Château Lagorce Wedding, Bordeaux Wedding Photography

Bonjour, my friend! I'm so excited to share with you a beautiful wedding that I photographed in France. The couple chose to get married at the stunning Château Lagorce Wedding and it was a truly magical experience.

As a fine art wedding photographer, I was thrilled to capture every detail of this timeless and elegant wedding. The couple's relaxed outdoor ceremony was held in the chateau's beautiful garden, surrounded by lush greenery and blooming flowers. The bride wore a stunning gown with delicate lace details, and the groom looked dashing in his classic black tuxedo.

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed al fresco dining on the chateau's terrace, complete with delicious French cuisine and fine wine. The speeches were hilarious, and the atmosphere was filled with joy and laughter. The sage wedding colour palette added a touch of sophistication and elegance to the day.

If you're considering a destination wedding in France, there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure a smooth and stress-free experience. First, be sure to plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time to navigate the legal requirements for getting married in France. Second, hire a local wedding planner who can help you navigate cultural differences and language barriers.

Lastly, choose a venue that fits your vision and style, and be sure to work with a photographer who understands your aesthetic and can capture the beauty and romance of your special day. As a fine art wedding photographer specializing in beautiful wedding photography in France, I would be honoured to capture the magic and memories of your destination wedding.

In conclusion, if you're dreaming of a relaxed and elegant wedding in France, I highly recommend considering Chateau Lagorce in Bordeaux. The combination of timeless beauty and fine art photography will ensure that your wedding day is a truly unforgettable experience.

How To Plan Your Relaxed Wedding Day Timeline

Planning your wedding day ahead as much as possible is the key to having a relaxed day focused on spending time with guests and celebrating.

Focus on the timeline early on. You will need this for the caterers, photographer, church, celebrant and your guests. No matter how casual and informal your day is going to be, people should know what’s happening and where.

I have been to many well-planned weddings and it makes such a difference for you to have lots of time to chat with guests and create memories, time for photos and a relaxed getting ready experience. At those weddings, you can feel the difference immediately, as a guest, vendor and as a couple. The key to success is location and ceremony time. If you want your wedding to be the most relaxed experience I recommend getting ready (whole bridal party + parents), ceremony & reception in the same place. No driving between venues, no driving away for photos. This is one of the best things you can do to have lots of time for everything. Obviously, it’s not going to be feasible for everyone, so I’m here to help you plan it all for the best possible day.

Firstly, I will give you some tips on how to improve each aspect of the day and why it’s important.

Secondly, you will find a wedding timeline for WINTER & SUMMER weddings. I will also add notes on travelling and church weddings.

The perfect morning

Running late in the morning will create a domino effect on the whole day. You might want to start getting ready a little earlier than you think necessary. Set up your hair and makeup in a well lit, clutter-free area. Have all your details ready laid out - perfume, earrings, stationery, ring, ribbons, boxes, any sentiments. Have another clutter-free room ready with a dress out of the bag and on a nice hanger. This is where you can get dressed too.

Hair, makeup and photos take time. Especially recently with Tiktoks and Reels, makeup and hair artists will try to carve out time to create their content. Make sure you let them know - if there’s any photo/video they need to take, they have to start earlier because you’re working on a strict timeline and your photographer and videographer have the priority.

Make sure you are not the last person for makeup/hair! You will be needed for photos with your bridal party, details like putting on earrings, perfume, dress and veil photos and first look. This all takes time and planning. You will need to be finished with all makeup and hair at least 1 hour before leaving. Start getting dressed at least 45 min before you’re due to leave - tags, fashion tape, corsets, underwear, it all takes time, and you want to make sure bridal party photos and family photos are captured before you leave. This applies to the groom as well, and dads too.

Reserve about 15 min before you leave for the ceremony for photos only - mum and dad, siblings, bridesmaids, pets and your own portraits.

All about your ceremony

Ideally, you’d have your ceremony at the venue. That way it’s short and sweet and also entertaining. Churches are important for many reasons (faith, tradition, family history) and getting married at the venue is not always what you want. Please keep in mind photographers are treated differently with every parish - sometimes we are welcomed to walk and take snaps, sometimes we are required to stay still. That will affect your photos too, so please have realistic expectations.

Keep things moving and don’t wait too long to arrive at the church. When you’re late for the ceremony it will mean you will have less time for the reception with your guests. It will make things way more stressful trying to play catch up on family photos, which will eat away at your reception time.

Please also note church weddings in the Republic of Ireland tend to always start late. The latest I’ve experienced was 1,5 hours! The bride and her party were ready, it was actually guests who were still arriving. It’s a good idea to put on the invites the start of the ceremony 30 min earlier than actually planned. Some guests will be late, there is no doubt about it.

Have your family photos immediately after the ceremony - nominate one person who knows them and get them to help the photographer gather the family members. Receiving line can take about an hour so keep that in mind, it’s not something I’d advise doing, especially at winter church weddings. Have your confetti as one of the first things when the ceremony is finished.

