Wedding photographer in Toulon

The roadstead of Toulon is the largest natural harbour in the Mediterranean, and it gives the city something no other town in the Var has: water in quantity, closed in by hills, with viewpoints that carry for kilometres.

It is also a working city, a naval city, one that does not perform for anyone. For a wedding reportage that mixture is an advantage: you find settings here without ever falling into the postcard.

I am a documentary photographer, and I make wedding reportages. In Toulon, the reportage has the largest natural harbour in the Mediterranean to work with, seen from Mont Faron, in a city that performs for nobody.

Mont Faron

It rises five hundred and eighty metres above the city, and a cable car climbs to it from the centre. From up there the whole roadstead opens out, with the city below, the ships, and the headlands closing the horizon.

It is a viewpoint few weddings use, and that is a pity. A couple session on the Faron late in the day produces an image neither a beach nor an estate can give: two people, and an entire city behind them.

Allow thirty minutes for the round trip from the centre, and check the cable car times, which vary with the season and close in high wind.

The estates around the city

Domaine de Rocabella, at Le Pradet, and the Domaine de la Baratonne, at La Garde, lie a quarter of an hour from the city, in the band of hills that separates Toulon from the sea.

Further east, Château Maravenne at La Londe-les-Maures and Château Vannières at La Cadière-d'Azur open onto vineyards with the sea behind. They are working wine estates, with everything that implies in terms of rows of vines and long shadows at the end of the day.

Between Hyères and Toulon I work regularly at the Domaine de Sigalous, at La Crau, and, on the edge of Toulon, at the Domaine des Gueules Cassées, at La Valette-du-Var. The Château Pas du Cerf, at La Londe-les-Maures, belongs as much to Hyères as to Toulon.

The vineyard setting matters more than it sounds. Rows give a photograph depth and a natural line, and the vine leaves filter the late light in a way that flatters faces. It is the single best reason to hold the couple session at an estate rather than at the water.

The old town and the harbour

Toulon's historic centre offers lanes, coloured façades, squares and fountains. It is less polished than Nice or Aix, and that is exactly what makes it worth photographing.

The port and the quays give the other register, more open, with the boats and light bouncing off the water. Twenty minutes there build a complete series without leaving the centre.

The mistral, and what to do with it

It comes down over the roadstead and often rises during the afternoon. It undoes hair, lifts veils, and makes some terraces uncomfortable for a seated cocktail hour.

It also produces the best images of the day. What is needed is shelter for the guests, and the willingness to hold the couple session in it anyway.

When should you photograph?

Late in the afternoon, as everywhere on this coast, with one Toulon peculiarity: the roadstead faces south and the hills close it to the west, which means the sun disappears behind the relief before it reaches the sea.

The practical consequence is simple: the last usable hour arrives earlier than you would think. I set the couple session forty-five minutes before the printed sunset time, rather than working to the published hour.

What happens if it rains?

The reception moves indoors, and the estates above all have spaces designed for it. For the couple session I would rather reschedule it for another day, later that week or beyond. You get your images in the light you had in mind.

An hour west, Marseille brings the calanques and white limestone that lights faces from below; twenty minutes east, Hyères offers three kinds of ground in one day, from the town to the Almanarre and Giens.

Frequently asked questions

Can we photograph on the quays and in the old town? Without particular difficulty for a wedding reportage. The quays are busy late in the day, which simply means choosing the spot.

Does the Mont Faron cable car run all year? It closes in strong wind and follows seasonal hours. Worth checking a few days beforehand, and worth having an alternative.

How far is Marseille or Saint-Tropez? An hour from Marseille, an hour and a quarter from Saint-Tropez outside high season. Allow more in July and August.

Do you travel to Hyères, Bandol and La Cadière? Regularly. The whole coastal Var is part of my usual area, from Saint-Raphaël to La Ciotat.

Do we need to book far ahead in Toulon? Twelve months is comfortable, which is unusual for the coast. Toulon is a working city that few couples consider, and the estates in the hills above it keep more Saturdays open than anywhere between here and Menton.

Tell me about your day, and we will work out together how it is photographed.