This day was such a dream…with my international driver’s license booklet (procured back home in Canada) in hand, I had just driven across France for the first time on my own in a little black Peugeot, having finished a few sunny and lavender filled family portrait sessions in Provence. I arrived at the sweetest little gîte I’d reserved in the small town of Celles-sur-Belles: complete with a pale blue door, a bedroom literally made for une princesse—to quote the owner—and a lovely pool! Just what was needed after my long drive.
The reason for the lengthy commute was a portrait commission I simply couldn’t turn down, even though it was slightly out of the way of my usual destinations in France: an American family had asked me to photograph them at their very own château in Nouvelle-Acquitane (the west of France); a property so special to them. I won’t disclose the name of the château for privacy reasons, but it was simply out of a fairytale! How lucky are these children, to be spending their summers this way in beautiful France.
about the session
The weather was slightly cloudy/overcast, timed near sunset, mid-July on location in France.
Photographed with both film and digital, with the digital frames colour-matched to the film scans in post production. Film processing by Canadian Film Lab.
Gear: Canon 5D Mark IV + 50mm 1.2, Canon EOS 35mm + Portra 400
