I think I’ve discovered my happy place thanks to these gorgeous photos by Anne-Claire Brun. She captured this rustic, romantic wedding, held at Domaine de Blanche Fleur in the south of France, where Les Mignonneries, the Bride’s own company, shined bright, designing and planning every detail to a tee. From the adorable babe to the colorful streamers, I won’t be leaving here anytime soon.
From Anne-Claire Brun… Céline and Jérémie got married at the Domaine de Blanche Fleur in the South of France. I was so happy to get to shoot their wonderful and delicately crafted wedding! The Bride and Groom are the sweetest couple and they are so in love that you can feel it in the air around them!
Céline and Jérémie, it’s a story that starts in Paris. That’s where I met them for the first time, to shoot their maternity session in June 2013. And then again in August 2013 to shoot their newborn baby Romane. So, of course, when they contacted me a third time to shoot their wedding, I was on a cloud. See, when you shoot weddings you kinda get attached to people and it sucks when you never see them again. Working with the same couples, seeing them getting pregnant, with a baby, then married – not necessarily in this order :) – it’s extraordinary.
So I was already happy to shoot their wedding and I wasn’t even there yet.
When I arrived, Céline hugged me and started crying (so did I, what can I say!) She said that seeing me made her realize that this was it, she was going to get married. And all day long, I’ve been overwhelmed. Céline and Jérémie are (overly) sensitive (like me) and the speeches of their families and friends touched me.
But I think that what really struck me was the way those two looked at each other. I’ve seen many couples, but looks like that….
When I made it back to the hotel that night, it must have been around 4am but I needed to write them. Being a photographer, it’s a thousand things all at once: emails that will lead (or not) to booking a date, meetings, first photo shoots, learning how to use a camera or some retouching programs like Photoshop, managing emails, deposits, taxes, creating business (and in two countries I might add!), managing your time, your money (because some years are better than others). And some weddings are also better than others. Not because of the amount of money involved but because of the atmosphere, families, relationships, stories…. And some weddings are simply not “made” for you, we aren’t on the same level as the couple or guests are rude.
Sometimes, making the “dream” happen (= living from your passion) becomes a job. A job from which it’s hard to get away, especially when you work from home. So sometimes, things aren’t all pink: frustrations, wondering if the couple liked their photos (because if they don’t say anything, we, the photographers, panic a little!), not having enough business and comparing yourself with all the other photographers out there, and so it happens that the question pops up: “Why am I doing this?”
When I shot Céline and Jérémie’s wedding, I got my answer.
Their wedding was perfect to me. Their friendships, the kind, funny words of their guests, the stories, the look on everyone’s face, their smiles… All those emotions and moments during the day brought back my desire and passion. The will to work harder, not having weekends, spending all my time on my laptop. The will to give the best of me, to manage better and more important, to capture better days like this. This wedding was all that I love: the venue and settings and decoration, their oh-so-impressive choreography, the (French) meal…. absolutely everything.
The best weddings are those where you feel like a guest, a friend or a family member rather than a vendor. And this wedding was like this. I’m a witness of love and theirs is one of my favorite. I wish them to keep doing whatever they are doing because it seems to be the way to go :)
From the Bride… Jérémie and I met on our workplace and after working for over a year side by side, we fell in love. We haven’t left each other since then.
He had planned to do the proposal at home the evening of our anniversary… but with a 5-months-old girl, it wasn’t easy to organize things discreetly and I felt it coming … so I screwed up! He did it again a week later, roses everywhere in the living room, a candlelight dinner and the ring on the plate instead of dessert!
During the organization of the wedding, Jérémie was serene, me, a little less! But we did see things the same way so that helped. The hardest part was to prepare the dance for the bridal party and our entrance. That took a lot of time but the result was beyond our expectations!
Like many brides and grooms we spent hours on wedding blogs and Pinterest to get inspired and figure out what we wanted. We wanted something pretty simple, rustic, fun and a touch of vintage. The rest of the decoration process was inspired by the venue. It was important to us to respect the soul of Blanche Fleur with soft colors and natural elements. I actually had so much fun with organizing, creating and decorating than I opened my own event company (Les Mignonneries – http://lesmignonneries.com/)!
Our favorite moment of the day was the ceremony itself. It was crazy! Our friends who were in charge of “animating” the ceremony did a fantastic job! It was a rush of intense emotions: love, laughs and tears! We couldn’t have dreamt of a better one!
Oh and also that bridal entrance that took us so long to set up. The dance went really well and everybody was hysterical!
It was definitely one of the happiest days of our lives.
If I had any advice to give, it would be this: do what you want to do but do it together, not just the bride. And don’t hesitate to talk to your bridal party, involve them and ask for their help.
And the most important: have a wedding that is you. Have 1000 details if you like it or get married in jeans if that’s who you are!
Photography: Anne-Claire Brun Photography | Event Design And Planning: Les Mignonneries | Floral Design: L'Instant Decoration | Wedding Dress: Elise Hameau | Cake: Made In Cake | Stationery: Les Mignonneries | Bride's Shoes: Chie Mihara | Necklace: Gynette NY | Make Up: The Bride | DJ: Pierre Et Musique | Bow Tie: Figaret | Groom's Attire: Samson | CD (present For The Guests): DIY Bride And Groom | Ceremony And Reception Venue: Anne Taylor Studio | Flower Hair Piece: Nuage Coloré | Groom's Shoes: Hugo Boss | Hair Style: Hardwax Concept Store | Nougat: Nougat Silvain Freres | Pin Badge: Camaloon | Suspenders: Bruce Field