JLM Wedding Photography

Tag: sheffield

Sheffield Town Hall Mirror Room & Tamper Coffee Wedding
This wedding was featured in the Brides Up North wedding blog in September 2018, check it out!
Sheffield Town Hall Mirror Room Wedding Ceremony
From Grand to Ground
I came up with that little sub-heading whilst gazing in wonder at all the coffee making paraphernalia on the counter at Tamper Coffee.
I was quite proud of myself at the time, although later I pondered whether or not the idea of Grand to Ground was a little derogatory towards Tamper.
Anyway, let’s talk about the Mirror Room.
For all the wedding ceremonies I have photographed at the Sheffield Town Hall, this was my first upstairs.
As you will see from the pictures, this is where Grand comes from.
Whilst very warm, the Mirror Room is a gorgeous wedding venue.
I’ll be honest, I’m not sure if I like the mirror though, especially considering how low I had to get to make sure I wasn’t in any of the photos!
Drinks Reception in the Mandela Room of the Sheffield Town Hall
Through a combination of experience and planning, I am very rarely taken by surprise at a wedding.
I did know the drinks reception was in the Mandela room, which is directly adjacent to the Mirror Room.
What I wasn’t expecting was the partition wall disappearing as Holly & James made their way back up the aisle.
I was actually crouched on the floor up against the wall at the time, trying to avoid that infernal mirror!
Not that the surprise was a problem, I was back on my feet in no time.
Tamper Coffee Wedding Reception
What a gem!
I think you would be better off looking at the pictures here rather than letting me describe it to you.
Super-cool, as my 4 year old son would say!
The staff were lovely, the food was amazing and the open space was perfect.
I do wonder though whether it would have been quite as suitable had it been raining. I feel like that room would have become quite crowded had everyone needed to be inside.
The Slideshow
I think I have rambled on enough now, here is what you really came to see.
Holly & James’ Town Hall and Tamper Coffee wedding in about 5 minutes.

