Road trip up east coast

Me and a mate are planning a road trip up the east coast of Australia, starting Sydney probably not going much further then Byron.

We're looking to camp, but not in camping sites.
Any suggestions or wise words of wisdom of the best places (aka no cops) to camp on the beach or in the bush somewhere?

also, whats your favourite place up between Sydney and Byron??

The east coast is fairly populated between Sydney and Byron bay so most camping available is in designated camping areas. How long are you going for and what kind of vehicle are you taking? You can camp in the Watagans National Park up near Newcastle for free but it's not near the beach, you can camp on Stockton Beach but you'll definitely need a 4x4 to get out there. There are several nice National Park camping areas on the way including the Myall Lakes, Crowdy Bay, Hat Head, Yuraygir and Bundjalung. A personal favourite of mine is Pebbly Beach campground in Yuraygir National Park, but you need a 4x4 to get out there.

Each local council on the east coast has it's own sites within 3ks of each town that is free for at least 3 days, if it's quiet you can stay longer and most have toilets with some having showers, all have some means of cooking, either free or a small fee, if camping in the Forrest's you are provided with logs and you pay a fee and get a ticket on entry at a honesty box, if you don't have a ticket you might be woken up at any time by a warden to make a payment.
Get a free site map at any police station or council office or breakdown centre like RAC, it will show all the road side sites and the amenities, the map is produced by the Main Roads Department and is called Rest Areas.
When traveling use the garage rest stops for HGVs, you can get a great shower and food or for a cheap meal find the local RSLs (retired service mans league), good luck. John H.