Aaron and Cody’s engagement story started long before their Gold Coast engagement photography session with us. They have been madly in love for six years and engaged for two, and after wanting professional photographs together for quite some time, they finally got the perfect opportunity through a charity fundraising ball.
Their engagement photography session was one of the J’adore Weddings experiences donated to the Gold Coast Charity Fundraising Ball 2026, where guests could bid on donated items with proceeds going towards some wonderful charitable causes.
When Aaron first reached out to organise their prize, they told us they had been wanting to have engagement photos taken for ages, but life had kept getting in the way. They were ready to finally make those dream photos happen, and we were so excited to be part of it.
A Gold Coast engagement photography session at Emerald Lakes
Aaron and Cody during their engagement photography session at Emerald Lakes.
For their engagement shoot, we headed to Emerald Lakes on the Gold Coast, a beautiful location with a distinctly European-inspired feel.
With its village-style architecture, fountains, stairs, lake and charming little corners throughout the area, Emerald Lakes gave us plenty of variety for their Gold Coast engagement photography session.
Walking hand-in-hand towards the boardwalk, with plenty of laughs along the way.
We made our way around the village together, stopping at different spots and letting the afternoon unfold naturally.
Rather than making every photograph feel overly posed, we wanted to capture Aaron and Cody simply being themselves. Walking hand-in-hand, laughing together, smiling at each other and those quiet moments where they naturally found their way back towards one another.
Those genuine little moments are often where the magic happens.
Plenty of laughter made its way into their Gold Coast engagement session.
Love, laughter and a little bit of gelato
A very important stop for gelato during their engagement shoot.
As the session went on, we decided it was time for a very important engagement shoot tradition: gelato.
Because honestly, what is better than beautiful photographs and gelato?
Because every good engagement shoot needs a gelato stop.
The stop made for some of the cutest and most natural photos of the day, with plenty of laughter and the kind of moments that feel completely effortless.
We love incorporating little pieces of a couple’s personalities and experience into their engagement photography. It is those unexpected moments that can make a gallery feel like a true reflection of the people in it, rather than simply a collection of posed portraits.
Choosing their favourite 10 engagement photos
A beautiful portrait of Aaron and Cody, completely at ease together.
As part of their prize, Aaron and Cody received 10 professionally edited images from their engagement photography session.
We sent through their full gallery so they could make the very difficult choice of selecting their favourite 10 for final editing.
But when they came back to us, they had another idea.
They told us the photographs were perfect just the way they were.
That is always such a lovely thing for a photographer to hear. We put so much care into capturing and colour grading our couples’ photographs, so knowing that Aaron and Cody already loved their images exactly as they were was such a beautiful compliment.
And really, we completely understood why they had trouble choosing just 10.
Love is love at J’adore Weddings
A quiet moment together on the steps at Emerald Lakes.
While this blog is about Aaron and Cody, their engagement photography session is also a lovely opportunity to share something that has always been important to us at J’adore Weddings.
We believe love is love.
Whether that is a man and a woman, two women, two men or couples from across the LGBTQIA+ community, every couple deserves to feel comfortable, celebrated and completely themselves in front of our cameras.
One of those little moments that says everything without a word.
We have had the absolute pleasure of photographing and filming LGBTQIA+ couples over the years, and we would love to continue welcoming more couples into the J’adore family.
Your love story does not have to fit a particular mould. We are here to capture the two people at the heart of it and create photographs and films that feel genuine to you.
From a charity auction to their engagement photos
The Gold Coast charity auction voucher they bid on & won
There is another part of Aaron and Cody’s story that makes this session particularly special for us.
J’adore Weddings donated this engagement photography experience to the Gold Coast Charity Fundraising Ball 2026, along with a few other items. We have attended three of the fundraising balls in previous years, so being able to contribute ourselves this time was something we were really proud to be part of.
But the best part is what happened next.
Aaron and Cody chose to purchase the J’adore experience through the fundraising auction, with the money they spent going towards charity.
So while they were able to finally have the engagement photos they had been wanting for years, their purchase also helped support some amazing causes within the community.
That is exactly what makes fundraising events like this so special. The donation becomes something more than a prize. It becomes an experience shared by the people who purchase it, while also helping raise money for charities that do important work.
For us, being able to give something back to the community while creating something meaningful for Aaron and Cody was a pretty wonderful combination.
A quiet moment together on the water, captured in black and white.
Congratulations, Aaron & Cody
Aaron and Cody, it was an absolute joy spending time with you both and capturing this chapter of your story.
From wandering around Emerald Lakes, to laughing together, walking hand-in-hand, stealing those little glances and stopping for gelato, your engagement session was filled with all the moments that make photographing couples so special.
A close-up of the hands that have been holding on to each other for six years.
After six years together and two years engaged, we hope these photographs give you something beautiful to look back on and remind you of this part of your journey for years to come.
Thank you for choosing to spend your charity auction win with J’adore Weddings and for allowing us to be part of your story.
We wish you both all the happiness in the world for everything still to come.
Congratulations, Aaron & Cody.
