The gardens of Diane de Poitiers and Catherine de Medici

Two gardens flank the approach to the château and they are laid out very differently: Diane de Poitiers's to the east, larger, with a raised terrace walk and a fountain in the centre, and Catherine de Medici's to the west, smaller and more intimate, with the château framed across it. Both are replanted twice a year, so from late spring to autumn there is real colour rather than green geometry, and the raised terrace on the eastern garden gives you height, which is rare here.

The western garden is the classic couple frame: subjects on the gravel path, flowerbeds in the foreground, the gallery over the river behind. The eastern garden is better for wide, formal compositions and for a shot with the fountain. Both are at their best early, with dew still on the box hedging and the beds side-lit.

Remember what is not available: as at Versailles, professional photography inside the château is not something to promise without written permission from the estate, and the interior is busy from opening. Build the session on the gardens, the plane-tree avenue up from the car park, the farm buildings and the maze — that is a comfortable ninety minutes without ever going indoors.