Jacqueline & Fred
The extremely beautiful region of Aveyron in the Midi Pyrenees is dotted with medieval villages, valleys and craggy peaks. This is the setting that creative couple Jacqueline and Fred chose for their highly unique DIY wedding, which was captured by Natacha Elmir, who travelled from Barcelona to be their wedding photographer in France.
When it came to choosing their wedding photographer, Jacqueline and Fred wanted someone that they connected with but also who could document the story of their day with a mix of reportage and artistic shots. Destination Wedding Photographer Natacha Elmir, who Jacqueline found through our Facebook Community, was the perfect match. Based in Barcelona, Natacha is passionate about capturing those fleeting points in time, big or small!
We absolutely love the way that Natacha captured our day, the special moments she revealed without us even noticing are magical. We will treasure them forever. I am sharing a few wonderful shots here that I feel really showcase Natacha’s style.
The Venue…
I always dreamt of having a small intimate wedding in a remote, beautiful place in the sunshine, and as I emigrated from England to the South of France to be with my French fiance, Fred, this dream became true.
Ours was a completely DIY wedding, we kept our numbers small just so that we could create a wonderful weekend event for those we cherish the most.
Everyone helped out with the preparations for our wedding, the decor, the cuisine, everybody shared the accommodation we rented for them in the tiny village situated on top of a remote mountain rock that was our “venue”. It was just how I hoped it would be, a sense of closeness, a community, a team effort where everyone felt included and so happy to share the experience, and of course a fantastic 3 day party!
The Details…
Fred is a chef and organised all the food, wine and bar, I am an artist and made a lot of the decorations, I designed Fred’s suit and all the mens accessories as well as gathering vintage finds for the table etc.
We literally prepared and organised everything ourselves, I even made my own photo booth and created playlists based on guests favourite songs for the whole weekend so that we did not need to hire a DJ.
Organising a DIY wedding was a lot of work, but we would not have had it any other way, our guests are still telling us how much they loved it almost 6 months later!
We did book a florist, and a Saxophone player, and of course, we knew how important it would be to hire a professional wedding photographer in France.
Finding a Wedding Photographer in France…
It was so important to me that the photographer we chose would be creative, with a free-flowing style and not stick rigidly to the formal, conventional wedding format…we both knew the latter would not be our style…but I wondered how on earth I was going to find this!
So, I wrote a post on the Weddings Abroad Guide Facebook Page, asking for recommendations, and thank goodness I did this, as this is how we were introduced to our fabulous photographer, Natacha Elmir.
The Perfect Match…
What I loved about Natacha’s portfolio is that you can see she has a strong fine art, fashion and documentary photography background and when she brings all of these elements into her Wedding photography, the results are stunning and so unique.
Natacha creates beautiful, emotional, breathtaking images. Her creativity and her passion are abundant, her emotional connection with people takes her wedding photography above and beyond the expected. We could not have asked for more, Natacha fitted in perfectly with our laid back wedding atmosphere, she is a truly inspiring, lovely person to have mixing with your guests. I really felt she was a part of the family! We will treasure our magical wedding photos forever.
At Weddings Abroad Guide our philosophy has always been to provide real advice from real people. We were delighted when Jacqueline contacted us wishing to share her experience and wish Jacqueline and Fred all the best for the future.
Jacqueline is a mixed media artist based in France. To see her work and find out more follow her on Instagram @jacquelinebonay.artist
Top Tip: Like Jacqueline and Fred, my husband and I also planned our own wedding abroad – it certainly is possible! If you’re thinking of doing the same…I know our “90 Minute Personalised Destination Wedding Consultation” will help you get started on your journey.
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Further Reading
Learn more about having a Destination Wedding in France
Tips & Advice for planning a Wedding in France
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