Venues and partners
Wedding reportage is my trade, and it is rarely practised alone. The venue sets the hours and the light, whoever is coordinating holds the thread of the day, and I work around both.
These are the estates I have photographed and the people I work with regularly.
The venues
Every estate has its constraints, its hours and its light. Knowing them before the day itself changes how I plan my movements. I have given a page to each of the ones I know best.
On the Riviera, the Carlton Cannes and its marble staircases, the Hôtel Cap Estel at Èze-Bord-de-Mer, the Palais Bulles at Théoule with Antti Lovag's architecture, the Bastide des Adrets in the Estérel, the Château Saint-Georges above Grasse and the Château de Castellaras at Mouans-Sartoux.
In the Var and in Provence, the Château de Berne at Flayosc, the Château du Font du Broc at Les Arcs-sur-Argens, the Domaine de Saint-Louis at Lorgues, the Château Pas du Cerf at La Londe-les-Maures, the Domaine de la Baratonne at La Garde, the Domaine de Sigalous at La Crau and the Domaine des Gueules Cassées at La Valette-du-Var.
Around Hyères, the Castel Bay above the Almanarre beach, the Magnanerie de Saint-Isidore with the vaults of a former silk farm, and the Château des Anglades with its avenue of century-old palms.
At the Bastide des Adrets, the welcome from Cosima and her daughter Lorelei is as much a part of the place as its gardens. They receive, they organise, they decorate, and that continuity shows in the photographs.
The people
Lonata, second photographer
Lonata and I have been working together for ten years on the days that call for two pairs of eyes. We are two independents, each of us draws up a contract with you, and one of us edits the entire reportage so the album holds together as one piece.
See two photographers.
Julien Rogues, wedding film
Julien films the weddings I photograph. We are used to one another, which settles without a word the questions of space and angle that complicate a day when two suppliers meet for the first time that morning.
See photo and film.
Alliance Rêvée, wedding planning
I have worked with Laure at Alliance Rêvée for more than ten years, at the Château Saint-Georges, at the Domaine de Saint-Louis, at the Château des Anglades and across several estates around Hyères.
What makes it work is everything settled beforehand. The shape of the day, the venues, the moments to cover are decided before the couple ever sees a proposal. By the time the day arrives, it is all in place.
Working together
Planners and venue managers who want to talk through a date can write to me directly.
Lawrence Banahan, documentary wedding photographer on the French Riviera.