The Photos
If you don’t have 5 minutes to spare to watch the video, here is a selection of highlights to scroll through.
If you would like to talk to me about photographing your wedding make sure you get in touch for a quote.
20/08/2018
A Rainy Day Wedding in Barnsley :: Lisa & Simeon
Lisa and Simeon’s Wortley Hall Wedding
I had been looking forward to my first Wortley Hall wedding.
I had heard all about the spectacular grounds and beautiful scenery outside.
Of course, this is Britain, so naturally it rained all day.
If you’re looking at getting married at Wortley Hall, check out my ‘what to expect’ guide:Getting Married at Wortley Hall :: What to Expect
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29/10/2017
Sheffield Town Hall and Staindrop Lodge Wedding
The story of a Staindrop Lodge Wedding
I know I come across as polite and well mannered.
Rest assured though, I grew up around the beauty industry. I have seen and heard it all, very little shocks me.
Having said that, Becky’s bridesmaids put in a concerted effort to break through my well trained demeanour.
My poor Unmanned Corner Cam saw things no camera should ever see. I guess I was asking for that by leaving it in a mostly empty room rather than in a busy room where I would usually set it up.
In all honesty I had a great time from the start.
I could tell straight away that this was not going to be a dull day.
By the way, if you want to see the collection from the Unmanned Corner Cam you are going to have to speak to Becky and Jordan, they ain’t going on my Facebook page ;-).
St Paul’s Mercure Hotel, Sheffield
My day began in St Paul’s Mercure hotel in Sheffield City Centre, where Becky and team had stayed the night before and were now getting ready.
It was pretty calm overall.
Makeup was going on, hair was being curled and spirits were high.
Speaking of make-up, the make-up artist had brought along a pretty hefty studio light to help her do her job in the otherwise quite dark hotel room. It made for a few interesting prep shots which I usually wouldn’t get. I don’t tend to bring much lighting gear to hotel rooms because I like to be discrete as well as able to leave quickly, so this was an interesting opportunity to try something a little different.
The Wedding Ceremony at Sheffield Town Hall
I am no stranger to weddings at the Town Hall in Sheffield.
Even though I have covered weddings here numerous times before (see them on the blog here) I get a slightly different experience each time.
Not having to worry about last minute parking in Sheffield City Centre on a Saturday afternoon was a pleasant change this time around.
I did see something new actually.
Whilst reading the vows for Becky and Jordan to recite, the celebrant actually said the Best Man’s name instead of the Groom’s.
Suffice to say, talk of this little faux-pas carried on late into the evening.
Staindrop Lodge
We spent a bit of time in the Peace Gardens in Sheffield after the ceremony.
We took a couple of snaps whilst everyone had a little chat and a catch-up, then the newlyweds made their way off in their wedding car to Staindrop Lodge.
Staindrop Lodge in Chapeltown is a lovely little spot ideal for smaller weddings.
I didn’t experience the wedding meal so I can’t comment on that, though I can tell you the burgers from the bar menu are fantastic!
The staff were all very good too as far as I could tell. Everyone I spoke to was very helpful and accommodating.
So, the wedding party spend the remains of the day at the Staindrop Lodge enjoying the mild weather and flowing drinks.
At night the DJ set up his stall and the party got going. I left around the time the ties were being tied around the foreheads, nobody needs photos of that ;-).
Highlights from the Gallery
See ya next time.
James
22/09/2017
Lyndsey & Steve’s Superhero Themed Whitley Hall Hotel Wedding
Getting married on a bank holiday in Britain is a bit of a gamble, weather-wise.
Luckily Lyndsey and Steve landed on the first sunny August bank holiday weekend since 1874.
I have been to Whitley Hall hotel before so I was already excited about coming back, when they told me about the superhero theme I just couldn’t wait.
So, here’s the story.
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08/09/2017
Boys Don’t Cry: A bloke’s guide to getting emotional on your wedding day
I didn’t cry when Bambi’s mother died.
I was fine at the end of Titanic.
In Godfather Part 2 when Michael ordered Fredo’s death… ok maybe a little.
We fellas, we’re not great at getting emotional.
I’m here to tell you that it’s OK to cry on your wedding day. In fact, it’s a really good thing.
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27/07/2017
Bridal Prep – What the morning of the wedding day is all about
Back in the olden days of wedding photography you would not have seen bridal prep photos included with the standard service.
That was when wedding photography was all about capturing a single bridal portrait to sit on the mantelpiece for generations.
Whilst bridal portraits are still very much a thing, wedding photography has moved on to include documenting the emotions of the whole day.
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27/07/2017
Victoria & Kelso’s Tuscany Wedding – Borgo Petrognano
James is an amazing photographer, we realised this after having our engagement shoot photos sent through!
This confirmed how we felt and made us so much more excited to take him to Italy with us for our wedding in May.
The professionalism was on point but yet James became one of our friends on the trip! Everyone felt comfortable with him around and the pictures are just amazing!!
Would recommend him to anyone!
I want to show our pictures off to the world and that’s all down to James!
Thank you! Xx
Victoria’s Facebook Review
We’re Getting Married In Italy!
Victoria and Kelso’s enquiry began like many others. They were asking whether I was available on a particular date.
“One slight difference…” she said. “we are getting married in Italy!”.
I don’t remember whether I let out an audible ‘woop’ or not. Maybe.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to photograph local weddings and get home at a reasonable time. Every now and again though…
Planning A Destination Wedding
If I’m honest, all I had to do was make sure I got all my gear plus myself over to Tuscany.
The real star of this show was Victoria.
From what I could tell she pulled together literally every aspect of the wedding abroad. Planning a wedding is hard enough, planning it in another country doubly so.
I witnessed this masterpiece of destination wedding planning first hand. Every aspect of my journey was planned out for me, nothing left to chance.
Victoria if you’re reading this, you made my first destination wedding far too easy for me, thank you.
How would I rate Borgo Petrognano as a Wedding Venue in Tuscany?
I don’t really have much to say about this place other than wow.
Borgo Petrognano, situated in the Cianti hills near Barbarino Val D’Elsa is absolutlely beautiful in every way.
The setting is magnificent, gorgious Tuscan hills rolling off into the distance.
Whenever I look around a venue where I am about to photograph a wedding I will look around for the angles I want to avoid. Venues often have less attractive sides to them which could potentially spoil a good photo. I found no such angle here at Borgo Petrognano.
Everywhere you look is just picture perfect.
The Winning Team Behind A Successful Destination Wedding
I think at this point I should just let the photos do the talking. That is probably why you are here after all.
I would like to close out my intro with a few acknowledgements.
Firstly and most importantly the wedding singer and my travelling companion, Jill Ryder. Jill has a beautiful voice and is genuinely a lovely person to be around. I spent three days travelling to Italy and back with Jill and her husband Mark and we got along like we had known each other for years.
I would also like to wholeheartedly recommend Hotel Primavera. This is where I stayed whilst I was out there. It was very conveniently located less than 10 minutes drive away from Borgo Petrognano, the room was perfect and the facilities excellent. Extra bonus points are awarded because when we were struggling to arrange a taxi for the evening prior to the wedding the owner offered to give us a lift to and from the venue.
I would also like to throw some credit towards Ryanair. Despite the low price the service was actually pretty good, can’t complain.

To be honest, I’m probably not the right photographer for you.

The Wedding Photo Slideshow
Here is the video slideshow from Vic and Kelso’s destination wedding in Borgo Petrognano, Tuscany.
The Photos
If you don’t have time to watch the video, here are some highlights from the collection.

26/05/2017
The sprinkle of video that makes all the difference
The future of wedding photography is wedding photography plus video, there is no doubt about that.
The rise of dedicated wedding photography videographers is testament to the growing wedding DVD industry.
Yes, there will always be photos, you still want your wedding album and a photo above the fireplace.
Video brings the day back to life in a way that flipping through photos can’t.
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20/03/2017