Jess & Nate’s High Country Wedding
Omarama Lodge | Waitaki Valley, NZ
Some weddings are elegant. Some are emotional. And some are simply one big high country party surrounded by the people who matter most.
Jess and Nate’s wedding at Omarama Lodge managed to be all three.
Their story started in a very fitting location for a rural love story - the Kurow Rugby Club rooms. If you know small South Island towns, you’ll know plenty of great relationships begin in places exactly like that. What started at a 30th birthday eventually turned into a life together in the Waitaki Valley.
Nate is a passionate sheep farmer who proudly refers to Hampden as the “land of milk and honey.” Jess grew up around the Kurow and Omarama area, and after a couple of years living in Oamaru she eventually convinced Nate to move back to the valley. Soon, they welcomed their daughter Phoebe, and not long after that came a proposal that was equal parts romantic and sneaky.
Their wedding day itself was exactly what they promised from the start — “a big celebration with a seriously epic group of humans”
The morning kicked off with the boys heading out for a round of golf at the Omarama course, while the girls gathered on Ben Omar Road for champagne, music, and glam with Makeup by Jade Brett and Lauren Sands Hair working their magic. Just across the road from the venue the lads were getting ready at Merino Lodge, no doubt in their own slightly more relaxed fashion.
The ceremony took place at Omarama Lodge, surrounded by the vast open landscapes of the Waitaki Valley. It’s one of those places where the scenery quietly does most of the talking.
There was also a deeply personal thread woven through the day. Jess’s dad had sadly passed away not long before the wedding, and his old short-wheel-base LandCruiser became a meaningful part of the story — appearing throughout the day as a quiet reminder of him being there in spirit. Later in the evening the couple raised espresso martinis in his honour, creating a moment that was heartfelt but still perfectly in keeping with the celebratory vibe of the day.
After the ceremony we snuck away for some portraits with Sari Renee at a nearby high country farm station overlooking the valley - one of those classic Waitaki landscapes where the mountains, farmland, and huge skies combine to make the place feel properly special.
Back at the lodge, the celebration rolled on exactly as Jess and Nate had predicted.
The speeches were full of laughs, the atmosphere only got louder as the evening progressed, and once Brad Staley and the band kicked into gear the dance floor quickly filled with some extremely committed shapes. Jess had mentioned beforehand she was hoping Nate might break out his signature “slug dance move.” Whether or not that happened… we’ll leave that for the film.
From emotional tributes to questionable dance moves, the whole day felt like a perfect reflection of Jess and Nate themselves - relaxed, genuine, and built around family, friends, and a pretty special part of the country they both call home.
Venue // Omarama Lodge
Photographer // Sari Renee
Celebrant // Donella Fleming
Band // Brad Staley
Hair // Lauren Sands
Makeup // Jade Brett
Bridesmaids Dresses // Blak Bridesmaids
Florist // Julia Nehoff
Cake // Junebug Cakery
Tans & Nails // Glamorous Nails & Beauty
Retro Camcorder Crew // Holly & Ella
🎧 // ‘Whole Heart’ - Atlantic Runaway; ‘Southern Gold’ - Leaving Austin
All music licensed through Musicbed