Three Days at Manoir des Prevanches - Paris to Normandy Part Two
A Boston Wedding Photographer's Guide to Multi-Day French Celebrations
After documenting this couple's intimate civil ceremony in Le Perreux-sur-Marne, we had the incredible honor of continuing their story at the magnificent Manoir des Prevanches in Normandy. What unfolded over three days was nothing short of magical – a perfect example of how comprehensive wedding photography and videography can capture not just a wedding day, but an entire celebration that brings families together across cultures and creates memories that last a lifetime.
As a Boston wedding photography and videography team who specializes in luxury destination weddings, we’ve learned that the most beautiful celebrations can't be rushed. This Normandy manor provided the perfect backdrop for a couple who wanted to truly celebrate with their loved ones, creating multiple opportunities for connection, joy, and the kind of authentic moments that make wedding photography so rewarding.
Friday Evening: Welcome to the Manor
The celebration began on Friday evening with a rehearsal and welcome dinner that perfectly set the tone for the weekend. Manoir des Prevanches, with its historic charm and sprawling farm property, provided an incredibly romantic setting for this first gathering of the couple's international guest list.
There's something magical about that first moment when wedding guests arrive at a destination venue – the excitement, the reunion of families and friends, and the anticipation of the celebration ahead. As their photographer, I was able to capture these genuine moments of connection as American and French families came together on this beautiful property.
Saturday: The Main Event with French Flair
Saturday brought the formal wedding celebration, and despite weather predictions that had us moving the ceremony indoors to the manor's beautiful barn, the day turned out to be absolutely perfect. This last-minute venue change actually created one of my favorite aspects of the day – the intimate, rustic elegance of exchanging vows surrounded by the barn's weathered wood and natural light.
Working as the photography and videography team for this celebration meant we could capture both the sweeping cinematic moments and the intimate details that make each wedding unique. The barn ceremony provided incredible acoustics for recording their vows and an unexpectedly romantic atmosphere that felt both grand and intimate.
Getting Ready: A Tale of Two Wedding Parties
One of the most beautiful aspects of comprehensive wedding day coverage is being able to document the parallel stories happening as both partners prepare for their big moment. At Manoir des Prevanches, the getting ready process was particularly special, with the bride and groom each surrounded by their closest friends and family in different areas of the historic manor’s grounds and many cottages.
There's something incredibly intimate about these morning moments – the quiet conversations, the helping hands with buttons and zippers, and those final touches that transform a bride into the vision she's dreamed of. As their photographer, I love capturing these behind-the-scenes moments because they showcase the relationships and support systems that have brought the couple to this day.
The contrast between the two preparation spaces – both in mood and cultural style – created incredible opportunities for storytelling through both still photography and film. Capturing both getting ready experiences simultaneously requires careful planning and often multiple photographers or a photographer-videographer team that can move efficiently between locations. This comprehensive approach ensures that both partners' preparation stories are documented with equal attention and artistry, creating a complete picture of how the day began for everyone involved.
Their First Look: A Private Moment Before the Celebration
After both getting ready processes were complete, this couple chose to share a first look before their ceremony. The decision to see each other privately before walking down the aisle is deeply personal, and for this couple, it felt perfect for their celebration style.
The groom's reaction when he first saw his bride was pure magic – the kind of genuine emotion that makes both photography and videography so powerful. These private moments allow couples to share their initial reactions without the pressure of having all their guests watching, creating space for authentic emotions to unfold naturally.
From a photography perspective, first looks provide incredible opportunities for both candid emotional shots and beautiful couple portraits in perfect lighting conditions. The soft morning light filtering through the garden's canopy created ideal conditions for capturing both the tender moment of their first meeting and romantic portraits that showcased the manor's natural beauty.
The Ceremony: A Bilingual Celebration of Love
The ceremony at Manoir des Prevanches was truly extraordinary – a perfect reflection of this couple's international love story and the thoughtful way they honored both their families and cultures. What made this ceremony particularly special was the deeply personal approach they took to every element, creating an experience that felt both intimate and inclusive for their French and American guests.
A Family Affair: Brothers as Officiants
In a beautiful departure from traditional wedding ceremonies, the couple chose to have their brothers serve as co-officiants – a decision that immediately set the tone for how personal and meaningful this celebration would be. The bride's brother handled the English portions of the ceremony, ensuring their American family and friends could fully participate in every moment, while the groom's brother conducted the French elements, welcoming their French guests into the celebration in their native language.
