In case you're interested, the two winning images can be seen here.
If you were considering having your wedding here, don't hold back from booking. It's in such a great location and it's so convenient because there is often no driving from Bridal prep-house to church to reception venue. Everything under one roof!
Just make sure they light the fire for you. The smell is so relaxing!

Unfortunately, the first time I met up with Samuel & Kayleigh was on their wedding day. Due to some worrying family health, the date had been pushed forward and it seemed like everybody helped out to make everything run smooth. And it did!

I wish I had time to of met up with them before their bit day as they're a cracking couple.
Still, never mind. I always try my hardest to really get to know my couples before their wedding day so that they can feel comfortable around me.
It is always beneficial.

Kayleigh got her hair and make up ready in the keepers cottage before escaping to the Bridal suite to get into her dress without anyone spotting her. All good fun I thought!
Whilst everybody was in the cottage getting ready, I went out the backdoor to have a little explore.
Long story short: door closed behind me, locked shut, spent 10 minutes shouting for help. Of course, everybody found it hilarious! Good times.

On with the pictures then.
Just a little note about these fabric bouquets; Kayleigh made them herself and was very modest about them. Well done Kayleigh, we all think they're amazing!

I could say this about every Bride that I shoot, but Jane made a fantastic Bride. She really enjoyed it!
I hope that you'll be able to see that from the images. Owen was very laid back and was also a pleasure to shoot.

A super-cool couple indeed!
How cool?

Well Owen is a concept artist who has worked on projects for some small companies like Disney and Atari.... No, I've never heard of them either.
Jane designs websites for CBBC and CBeebies.
I think that classifies them as cool, and those are just their jobs!

Thank you Owen and Jane for letting me be with you (literally) all day. You and your guests made me feel so welcome.
Enjoy these pictures.

Owen created these designs. Very impressive!

A sneak peek at Jane's dress

Hair and make up by the amazing Julie Dunkley

This is the cottage where Jane got ready, And yes, I was very nervous bringing the dress outside!

Jane's mum helps to take the dress to the Bridal suite

Nice to see a keen groom like Owen and suited up already!

Jane's twin sister Sam and friend Nerys made brilliant bridesmaids and multitaskers.

A new favorite.

I loved how Jane and Sam shared their mannerisms!

Jane's Mum loved seeing Jane get ready, and she was a great help too...in-fact she was a pro!

Owen's parents looking excited!

Molly just getting in some practise for her big job!

Jane's Dad was thrilled to see Jane looking so stunning!

Owen looks more relaxed than his best men! That's a first for sure!

The amazing wedding cake by Justine from Just Cakes

Wearing a hat as smart as this one, you can't help but smile, I think.

This amazing string quartet really set the mood!

Nobody knows how to play, but everybody likes a shot at it!

Good friends of the family and real gentlemen; Roy and Steve were very pleased to be at the wedding.

Rhydian looking a little nervous before his speech! I hate that feeling. Alcohol usually does the trick.

The soup really was that good!

I've not included the images here, but there was a pretty ugly riot at the wedding a little later on when the guests realised they weren't give fish and chips like Molly!

This here was the leader of the riot.

How good does this look though?!

In the same room was the secret meeting of hat wearing ladies. SShhhh!

A quick costume change! Very pretty!

Jane's fathers speech was brilliant and is physically congratulated by pretty much everybody!

"You ready?"
"Yep...let's rip Owen to pieces"

...and rip they did!

7:43 to be exact! I'm not too sure who won the sweepstake, but I did hear some heavy bribery going on!

We popped out whilst the light was just fading. All my couples, Owen and Jane included love this time when they can just relax and get some fresh air!

...and have a lie down!

I love a well beered-up group of stags, this lot though were especially tricky to work with. I loved it!

I challenge anyone to find me a picture of a freshly married groom with a fat cigar in his mouth, rocking a pair of aviators with a castle in the reflection.

Dance time!

Nerys and Nick make a great couple. (tried to think of an Avatar-based quip for their blue faces... I failed)

This lady is either heading for the dance floor, or the bar. Either way, she's going the right direction!

If you're not using your fingers to point in every direction, you're simply not dancing!

I liked watching Jane hold on tight to her husband!

And that's all!

