award winning cotswolds Wedding Photographer

Cotswolds Wedding Photographer Joab Smith

Hi! I’m Joab, I live just on the outskirts of Stroud and every day I count my lucky starts that I’m a Cotswolds wedding photographer. Being able to take stunning, bold wedding photos in an area of outstanding natural beauty is hugely invigorating. It’s all I do professionally and I bloody love it.

Well over a decade ago and after years of playing with old film and digital cameras my photography teacher’s assistant asked me to photograph her big day. It was an emotional, terrifying blast of fun and I’ve been hooked ever since. Over 300 weddings later there’s a lot to love but PEOPLE are what really make it. I get to see the some of the happiest moments in couples lives and the challenge of capturing those moments in the best possible way is endlessly fulfilling. It’s not just about the romantic kiss during the ceremony, or the epic sunset shot before the first dance. It’s grandma’s tear she swiftly wipes away, or the mother of the groom on the back of a ride along lawnmower as her son donuts on the dancefloor… THOSE are the real moments.

Stunning, Natural and bold wedding photography

I love blending in and shooting in a natural way to provide a beautifully told record of your day; you create the memories and I’ll capture them. Most of all I love real moments of emotion, fun and beauty. I’ll be in the background and unless I’m talking to you feel free to ignore me, enjoy yourselves!

Not just the Cotswolds: UK and destination weddings too.

Whether you’re getting married in your garden in Stroud or a cave in Peru I love to travel and keep travel costs down so I’d love to hear from you. Get in touch and tell me about your day!

photography of Hugs under the pergola at Euridge Manor, the cotswolds

Couple kissing at sunset at the lost orangery

couple Kissing at the barn at Upcote in the cotswolds

Me, You and your Wedding

I love my job, but most importantly YOU need to have the best day possible. That means just letting you celebrate for the most part! I’ll organise groups when necessary and I’m happy to guide you or suggest ways to look your best in photos, but I’ll out of the way most of the time. You won’t need to think about a thing.

Some of my favourite things

Eating soup using only bread.

Listening to loud music on a sunny Sunday morning..

Exploring the Cotswolds with my wife, dog and camera

Ties on heads by the end of a wedding.

Awards and Accolades

My photograph was chosen as one of the best in the world in 2019 by Junebug Weddings.

One of the ‘Artists of the Year’ by Looks Like Film.
Finalist for ‘Best Wedding Photographer‘ In the South West at the Wedding Industry awards for the last 4 years. This year I received Highly Commended.
Featured on The BBC, Country Living, The Huffington Post, Rock My Wedding, Love my dress, Brides Magazine and many more.

Click here to see what nice things people have said about me

Weddings On My Blog

Grittleton House, The Cotswolds Wedding

Emily & Oscar's gorgeous Cotswold Wedding

Villa Eva, Ravello Wedding

Dino & Jess' romantic destination wedding

Brympton House, Somerset Wedding

Lucy & Alvar's lively Wedding in the South West

Some of my favourite wedding venues in the Cotswolds and further afield

I regularly photograph at Euridge Manor near Bath, ‘The Painswick’ east of Gloucestershire and Grittleton House near Castle Coombe and they’re all absolutely fantastic, I can’t fault them. Eastington House and Kingscote barn are very close to me in Stroud so get in touch for a little discount, but The Barn at Upcote and Cripps Barn near Cirencester are also local favourites of Cotswolds area.

If you’re based a little further South you can see my list of the best wedding venues in and around Bristol here.

For destination weddings I love Villa Eva in the hills of Ravello, Villa Miani in Rome and The Abbey of San Galgano in Tuscany is just mind blowing.

‘Joab was an absolute star!’

‘Joab was an absolute star throughout. We picked him because his photos looked so joyful and that’s exactly the experience we had with him. He was so enthusiastic, happy and lovely to have around, but also was incredibly organised. This meant that we actually had time to spend with our guests, but still got all the shots we could want.

Joab really pours his heart and boundless energy into capturing the day and we couldn’t be happier with our photos. He is a very talented photographer and we can’t recommend him highly enough. Thank you!’

– Emily & Oscar – Cotswold wedding

If you’re looking for a wedding photographer in the Cotswolds get in touch!

‘We are delighted that we chose Joab as our wedding photographer and wouldn’t change a thing of how our photos turned out!’

“Thank you so much to Joab for our simply incredible wedding photos! We are so happy with how the photos have turned out and already had so many compliments from guests who have seen the album. Joab was a pleasure to deal with from the outset. Friendly, helpful and very professional, we had a lovely initial meeting to discuss options and style and everything followed perfectly from there. Joab was prompt and easy to contact at all times in the build up and happy to answer any questions we had.

On the big day itself Joab was an absolute star. Friendly and polite throughout, he made a great impression among the guests. He captured some amazing moments throughout the day, and coped brilliantly with the variable weather conditions! We are delighted that we chose Joab as our wedding photographer and wouldn’t change a thing of how our photos turned out. Happy to recommend to anyone!

– Charlotte & Pete – Bristol Wedding