This bilingual approach required careful coordination from both a logistical and artistic perspective. The joy and understanding that crossed language barriers was evident in every face – love truly is a universal language, and this ceremony proved it beautifully.
The brothers' comfort with their roles and their obvious love for the couple created some of the most authentic ceremonial moments I've ever had the privilege to document. There's something incredibly moving about watching family members guide their loved ones through such an important life milestone, and both photography and videography captured the special dynamic this created.
Musical Moments That Touched Every Heart
Midway through the ceremony, a couple of close friends performed a song that the bride and groom had specially selected for their celebration. These musical interludes during wedding ceremonies create some of the most emotionally rich photographic opportunities, as the couple and their guests experience the music together in real-time.
The acoustics of the manor's ceremony space were perfect for this intimate performance, and the natural reverb created by the historic architecture added depth to both the audio recording for videography and the atmospheric quality of the moment for still photography. Capturing the performers required balancing respect for their artistry with documentation of how their music affected the couple and their guests.
The couple's faces during this musical performance told a complete story – from anticipation as their friends began, to emotional connection as the lyrics resonated, to gratitude for this gift from people they loved. These micro-expressions and genuine reactions are what make ceremony photography so meaningful, as they capture the real emotional journey of the wedding day.
Heartfelt Vows: Promises Made in Two Languages
When it came time for vows, both the bride and groom had chosen to write their own words – a decision that created some of the most powerful and intimate moments of the entire celebration. Personal vows always create incredible opportunities for emotional photography, as the authentic reactions from both the couple and their guests provide genuine moments that can't be staged or recreated.
The bride, though fluent in French, chose to deliver her vows in English – her native language allowing her to express the deepest emotions of her heart with complete authenticity. Her words shared stories of their journey together and promises for their future that brought tears to eyes throughout the audience. Speaking in her mother tongue enabled her to convey the full depth of her feelings with the nuance and poetry that only comes from expressing oneself in their first language. The groom's reaction as she spoke – the way he looked at her, the emotions playing across his face – created some of the most treasured images from their entire wedding day.
The groom followed with vows delivered in French, and despite his fluency in English, his choice to speak in his native language created an incredibly moving moment. His French words carried an elegance and emotional weight that demonstrated how deeply he wanted to express his love in the language of his heart. The way he looked directly into her eyes while speaking his native tongue, knowing she would understand every word, created an intimacy that transcended the language barrier for their guests and provided some of the most romantic imagery of the entire celebration.
This beautiful exchange – each speaking in their mother tongue while fully understanding their partner's words – perfectly symbolized their international love story and mutual respect for each other's cultures. The fact that both could comprehend and respond to each other's deepest promises, regardless of the language spoken, showed the depth of their connection and their journey together as a couple.
Photographically, vow exchanges require a delicate balance between capturing the couple's intimate moment and documenting the reactions of their loved ones. The tears, smiles, and knowing looks exchanged between family members as they heard these promises – some understanding every word, others following the emotion even without translation – created a rich tapestry of images that tell the complete story of this moment.
A Father's Blessing: The Perfect Conclusion
The ceremony reached its emotional peak when the bride's father, an Episcopal priest, stepped forward to give the couple a non denomenational blessing and pronounce them married. This moment was particularly powerful because it combined his role as father of the bride with his calling as a man of faith, creating a ceremony conclusion that was both deeply personal and spiritually meaningful.
His blessing incorporated elements that honored both the French venue and the American traditions, acknowledging the journey that had brought this couple together and the path they were beginning as husband and wife. The weight of this moment – a father blessing his daughter's marriage while drawing on his spiritual authority – created some of the most emotionally charged photography of the entire day.
The couple's reaction to receiving this blessing from such an important figure in their lives was pure joy mixed with reverence. The way they looked at each other, then at her father, and finally out at their gathered loved ones showed the significance of this moment in their personal story.
Capturing the Universal Language of Love
From a photography and videography perspective, this bilingual ceremony presented unique opportunities and challenges. The need to capture reactions from guests who were experiencing the ceremony in their native language, while also documenting those who were following along in their second language, required strategic positioning and awareness of the emotional beats throughout the service.
Video documentation of this ceremony was particularly important because of the musical elements and the bilingual nature of the service. Being able to preserve not just the words spoken but the tone, emotion, and musical performances ensures that this couple can relive not just what happened, but how it felt to experience this celebration. It also allowed us the opportunity to to create subtitles to translate the vows into the alternate languages.