Congratulations Jane and Owen.
You made me feel very relaxed and welcome and I thank you for that.

I hope you've enjoyed your honeymoon in San Francisco and I also hope that you really enjoy the rest of your lives together, you're a wonderful couple!
Take care.

I really enjoyed this wedding, I was there right up to the very end which was great as I really got to know a couple of the guests.
I certainly felt like one of Owen and Jane's friends by the end of the evening as they made me feel so welcome!

So, thank you, you two!
I hope you made your flight to San Francisco for your honeymoon in the end!

This one picture is just a little teaser.
It really caught my eye when I was going through the 1400-ish pictures!

I love that Owen's mum made time to glance at her son at a very important moment.

Keep an eye on the blog as I've got another great teaser to post before I blog the best of Owen and Jane's pictures from their wedding at Clearwell Castle.

Enjoy!

I've loved 2009, I've met some incredible people, learnt some good lessons, ate some wonderful food, attempted to dance with the best dancers to the worst and best music, seen some incredible bands and taken some killer pictures.

I can't wait to get wait to shoot my first wedding of 0'10.
It already promises to be an even more successful year than '09.

Thank you to all my brides and grooms who have chosen me over other photographers, I've really enjoyed meeting you all and getting to know you.
We've had fun.

And finally, thank you to my amazing wife. None of this would of been possible.
You really have no idea how patient she is with me!

Enjoy my look back at 09.

First, I shot our close friends, the Hornby's as an anniversary present for their parents.
Gorgeous weather in Bristol on that day!
Look out for Sabrina, she's just booked me for her wedding this year!


Then came the wedding of Debby and Craig, this was a biggy for me for many reasons.

I can't believe this was in 09! It feels like years ago!
Mark and Laura are a wonderful couple, I loved shooting them.

This is my brother Phil, and his wife, Hannah.
They're allot of fun and awesome family to have.
This shoot was a little embarrassing for me as I had to tell my brother how to kiss photogenically! Mmmm!

Then came a really great wedding!
Ian and Grace
This by far though was one of my favorite ever bride portraits.
(I was also very pleased with the edit!)

Bianca and Jimmy came next, I did an engagement shoot with them in Knighton. For those who don't know where Knighton is, it's no where near anything.
Bianca and Jimmy are great friends of ours, I was really looking forward to shooting their wedding!

I did a few child portraits around Bristol, mostly in the Ashton court grounds.

Then a Bristol photoshoot with this couple, Mark and Laura are allot of fun to be around.

Then their wedding came, I forget now but by the looks of it, the photoshoot was either 1 or 2 days before the wedding!
A great wedding, and a beautiful bride.

Some familiar faces in there? I should think so! And look out for Rowan in the middle here, I'm shooting his wedding this year too!

Paul and Cassie, what a great couple and super good looking too! People like this make my job very easy.
Another engagement shoot where the wedding was just a couple of days later...



By Far, my favorite groomsmen portrait of '09.
I would never usually edit an image like this, but with such awesome faces, I had to push it to the extreme.
Without the expressions, this picture would be a flop.
FYI, I had a bride book me because of this picture.

Right, I've been looking forward to posting this one. For sure, a favorite engagement shoot. This was text book.
1) Luke and Jasmine both put allot of effort into looking good for their shoot.
2) Both start the shoot quite nervous.
3) But, chose some great locations with personal attachments
4) Light was perfect
5) Did a little trespassing
6) By the end of the shoot, I'm sure Luke and Jasmine forgot I was taking pictures, they felt so relaxed.
7) Shot roughly the same amount of images on this shoot as what I do at an average wedding.

Bianca and Jimmy's Wedding. Loads of fun!

Another experimental groomsmen shot.

Then my first wedding of many at Clearwell Castle. Thanks Will and Cindy

Luke and Jasmine got married. Of course, with one of my famous Joseph Yarrow Engagement shoots, Jasmine and Luke were totally relaxed in front of the camera! Book now!

Then a really fun Engagement shoot in Badminton with Adam and Lucy. Their wedding is in the summer. Remember that season?

Then I tried something that I've not really done before. A baby shoot. Harvey was easy to shoot, as were his parents, Becki and Ben.
Looking forward to doing a few more baby shoots this year.


