Gold Coast is a feast for portrait sessions. The variety of backdrops is one of the densest of any coastal city in Australia, and I sort my favourite spots into three categories: beaches, urban, and inland. I’ll lay out the list below, but a heads-up first: choosing the location for your session is always a personal call, and for me the main thing is — what’s your relationship to that place? It could be somewhere you love with a story attached, somewhere you’ve always wanted to visit and the session is the excuse, or somewhere that lines up exactly with the references you have in mind. The reason we land on any given location depends on who’s being photographed. Below are just a few of my favourites.
Starting with the beaches.
Burleigh.
I’m biased here — it’s where I live. But Burleigh delivers a bunch of options within a single kilometre of coast.
North Burleigh Lookout (Rainbow Stairs), with a view across to Miami Beach and the rocks separating the two beaches. The middle of the beach has stretches that stay empty even on a Saturday afternoon, with a desert-island feel. At the southern tip, Burleigh Hill, Oceanview Lookout, and the small commercial strip that sits between beach vibes and urban vibes.
Any of the three spots catches direct light at sunrise and the soft golden light of late afternoon.
I’d recommend Burleigh for anyone who wants a session that captures their relationship with Gold Coast, because here we get everything Gold offers, and at its best.
Currumbin Alley.
Another strategic spot. The beach faces north, which gives it a different window of light than the rest of the coast: you can work with sunrise and sunset light for longer. Visually, it gives you three distinct scenes.
The first is the skyline of Broadbeach and Surfers in the background, that postcard shot. The second uses Currumbin Rock as the backdrop, alternating between rocky ground and sand. The third makes use of the calm, wave-free waters of Currumbin Creek on the opposite side of the rock, great for shots standing in the water with a mirror-like surface. Sessions here are the ones that start at 5:30 AM and have no fixed end time. Meaning: a session for someone who’s not in a rush, brings plenty of wardrobe changes, and is keen on spending hours at a beach with seriously good vibes.
Other spots that work but aren’t in my top three: Main Beach catches a different angle on the skyline with a massive horizon. The Spit is a classic, with sand, dunes, and the channel out to Stradbroke Island. And Froggy Beach, a rocky platform with waves exploding against it as the main backdrop.
Coming off the sand into urban.
Surfers Paradise.
A classic. Some call it a cliché. Classics and clichés don’t earn those names for nothing. Surfers offers a range of light, environments, and different vibes, and at night a neon glow that makes it one of the strongest urban backdrops in Australia. Foot traffic, restaurants, bars, venues. For urban photoshoots, it’s paradise. Thinking of a night session, casual style, neon? Surfers delivers.
Emerald Lakes.
A charming neighbourhood. Architecture with Renaissance-style influences, piers, stairways, cobblestone streets, scented fountains. A place for autumn and winter editorials. The street trees lose their leaves in orange and yellow in those months, and that detail almost no one notices, but it makes a difference in the composition. Here I picture a range of elegant, refined photos — the kind that could land in a European fashion editorial.
These two locations are for urban shots where the backdrop itself already carries identity, and the person in front of the camera brings the soul and personality to the frames.
Gold Coast also has the mountains, so we head inland.
Cougal Cascade.
Easy to get to, with all sorts of waterfalls on offer: big drops, small ones, dense bush with strong clearings of light, climbable rocks.
Worth planning a long session here as well, but unlike Currumbin, you arrive around midday and keep shooting until late afternoon, making the most of the bush, the trails through the forest, the different pools. My pick would be: do you want to connect with nature and have a good time? Then we go to Cougal.
A spot for an intimate session that’s still fun. Natural and quiet vibes.
Tamborine Mountain.
At the top of the mountains that ring Gold Coast. Panoramic views, east toward the ocean and west toward the horizon at sunset. Cedar Creek Falls is up there: a set of large falls, crystal-clear water and pale rocks, which makes the photographic potential enormous. On the same side there’s SOL Elements Spa, a space to relax and to shoot in a more private setting. And honestly, this one I’d recommend for anyone after a premium experience of self-care and connection (session + spa). It’s the best gift you can give yourself, and I can make it happen.
I’ll stop the list here so it doesn’t drag on, but Gold Coast has more locations worth a mention beyond these. Worth noting too: studio rentals and luxury house rentals for shoots are options here, and prices are accessible.