The ceremony concluded with the couple's first kiss as husband and wife, followed by a recessional that included both French and American guests celebrating together. The joy that erupted from both sides of the audience – transcending language barriers and cultural differences – created the perfect transition from the intimate ceremony to the celebratory reception that would follow.
This ceremony perfectly exemplified what makes destination weddings so special: the opportunity to create something entirely unique that honors multiple traditions while staying true to the couple's personal story. The combination of family officiants, bilingual elements, personal vows, musical performances, and spiritual blessing created a ceremony that was both deeply meaningful and beautifully inclusive.
The emotional richness of this ceremony – from the brothers' loving guidance through the service to the father's final blessing – provided countless opportunities for the kind of authentic, heartfelt photography that couples treasure for decades. These weren't posed moments or manufactured emotions; they were genuine expressions of love, joy, and commitment that happened organically throughout this beautifully crafted celebration.
Extended Cocktail Hour: French Tradition at Its Finest
Following the ceremony, guests enjoyed an extended cocktail hour that perfectly embodied French celebration style. This wasn't just a quick drink before dinner – it was a leisurely, elegant affair that allowed everyone to truly savor the moment and connect with one another.
The passed hors d'oeuvres were absolutely extraordinary – some of the most beautiful and creative appetizers I've ever had the pleasure of photographing. Each plate was a work of art, showcasing local Normandy ingredients and French culinary artistry. Having a live charcuterie butcher on hand added an element of theater and authenticity that guests absolutely loved.
The jazz band created the perfect soundtrack for this portion of the celebration, providing elegant background music that enhanced conversation without overwhelming it. As a wedding photographer, I love these extended cocktail hours because they create natural opportunities for candid photography – guests are relaxed, the lighting is often beautiful, and genuine emotions shine through.
Editorial Portraits: Capturing Romance on the Manor Grounds
Between the ceremony and reception, we carved out time for an editorial portrait session that took full advantage of the manor's stunning grounds. Manoir des Prevanches offers incredible variety for wedding photography – from the elegant main house with its classic French architecture to the overgrown barns that provide rustic, romantic backdrops.
This portrait session was crucial for both photography and videography, allowing us to create cinematic sequences that showcased not just the couple's love, but the incredible beauty of their chosen venue. We wandered through the property, discovering hidden corners and beautiful light that told the story of their French celebration.
The overgrown barns were particularly magical for portraits – the way natural light filtered through weathered wood created an almost fairy tale quality that translated beautifully to both still images and film. These are the moments that require a photographer who understands both technical excellence and artistic vision, creating images that feel both documentary and editorial.
French Dinner Traditions: The Napkin Ceremony
One of the most memorable moments of the entire celebration was the couple's entrance to their dinner reception. Following French tradition, all guests stood and twirled their napkins in the air as the newlyweds entered the dining space. This moment perfectly exemplified why comprehensive videography is so valuable for destination weddings – cultural traditions like this deserve to be preserved in motion, capturing not just the action but the joy and energy of everyone participating.
As their photography and videography team, we made sure to capture this moment from multiple angles – the couple's surprised delight, the guests' enthusiastic participation, and the overall energy of this beautiful tradition. These are the kinds of moments that become treasured family memories, and having both photo and video documentation ensures the complete story is preserved.
Wedding Details: French Elegance Meets Personal Style
Every wedding tells a story through its details, and this celebration at Manoir des Prevanches was no exception. The couple's attention to detail created a perfect blend of French elegance and personal touches that reflected their journey and honored both their American roots and their love for French culture.
The bride's dress was a masterpiece of classic elegance – flowing silk that moved beautifully in both still photography and video sequences. The way the fabric moved during the ceremony created cinematic moments that were perfect for film. Detail photography of the dress, shoes, and accessories against the manor's antique furnishings and exteriors created images that felt both timeless and distinctly French.
The floral design throughout the celebration showcased local Normandy blooms arranged with French country elegance. The bridal bouquet featured garden roses and baby’s breath that were gathered from the manor's own grounds. Photographing these florals required attention to both their individual beauty and how they complemented the historic venue's natural charm. The way morning light played through the bouquet during getting ready coverage, and how the flowers looked against the bride's dress during portraits, created multiple opportunities for artistic detail work.
