Cherelle and Jack got married at Bowers Mill, an old textile mill in the valley outside Halifax. There was a celebrant, rings hidden under a guest's seat, a quiz about the two of them, and a dance floor that was never empty.

On our first video call, Cherelle described what she was after as "industrial meets country", and Bowers Mill is exactly that: sandstone mill buildings and the Bowers tower, with woods climbing the hill behind. By the end of that chat I knew I wanted to photograph their wedding.

Cherelle and Jack met online, long before swiping was a thing, and started meeting up in Sheffield because it was halfway between their homes. It became their place, and it's where I first met them in person, for their engagement shoot: a coffee and a walk round the city. They wanted something a bit different, and they didn't think they could pull off cool in front of a camera. It was obvious as we walked and talked that they could pull off being fun and being themselves.

The Venue sign on a sandstone building at Bowers Mill, Barkisland, in evening sun

Getting Ready — near Halifax

Cherelle got ready with her family in a converted barn nearby. It has Yorkshire sandstone walls and flagstone floors and feels very ‘West Yorkshire valley’, nestled amongst the trees with pink wildflowers outside. Cherelle was tucked away in a large attic room when I arrived, a friend sorting her hair while she did her own make-up. The morning was relaxed as people got ready in their separate rooms, occasionally popping into the communal space which had been the focus of the previous evening’s pre-wedding fun. I met the videographer team, a local couple who were determined to work candidly, which complemented my approach. As the clock ticked towards ceremony time, Cherelle’s mum and sister did up her dress, finishing touches were performed, jewellery adjusted and Cherelle took a moment in the story-filled surroundings of the kitchen. I left after a couple of bridesmaid photos to head for The Venue at Bowers Mill.

A converted sandstone barn behind pink wildflowers, where the bride got ready near Halifax

The bride checking her hair in a mirror while getting ready

Black and white close-up of the lace-up back of the bride's dress

The bride in her dress and veil with a woven fan, in the barn kitchen

The Ceremony — Bowers Mill, Barkisland

The Venue Bowers Mill is the restored top floor of a Victorian textile mill. The main space has a glass roof, and the ceremony room is tucked away at the back.

Jack arrived a few moments after me, and nervous would be understating how he was feeling. We’d met on an engagement shoot in Sheffield the previous year and it was clear that this day meant a lot to them both.

Jack waited for Cherelle outside at the mill. They’d asked to have a first look moment as they weren’t planning on the traditional ‘groom waits for the bride’ ceremony.

Cherelle arrived. Jack turned around as she walked over the bridge to the terrace. The tears appeared. It couldn't have been better if I'd planned it. They hugged, kissed, and put each other a little more at ease before getting a couple of the ‘formal’ portraits sorted. When I say formal, they giggled, holding hands, and I got a close-up of the flowers. The bouquet from Moema Floral Design was dahlias, orange, deep red and pink, with long ribbons trailing from it.

The groom turning to see the bride for the first time at Bowers Mill

The bride's bouquet of orange, red and pink dahlias

Guests seated either side of the aisle in the brick-walled ceremony room at Bowers Mill

While we were having our quiet moment the staff were getting the guests into the ceremony room. Cherelle and Jack had already done the legal part quietly with close family, which left the ceremony at the mill free to be whatever they wanted. Louise Gather of Kickass Gatherings, my favourite orange-haired celebrant, led it. I've known Louise since I started photographing weddings, and we've worked a lot of them together. Her ceremonies are personal and funny. Cherelle and Jack each came in separately with their family, and nobody was given away. Then came the vows, and Jack cried (again). More than a little. He wasn't the only one.

The bride and groom at the front of the ceremony room with the celebrant at Bowers Mill

A guest laughing with her hand to her face during the ceremony

Guests smiling during the wedding ceremony at Bowers Mill

A guest laughing through tears during the wedding ceremony at Bowers Mill

As is often the case with a Kickass Gatherings wedding, something fun to involve the room was inevitable, so when it came to the rings, they were ‘missing’ and the guests were told to check under their seats. The whole room bent double to look. A small Oprah moment. I was the inside man, of course, and knew exactly where they were, camera ready for the reveal. One of Jack’s family discovered the ring box and was invited to come to the front.
Rings were exchanged, then the kiss, and then Cherelle and Jack led everyone out onto the terrace for confetti and the drinks reception in the sun.

Guests bent over looking under their chairs for the ring during the wedding ceremony at Bowers Mill

Black and white silhouette of the bride and groom kissing under the wedding ceremony arch at Bowers Mill

Guests throwing confetti over the bride and groom as they kiss at Bowers Mill

Portraits — Bowers Mill, Barkisland

Bowers Mill is a business park as well as a venue. The grounds are a mix of Victorian mill and modern business, and Cherelle and Jack were keen to have a moment to themselves, so I let them get on with it.

As is my preferred approach to portraits, we sneaked away while the guests began to be seated for their meal. We had a stroll around the mill buildings. We found a rusty trailer with a ladder next to the brook, where Jack insisted upon climbing in, and then walked along the length of the mill to a loading dock, where they spent most of the time in fits of laughter.

The bride and groom walking hand in hand beneath the Bowers tower, near Halifax

The groom standing behind the bride under an old rusted canopy at Bowers Mill

The bride and groom laughing in the old loading dock at Bowers Mill

The bride and groom walking beside a tall sandstone mill wall at Bowers Mill, near Halifax

The bride and groom laughing as they walk through a stone passage at Bowers Mill

The Reception — Bowers Mill, Barkisland

The main room is one large space, split into three by curtains. The bar is in the first part, and at mealtime the first set of curtains opened to reveal the tables already laid, so nobody had to move.

The reception began with speeches and a quiz about the couple and their wedding. The winning table was me, Louise, and the video team from Twenty Two Moments. Four people who'd spent the whole day watching Cherelle and Jack closely. It may not have been an entirely fair fight.

A letterboard showing the couple's plan for the day, beside a vase of dahlias

A guest smiling at her table under the glass roof at Bowers Mill

Two guests laughing at their table at the reception

The Venue Kitchen, on site, provided the three-course meal, and they aren’t ones to regulate portions. Cherelle and Jack cut their cake with a Sheffield-made pen-knife in the middle of the room. It was then time for the relaxed cocktail hour. With kids in tow, not every drink on the tables was a cocktail.

Two guests raising a bottle of wine at the reception at Bowers Mill

The celebrant, Louise of Kickass Gatherings, with an espresso martini at the reception at Bowers Mill

Cocktails and bottles of baby milk on a reception table

As the light started to go and evening guests rolled up, I took Cherelle and Jack back outside for some evening portraits. I find portraits are easier for a couple once the ceremony, the speeches and the food are out of the way and everyone is happy. It’s the ideal time to have a quiet moment before the party starts properly. We had a wander up the driveway, across the road and into a field of long grass, where the mill glowed in the evening sun before it dropped behind the hills.

The bride and groom walking through long grass in the evening, the bride holding her bouquet up

As we returned it was time to open the final partition and reveal the DJ and the dance floor. The light had gone, the festoon and industrial lamps were on, and the whole room was up, including me, Louise, and the videographers. That's either the best way to get candid photos or a good excuse. Possibly both. Cherelle and Jack’s families danced together. Jack (and most of the guests) spent some of the evening in heart-shaped sunglasses with the date on them, in case anyone forgot. Pizza arrived, also from The Venue Kitchen, just as people needed a few more calories to keep going.

I left them dancing, enjoying their wedding.