Please avoid driving for more than 1 h from the ceremony to the reception, there’s too much that can go wrong - you will get bored in the car, the drivers get lost, the traffic can be horrendous and you might waste precious time. When booking your reception venue please choose one that has some type of photo opportunities to avoid having to go elsewhere for photos.

Reception fun, speeches, cake

Having all your family photos swiftly done you can relax and chat with your guests, there’s plenty of light for the photographer to capture natural images, candid, unposed moments. Ideally, you’d cut the cake now, everyone is looking forward to eating it.

You can have your speeches during the drinks reception or while seated at the tables before the meal, but keep them short. No one likes long speeches, 10 min is an absolute max. If there are few speakers that’s an hour of your time while everyone sits at the table hungry, looking for bread and butter and needing the bathroom.

Dancing & Sparklers

Short speeches + cake cut already = less time sitting at the tables = party and dancing well underway!

Get everyone excited and start dancing as soon as the band is ready. Don’t delay the first dance, get the bridal party to join soon if you’re nervous. Everyone wants to dance, hang around with drinks and relax now that the formalities are done.

Please keep in mind bands are notorious for taking their time to set up. If your first time is scheduled for 8:30 it will happen at 9:30, because the band arrives at 8:30

I’ve put together a timeline for weddings in different seasons below.

These timelines are focused primarily on having a relaxed wedding day, spending more time celebrating with your guests and starting the party early. These are guidelines only - every venue and church have their own policy according to their own experiences.

Spring & Summer

April - end of September

Humanist (or other non-religious) ceremony at the venue. For church services start getting ready and have your ceremony an hour earlier.

8 or 9 am - Getting ready (7 or 8 am Church wedding, driving) this also depends on the number of people getting ready

1 or 1:30 pm - Ceremony (12 or 12:30 no later Church wedding, driving)

1:30 or 2 pm - Drinks reception starts, Family Photos, Portraits, Cake cutting

5 pm - Dinner call

5:30 pm - Speeches (30 min max, if longer dinner call has to be earlier)

8 pm - Evening guests arrive, Dinner finished

8/8:30 pm - Golden hour photos, Mingling, Cake cutting

9 pm-ish - First dance

Party time!

Autumn & Winter

October to March

7-8 am - Getting ready

1 pm - Ceremony (12 pm Church ceremony, no later)

1:30 pm - Drinks reception starts, Family Photos, Portraits (sun goes down at 3: 30 pm)

4:30 pm - Dinner call

5 pm - Speeches (30 min)

7:30 or 8 pm - Evening guests arrive, Cake cutting, Mingling

8:30 or 9 pm-ish - First dance

Party time!

Extra tips

• The best time for portraits is in the ‘golden hour’, the sun is starting to set and the light becomes softer, warmer in colour and gives a glow. If your reception/dinner falls on this hour before sunset I recommend taking 10 minutes out of the reception to get portraits.

• Winter weddings are beautiful, the light is softer and they always have this magical, Christmassy feel. Remember to plan the ceremony earlier to leave plenty of time for your photographer to capture your portraits.

• Consider traffic and driving to church and venue, when planning your day. Major events, accidents, traffic jams on a Friday afternoon, country roads and diversions might give you less time for photos and enjoying the day with guests.

These timelines are focused primarily on having a relaxed wedding day, spending more time celebrating with your guests and starting the party early. These are guidelines only - every venue and church have their own policy according to their own experiences.

If you know someone who is recently engaged and may find this useful, feel free to forward them the link!

Chateau Soudtard, St. Emillion black tie wedding of Ella & Will, Bordeaux

I am so pleased to be able to share with you this fabulous, super romantic & elegant, black-tie wedding at a dazzling French castle, Chateau Soutard.

This was a dream of a wedding! The stunning backdrop of this idyllic castle, emotional outdoor ceremony and fabulous reception full of music, food and Aperol! A real joy to witness this big day, which took months to plan and prepare, as couples families flew from Australia. Planning a wedding in France is a challenge, especially if you live in another country and your guests will fly from every part of the world. Nonetheless, it's all worth it because you can't put a price tag on memory you’ll treasure forever. All your favourite people in one place to celebrate love, family and togetherness!

The couple got married at Chateau Soutard, St Emillion’s most beautiful castle surrounded by vineyards and ruins of the ancient churches. Not far from Bordeaux, this area is full of dazzling French castles and stunning natural landscape. It’s a perfect location for your destination wedding in France, as you will have easy access to the airport, easy routes to the venues, lots of hotel options for your guests. and endless photo opportunities.

If you’re planning a romantic wedding in France please message me HERE. I'll let you scroll down and appreciate the fabulous photos now.