One of the most meaningful details was the couple's wedding rings – simple, elegant bands that photographed beautifully against the manor's exterior surfaces. Ring shots require both technical skill and artistic vision, and the historic venue provided incredible backdrops that enhanced rather than competed with these important pieces.
Personal touches throughout the venue told the couple's unique story. Family photos displayed on antique tables, a cards box, and their parents wedding photos. These details required documentary-style photography that captured not just their appearance but their significance to the overall story.
The integration of both photography and videography in capturing these details creates a richer documentation experience. While still images showcase the beauty and craftsmanship of individual elements, video can capture how details moved and interacted throughout the day – the way fabric flowed, how flowers swayed in the breeze, and how candlelight danced across table settings during the reception dinner.
This attention to comprehensive detail coverage – from the smallest personal touches to the grandest design elements – ensures that every aspect of the celebration that the couple invested time and thought into is preserved with the same level of artistic care. These detail images often become some of the most treasured photographs from the wedding day, as they capture the intentionality and love that went into creating such a special celebration.
The Choreographed First Dance: A Stunning Surprise
This couple loved to go dancing, and they absolutely stunned their guests with a beautifully choreographed ballroom dance that showcased their personality and brought an element of performance art to their celebration. This wasn't just a first dance – it was a moment of pure artistry that left everyone in attendance completely captivated.
Filming and photographing choreographed dances requires specific technical skills and artistic understanding. The movement, timing, and emotional crescendo of their performance needed to be captured in a way that preserved both the technical excellence of their dancing and the emotional impact on their guests. This is exactly the kind of moment that benefits from having both photography and videography – still images capture the grace and beauty of individual moments, while video preserves the complete performance and the crowd's amazed reactions.
After their choreographed performance, the couple opened the dance floor and invited everyone to join them, creating a beautiful transition from performance to celebration that brought the entire party together.
Sunday Brunch: The Perfect Farewell
The celebration concluded on Sunday with a crepe truck brunch and leisurely picnic atmosphere in the manor's courtyard. This relaxed farewell gathering provided the perfect ending to three days of celebration, allowing guests to enjoy one final meal together before departing.
These Sunday morning moments often provide some of the most authentic and emotional photography opportunities. Families are relaxed, the formal events are complete, and there's often a bittersweet quality to these final gatherings that creates incredibly meaningful images. Children play in the courtyard, couples steal quiet moments together, and families create those final group photos that become treasured keepsakes.
The Highlight Wedding Film: A Cinematic Love Story
Throughout these three days at Manoir des Prevanches, we were simultaneously creating a comprehensive wedding film that would tell the complete story of this French celebration. The result is a cinematic piece that begins with their intimate civil ceremony and builds through each day of their Normandy celebration, creating a narrative arc that captures both the intimate moments and the grand gestures that made their wedding so special.
The highlight film we created showcases the best moments from all three days – the emotional ceremony in the barn, the elegance of their extended cocktail hour, their stunning choreographed dance, and the joy of their Sunday farewell. This comprehensive approach to wedding videography ensures that every significant moment is preserved and woven into a cohesive story that the couple and their families will treasure forever.
Working as a team allowed us to create connections between the different media that enhance the overall storytelling. Moments captured in still photography are echoed and expanded in the film, while cinematic sequences provide context for the individual images. This integrated approach creates a richer, more complete documentation of the celebration.
The Value of Multi-Day Comprehensive Coverage
This three-day celebration at Manoir des Prevanches perfectly demonstrates why comprehensive wedding photography and videography coverage is so valuable for destination weddings. Each day served a different purpose and created different types of memories, but together they tell the complete story of how this couple chose to celebrate their love with their closest family and friends.
Friday's welcome dinner established the tone and brought families together. Saturday's formal celebration provided the traditional wedding moments and cultural exchanges. Sunday's brunch offered intimate farewell moments and final family connections. Having professional documentation for all three days means every aspect of this international gathering was preserved with the same level of artistry and attention to detail.
Creating Bespoke Collections for Unique Celebrations
Every couple's story is different, and this French celebration required a completely customized approach that honored both the venue's historic character and the couple's personal style. From understanding French wedding traditions to capturing the manor's architectural beauty, comprehensive coverage means adapting to each unique situation while maintaining consistent artistic vision.