Certainly one of my favorite shots from the shoot.

Followed by an engagement shoot in Sheffield!

And a wedding at Clifton Mansion house in Bristol. I can't wait to shoot there again this year!

This also was a text book shoot!
Great looking couple.
Awesome locations.
Both started off nervous.
Ended up dancing by the end.
True story

A few weeks before, I had been inspired to change my equipment to make my pictures better.
This part of the shoot was at dusk... well into dusk actually. This was shot with totally natural flash.
I was nervous about changing my equipment, but shots like this made me confident that I had made the right choice.

I'll keep this one short and sweet.
I was contacted by this lady, she asked me to take some pictures of her and her husband in their wedding attire for the wedding anniversary.
Sure, no problem at all, but why?
She was so disappointed in her images that she had to have them done again.
I hear this sort of things very often.
Do not book a photographer that you're not sure about.
I personally know people who have cried because their wedding pictures were appalling.
Your wedding pictures are one of the only things left from your wedding, so don't mess around.
Anyway!...
This shoot was allot of fun!

Matt and Annie got married.
Hands down, one of my favorite weddings of '09.
You should of been there!

I don't think I'm doing this couples wedding, but they were guests at a wedding that I also was a guest at. Tried my best not to be an Uncle Bob

Got this great shot of Jessica with her two brothers Micah and Keir

Strictly speaking, I didn't take these pictures. Jessica did, so although I set up the lighting and camera, she takes full credit for the shots.
Unfortunately, she doesn't plan on taking any more shots as she doesn't think she's good enough! Crazy I know, but I think we'll do a few baby shoots together, with Jessica entertaining and assisting!

Amazing weren't they!!?

Really looking forward to Chris and Victoria's wedding in March, that's going to be allot of fun.
This shoot was loads of fun!

On my way up to this wedding, I got an email from the WPJA saying that they wanted me to join their organisation.
This was the best wedding/business related news I was given all year.
I was so glad that I could shoot a wedding the very next day!
Thanks for booking me Andy and Julia!

Hands down, the hardest engagement shoot with Paul and Rebecca.
We had so much fun though!

Another wedding at Clearwell Castle. Thank you Dave and Paula!

Nathan and Vicky's wedding came next. Fun!

Matt and Yvonne had an engagement shoot by the harbor. It was here that I realised that the evenings were getting darker, so this shoot was quite a challenge for me. Great couple though, they made it much easier.

Jimmy and Louise chose our favorite city of Bath for their engagement shoot!
Another text book shoot!

Then Matt and Yvonne got married!
Nothing...I repeat Nothing, beats the expression of the guy behind Yvonne! Brilliant!

Then for my last wedding of the year, Jimmy and Louise got married at Clearwell Castle.

Whoa!

That was a busy year on reflection!
My original draft of this blog had about 200 pictures in!

A huge thank you goes to all my Bride and Grooms, past and future.
You've treated me like a King and I've eaten like one (Although I'm sorry I'm so hard to feed with my food intolerances!)
Thank you also to all the great comments on my blog, I love receiving them, they always make me feel so great!

Keep on visiting and commenting!
I can't wait for this year to get moving!

We had loads of fun in the fog and the cold on that day.
Unfortunately, Jimmy and Louise wern't exactly blessed with good weather for their wedding either, but what I love about Clearwell Castle is that if the weather is poor outside, then there are so many rooms to discover!
In fact, embarrassingly, I didn't realise that there was a downstairs to the castle, full of a dance floor and even more rooms!
I've always finished shooting before the dancing starts at the other Clearwell Castle weddings I've shot.
I much prefer these longer weddings, sure they're far more physically exhausting, but I enjoy it as I really get to know the guests and they get to know me.

This was the biggest wedding I've shot at Clearwell and certainly the most fun!
It was also my first Chinese wedding, so plenty of new sights I've not witnessed before, like the tea ceremony which I found fascinating!
I'd love to be there for their Chinese wedding in Hong Kong, it sounds loads of fun!

Friends and family flew in literally from all over the world to see Jimmy and Louise get married, so the atmosphere was amazing!

This was the last wedding of the year which is a bit sad, but I've had an incredible year.
I'll be posting some of my favorite images up on here later on in the week!

