Some places offer a backdrop. Here, the backdrop is the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel — and Charlotte and Laurent had it on their horizon, sitting at the end of the path.
The wedding of Charlotte and Laurent at the Châteaux de La Lucerne d'Outremer was a bright, joyful summer's day: quick laughter, a couple who never let go of each other's hand, and the silhouette of Mont-Saint-Michel appearing between two hedges when you least expect it.
I followed the day as a documentary photographer, staging nothing: getting ready, the ceremony in the grounds, the cocktail hour under the trees and an evening that ended on a high. Here is what it left in pictures.
The venue lives up to its plural: a 19th-century château with a pointed tower, a long stone building for the reception, and large grounds where guests settle in as if they were at home. A quarter of an hour from Granville, with the bay of Mont-Saint-Michel as a backdrop — for a photographer, it is a rare playground.
And when the couple arrive in a red convertible along the gravel drive, between the hydrangeas, you know the day is not going to be shy.
The humanist ceremony, led by the celebrant from Une page avec vous, struck just the right note: simple words, guests laughing and wiping their eyes, sometimes in the same minute. Charlotte's bouquet — bright, colourful, by Anne Freret — never left the frame, and all the better for it.
As for the food, the caterer O Loup Saint Michel delighted everyone, from the fresh verrines of the cocktail hour to the tiered centrepiece of macarons and choux. These are images I love to make: the precision of a team in the kitchen, and the guests' appetite just afterwards.
Then the stone hall took over, and the dance floor never emptied — Baie Events on the decks, the couple in the middle, and me right in the thick of it. This is where documentary coverage comes into its own: nobody poses, everybody lives.
Thank you to Charlotte and Laurent for their trust, their energy and a day without a single false note.
Venue: Les Châteaux de La Lucerne d'Outremer (Manche) — my page about the venue · all wedding venues and estates in Normandy
Ceremony celebrant: Une page avec vous
Flowers: Anne Freret Fleuriste
Caterer: O Loup Saint Michel
DJ: Baie Events
This wedding is also available in French: Mariage aux Châteaux de La Lucerne d'Outremer — Charlotte & Laurent.