The collection we created for this couple includes formal portraits that showcase the manor's elegance, candid moments that capture family connections, cultural traditions that honor their international celebration, and cinematic sequences that tell their complete love story. This bespoke approach ensures that their wedding documentation is as unique and special as their celebration itself.
Destination Wedding Photography That Tells Your Story
As a Boston wedding photographer who specializes in luxury destination celebrations, I understand that couples who choose venues like Manoir des Prevanches are looking for more than just beautiful backdrops – they're creating experiences that bring their loved ones together in meaningful ways. This requires a photographer and videographer who can capture not just the events, but the emotions, connections, and cultural exchanges that make destination weddings so special.
Working internationally requires cultural sensitivity, technical adaptability, and the ability to tell stories that transcend location. This Normandy celebration showcased French hospitality, American enthusiasm, and universal love in ways that required both documentary precision and artistic vision.
The Art of Wedding Film Production
Creating a comprehensive wedding film for a multi-day destination celebration requires careful planning and artistic vision. Throughout the three days at Manoir des Prevanches, we were capturing not just individual moments, but building a narrative that would tell their complete story.
The film production process began with understanding the couple's vision and the significance of their chosen venue. Manoir des Prevanches provided incredible cinematic opportunities – from sweeping drone shots of the property to intimate handheld sequences in the historic barns. Each day's events were filmed with the complete story in mind, ensuring that the final product would flow seamlessly from their civil ceremony through their Normandy celebration.
Why Multi-Day Coverage Creates Better Stories
When families travel internationally for a wedding celebration, every moment becomes more precious and meaningful. This couple understood that their French celebration was more than just a wedding – it was a once-in-a-lifetime gathering that deserved comprehensive documentation.
Having photography and videography coverage for all three days allowed us to capture the complete emotional journey of their celebration. The anticipation and excitement of Friday's welcome dinner, the joy and tradition of Saturday's formal events, and the bittersweet farewell moments of Sunday's brunch all contribute to a richer, more complete story than any single day could provide.
This comprehensive approach also allows for better relationship building between the photographer, couple, and their families. By the end of three days, everyone is comfortable and relaxed, leading to more authentic and emotional documentation. The trust and connection built over multiple days translates directly into better imagery and more meaningful films.
Planning Your Own Multi-Day Destination Celebration
For couples considering similar international celebrations, the key is finding a photographer and videographer who understands that your wedding is more than just a single event – it's a story that unfolds over time and across multiple experiences. Comprehensive coverage ensures that every chapter of your celebration receives the attention and artistry it deserves.
This approach to destination wedding photography and videography – treating each day as part of a larger narrative while ensuring each event is beautifully documented on its own – creates collections that truly capture the essence of your celebration. Whether you're planning a multi-day wedding in France, Italy, or anywhere else in the world, your complete story deserves to be told with creativity, sensitivity, and artistic excellence.
Your Celebration Deserves Comprehensive Documentation
The three days at Manoir des Prevanches proved that the most meaningful celebrations can't be contained in a single day or captured with a limited approach. From the intimate welcome dinner to the grand wedding celebration to the relaxed farewell brunch, every moment contributed to the complete story of this couple's French wedding.
When you choose comprehensive photography and videography coverage for your destination wedding, you're investing in documentation that honors every aspect of your celebration. From cultural traditions to family connections, from architectural beauty to intimate emotions, every element of your story deserves to be preserved with the same level of artistry and care.
This Franco-American celebration at Manoir des Prevanches showcased the beauty of bringing families together across cultures and continents. With comprehensive documentation, every laugh, every tear, every tradition, and every spontaneous moment of joy was preserved, creating a wedding collection that this couple and their families will treasure for generations to come.
Ready to Document Your Story?
If you're planning a destination wedding that spans multiple days – whether in France, across Europe, or anywhere your love story takes you – I'd love to discuss how comprehensive photography and videography can capture every meaningful moment of your celebration. From intimate ceremonies to grand receptions, cultural traditions to family connections, your complete story deserves bespoke documentation that's as unique as your love.
Let's start a conversation about your vision and explore how we can create a collection of images and films that tell your story with the artistry, sensitivity, and technical excellence that destination celebrations deserve. Every love story is different, and your wedding documentation should reflect that individuality while preserving every precious moment of your once-in-a-lifetime gathering.
Ready to begin planning comprehensive coverage for your destination celebration? Reach out today to discuss your multi-day wedding and learn how we can document every chapter of your love story with the creativity and care it deserves.