Thank you so much Jimmy and Louise for choosing me, I was so flattered!
Enjoy these pictures!

With light pouring in like this, you know it's going to be a good day!

And with this level of military precision, not much could of gone wrong!

So many friends and families flew over from Hong Kong.
This was just Jimmy's luggage though.

All day, there were smiles like this, everybody was so happy!

And so many cute faces!

Although, some were either clearly jet-lagged, or just not that crazy about weddings! 


Jimmy and his boys. 

Louise with her bridesmaids, Jo and Rachel.  

A few last minute tweaks!


On more than one occasion at Jimmy and Louise's wedding, I attempted to use other peoples camera flashes to enhance my own image.
I've never seen so many cameras at one wedding, so this was quite easy.
Also, the gentleman checking the image on the back of his 5d mk II is Bristol photographer Jordan Chung




And now the tea ceremony. It's a chance for the older members of the family and important relatives to give gifts and advice

I really took a shine to "Uncle Joe"... not sure he realised it though!

I don't know what this friend was saying but I'm sure its profound.

Glad I'm not washing up!

And so begins the toasting!

Another two not overly fussed by weddings! Or just knackered from jet lag!

Another use of other peoples camera flashes to get a cool cake cutting shot!

One of the smartest and cute kids was sat on my table.

And the lovely couple themselves!
Thank you so much Jimmy and Louise!
You could've chosen anyone to take your pictures, so I'm so grateful you chose me!

At the weekend I shot another wedding at Clearwell Castle.
Remember Jimmy and Louise's photoshoot in Bath?
We had loads of fun in the fog and the cold on that day.
Unfortunately, Jimmy and Louise wern't exactly blessed with good weather at the weekend, but the great thing about Clearwell Castle is the fact that it always feels so warm there and even if it's rubbish outside, there are so many great rooms to discover!

This was the biggest wedding I've shot at Clearwell and certainly the most fun!
It was also my first chinese wedding, so plenty of new sights I've not witnessed before, like the tea ceremony which I found fascinating!
I'd love to be there for their Chinese wedding in Hong Kong, it sounds loads of fun!

Friends and family flew in literally from all over the world to see Jimmy and Louise get married, so the atmosphere was amazing!

Unfortunately, so far this is the last wedding of the year. I can't imagine getting booked for another December wedding now!
It's been a pretty busy year and I've loved it, I think I'll post a "best of" like I did last year.

Whilst I edit the rest of the images, enjoy this little teaser.
The full blog will be up in a few days.
Check back soon.

Joseph

http://www.photoboxgallery.com/josephyarrow

This was a real last minute wedding!

This was a good thing, as it gave it me no time to work up my nerves (which I always get before I shoot a wedding)
Cindy's Dad found me on Flickr ("or was it twitter?"), rang me up and asked me to do the thing that I do, for his Daughter.

Will and Cindy were wed in Clearwell Castle, not far from the Forest of Dean.
Seems like the castle has had some pretty cool modern history! Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Bad company have all recorded, or rehearsed there...and I quote from wiki: Black Sabbath came to the castle in 1973 seeking inspiration after a series of fruitless writing sessions in California. The band found what they were looking for (including "the riff that saved Black Sabbath") in an underground "dungeon" there, writing the critically acclaimed album Sabbath Bloody Sabbath.

Cool!
What it doesn't say on wiki though, is that Clearwell Castle probably has the largest collection of furniture I've ever seen!

Thank you so much to the staff at Clearwell Castle for making Will and Cindy's day go so well, and special thanks goes to Elise.

Anyway, the wedding was a really relaxed affair, it was a pleasure to be there and it was awesome to see two really great people marry.
Thanks allot for allowing me to be part of your day.
Enjoy these pictures won't you...

Will and Cindy's Cutie-Pie-Little-Girl, Isla


Mr Groom, Will!

The competition.

Will with their Son, Noah

Will's Best Man and Brother, Doug

Grandad!

The Bride!











Not everybody was pleased! =P



The Hyde Family!







Where do you think you're going?

Don't Mess.

No Grooms were injured in the creating of this image

The Ladies were allot more...Ladylike



Quite an impressive venue, I'm sure you'll agree!

Congratulations Will and Cindy!