Joseph Bail was born in Limonest in the Rhone region of France. His father, Jean-Antoine Bail, was a genre painter influenced by the Dutch masters, and he focused his attention on depicting scenes from domestic life.
Bail received his early training from his father and later studied in the studios of Jean Léon Gêrome and Carolus-Durand, two of the leading figures of the Parisian Academy of Fine Arts.