Joanne and François - Part 1: the Engagement session

I invite you to go to the French Riviera and more particularly Antibes to assist to an engagement session like no other! Indeed, this session was longer than usual since the bride and groom proposed me to spend the day with them on their sailboat. So, let's go, sailor!

The boat

Joanne and François

So, this is Joanne and François. Joanne is from the Var region of France and a psychologist. She is dynamic and was a volunteer firefighter until recently. François is of Normandy origin, an engineer in aeronautics/aerospace, he is passionate about the field. Moreover, I think that during our first contact by phone, we talked more about the Red Bull air race than about his upcoming wedding. He was also designing drones until recently.

But why did they stop their extracurricular activities? Well, for one thing, they had little Andrea, who has just turned 1 year old, but also... Because they have the magnificent project of sailing around the world for 2 years... What a honeymoon!

They already live on their sailboat with the little one... and their cat!

 Francois and Joanne on the city walls of Antibes

The engagement session - Antibes

So, when I contacted them to plan the engagement session for the end of June, they directly offered me, "Would you like to go for a sailboat ride? "... Well, I wasn't going to say no!

We set a meeting at the port of Antibes at 10am. First surprise, François shaved his beard very recently, so of course I didn't see him right away on the port! Once the search is over, we leave on the sailboat to have a coffee with the breakfast I brought while... Joanne is getting ready!

The opportunity for us to get to know each other better and of course... to talk about airplanes! Then Joanne joins us (the smell of pain au chocolat surely) and we talk a little bit with three of us... Afterwards, we take off for the first part of the photo session in the alleys of Antibes.

So, we walk along the ramparts at first. Then we enter the old city. We thus wander while discussing in the pretty narrow lanes, very flowered in some places, a little less elsewhere. Not Knowing much about Antibes, I discover a small town full of charm and I strongly advise you to get lost in these alleys if you come by!

Joanne et François on some stairs in Antibes
Joanne and François in the streets of Antibes
Future bride and groom walking

During our tour, we talk a little bit about their wedding and especially about the first dance they didn't have time to work on. So, we take the opportunity of a great place for them to show me their dancing skills in action!

First dance rehearsal in Antibes

Then it's time to leave. We have about 2 hours of sailing to sail to the island of Sainte-Marguerite off the Cap d'Antibes. It's the perfect time to discuss of the wedding and its planning progress.

Their wedding

So, we are talking about the preparations for the wedding that will take place on August 8. First of all, you should now that they are part of the postponed weddings due to the covid-19 pandemic lockdown. The wedding was supposed to take place on June 6, 2020 followed by the baptism of Andrea on June 7 and their departure by sailboat for their great adventure on June 8, 2020. Unfortunately, with the current sanitary situation, the Wedding has been postponed for two months and the departure postponed to April 2021, with the situation remaining very uncertain for 2020.

If you have already organised your wedding or you are in the middle of it, you can imagine their distress: two months before the wedding, they had to call back all the providers, town hall, church and guests and find a new optimal date for all this people... And this year! Because yes, the sea is desperately calling them!

Fortunately, everything is going well and the wedding will take place on August 08th, 2020 at the Domaine du Planet, with a wedding in a small chapel lighted by candlelight and a civil wedding on the domain, followed by the vin d’honneur, the meal and finally the dancing evening!s

The next day we will have a small brunch, followed by Andrea's baptism and a buffet in front of the same chapel as the day before... But for the moment, we arrive close to Sainte-Marguerite Island.

Joanne in front of the Sainte-Marguerite Island

The engagement session - The Island

Once the anchor is dropped, it's time for us to eat on the boat. After the meal is eaten and the dinghy is in the water, we row to the island, and then it's off to the photo shoot.

Here again it's a walk, discussion, poses and attempts at a session in the water, a first for me! But unfortunately, there were too many particles in suspension underwater, and it did not give much ... Too bad, it will be for the next adventurous couple!

Joanne and François on Sainte-Marguerite Island
Joanne and François on Sainte-Marguerite Island
The future bride and groom in the water

The hours going on, it's time to get back on the boat and return to Antibes. We profit of the return trip to discuss the first dance and I offer them a music they immediately like, so I can't wait to see if it's going to be this one or not! I also take the opportunity to give them some advice on the position, the setting, the steps and how to progress for the wedding.

We finally arrive at the port around 9:30 pm, it's time for me to go home and take care of all these pictures. So, it was a very full and nice day and I'm now looking forward to their wedding!

If you liked this session and want to discover a little more about my approach of wedding photography, I invite you to go to to the dedicated page and to discover a little more about me on my page.

Sunset on Antibes