 acres of bushland at Metricup with tall eucalypts, a lake, chalets for guests and a function centre looking straight out over the water.
Real weddings: Danja & Andre
Eagle Bay
Best for: Small weddings in the bush
A working hobby farm with a restaurant in Meelup Regional Park, between Dunsborough and Eagle Bay. It caps at sixty guests, which is the whole point of it.
Real weddings: Steph & Brad
Denmark
Best for: A true destination wedding
A family winery in Denmark, about 400 km south of Perth, with rolling vineyard slopes, tall forest on the way in and the Southern Ocean beyond.
Real weddings: Ollie & Carly
Know the feel you want, but not the place? Start here.
Caversham House, Wanneroo Botanic Gardens, Sandalford Wines and Kings Park are the ones to look at first. Ask each one about the wet-weather plan when you visit.
In the Swan Valley: Sittella Winery, Riverbank Estate and Chapel Farm Estate. Further out: Redgum Wine Estate, Stringybark Winery, Leeuwin Estate and Harewood Estate.
COAST Port Beach and Bathers Beach House put you right on the sand, and Cottesloe Civic Centre looks out over the ocean from above it.
COMO The Treasury and Old Tower House are in the city itself, Burswood on Swan faces the skyline across the river, and Kings Park looks down on it.
Anderson Point takes up to 30 guests, Meelup Farmhouse caps at sixty, and Old Tower House is built for small weddings and civil ceremonies.
Caversham House (1835), Buckland Estate (1836), Old Tower House (1898), Christ Church Claremont (1892) and Edenvale Heritage Precinct, a whole heritage block in Pinjarra.
The Vines Resort is a resort, COMO The Treasury is a five-star hotel in the city, Eight Willows Retreat has chalets, and Buckland Estate has cottages and a glamping village.
Yanchep National Park has a cave you can hire, Mardella Meadows has alpacas next door, and Naked Apple Cider House is a cider house in the forest.
Stand at the ceremony spot and ask what the light does at your ceremony time. Harsh overhead sun is the hardest light to photograph, so in summer a later ceremony or an open-shade spot makes a real difference to every photo.
Don’t just ask whether there is one. Go and see it. In a lot of venues the rain option is a different room with a different feel, and you should like that one too.
Everything on one site means more time for photos and less time in a car. If your church and reception are apart, add the drive to your timeline and allow for parking.
The best portraits of the day usually happen in that hour. Check when the sun sets on your date and keep twenty minutes free, even if dinner has to move. Here is how a real wedding day runs from behind the camera.
Most venues are shown in daylight, but your reception won’t be. Lighting, ceiling height and wall colour shape your dance floor photos. Ask to see evening photos, or look at a real wedding from the venue.
Questions