Ellen and Zac eloped at the Sheraton Mirage Resort in Port Douglas, with their ceremony right on the sand at Four Mile Beach — a relaxed, classy day built for just their closest family, rather than the traditional big wedding neither of them ever felt drawn to.

Ellen and Zac met at a friend's engagement party three years ago, and by their own account, wanted the same things at exactly the right time in each other's lives. Both Taurus, both footy fans who make it to Suncorp Stadium together, both partial to a country music concert — theirs has always been a relationship built on easy compatibility. Their daughter Lainey arrived in February 2024, and these days weekends mean beach walks and family time together.

Zac proposed in New Zealand this May, on a trip to meet his extended family — grandparents, aunties, uncles all there for it. Ellen still says she wasn't sure it was real. For the wedding, the two of them decided against the traditional route entirely: no separate engagement party squeezed into an already busy year, just one relaxed, classy celebration with everyone they would have invited to a big wedding anyway.