Photographer's Tips For a Perfect Wedding Confetti Moment

Confetti throw is probably one of the most fun ways of including your guests in your wedding photos. It gives you an opportunity to get happy photos, full of smiles and excitement on your guest’s faces. It’s a memorable moment worth considering for your wedding - cheap to create, fun for adults and children and often a ‘‘money shot’’ of the day. My Instagram page is full of confetti ideas because I love organising it for my couples and sharing happy memories! If you’re wondering how to organise a confetti moment on your wedding day and where to start, follow this post to the end for tips and advice. This will give you a comprehensive look at what to get, where to do it and how to make sure you get the most photos out of it!

Confetti types for your wedding

Let’s start with confetti types for different weddings. Which confetti do I choose? If you are going for an outdoors, countryside wedding then dried rose petals work well. Save flowers from birthdays and anniversaries and dry them in the oven. Place the petals (or whole flowers if small) on a baking tray lined with paper and cook at 95 degrees C for 10 minutes. Be careful to make sure the flowers are free from pesticides and bugs.

Fresh white rose petals are a great option for a glam, black-tie wedding.

If you are planning a vibrant city wedding then bright, bold tissue confetti will look amazing. You can get confetti cannons but make sure whoever is handing it out tells your guests how to use it. It needs to point up, otherwise, it can be dangerous for you, your partner and others.

Or if you want neutral confetti then simple, plain white boxed confetti from Etsy or eBay is a good option.

Dried rose petals work well on laid back, relaxed weddings

When and where do we go for the big toss?

A perfect moment for the big confetti throw is right after the ceremony when you are exiting the venue or the ceremony place. Walking down the aisle throw can be a great option of 2 in 1 shot, but those seated far from the aisle will have to hurry up finding locations to toss. The best option, in this case, is to exit the ceremony, wait a few minutes for the photographer to set the confetti tunnel and march out again through it.

It's worth checking with your venue if they allow it on the premises. Some churches can be funny about that, even with fresh/dried eco petals. If it’s not allowed on the premises I'll always suggest a location - it might be just you and the bridal party for that one, but the photos will still look amazing.

An example of aisle exit confetti toss.

Fresh white rose petals are a great option for a glam, black-tie wedding.

Who hands down the confetti?

Ideally, this is a job for the bridesmaids, best man or close family and friends that you know will be happy to help out on the day. They should give out confetti to your guests when they arrive for the ceremony, or, place on their seats to ensure every guest has some ready for the big post-ceremony throw! Alternatively, it’s good to have a spare ‘‘bucket’’ of loose confetti for easy access. A designated person can then quickly hand out some more as they walk through the tunnel, just before you.

It’s good to have a mixture of small and large pieces of confetti. Different sizes look better in different light situations.

Confetti will eventually make it’s way down your dress, no matter the size of confetti or the dress type!

Who will organise the ‘big throw’?

Your photographer, planner or coordinator should take care of that. I usually arrange two lines or group people in a certain way for maximum effect depending on the venue. You could also ask your registrar or celebrant to make an announcement at the end of the ceremony to give guests a heads-up regarding the timing of the confetti throw.

An example of confetti tunel. All of your guests make up this slim, long line and everyone has a chance to toss. Lots of photo opportunities!

And toss!

Some final tips

Walk slowly and enjoy the moment! Don't rush in excitement, take it slow in order to get the best photos. You can even share a kiss midway.

Ideally, guests should throw confetti up rather than at you! Although you might be in for a surprise, some guest really like to take this opportunity to express their excitement (revenge) and shower your face with a handful of flowers! 🌸

Relaxed & Romantic French Weadding by Dordogne River, Aquintante, France

I am so pleased to be able to share with you this fabulous, super romantic and laid back French wedding of Aneta & Hugh. A true midsummers night dream of a wedding, romantic, elegant and a joy to witness. The couple got married at their private property by the river Dordogne, near Bergerac. It's an area full of dazzling French castles and stunning natural landscape. Dordogne Wedding Venues are ever so popular, but my couple opted for a pre-wedding wine and cheese event at a nearby Chateau and the wedding itself at their home. This was the first wedding I photographed at someone's home and I must admit the organisation skills of the bride and groom had to be top-notch. It is much more stressful to tie everything together and juggle the vendors when you're down to the basics, even with the help of a planner. The result is however fabulously laid back, fuss-free, family and friends affair where the champagne is opened early, guests can jump into the pool at night and the band gets replaced with a brilliant piano man, who proceeds to start an Abba karaoke at 1 am. Now which venue would allow all that?

Apart from all the flexibility and freedom, a backyard wedding in France is a challenge, especially if you live in another country and your guests will fly from every part of the world. Nonetheless, it's all worth it - the decor, the endless calls with French vendors, the flights back and forth, the DIY and so on. All to have your favourite people with you and celebrate love, family and togetherness. You can't put a price tag on that and it’s a memory you’ll treasure forever.

If you’re planning a romantic wedding in France please message me here.

I'll let you scroll down and appreciate the fabulous photos now.