Having a second shooter is always useful on a wedding day, but some wedding days NEED a second shooter, and some don’t. Does your dream wedding day need a second shooter?
First, let’s talk about what a second shooter is.
A second shooter is a second, professional photographer that comes to your wedding day and works with a lead photographer to capture your wedding day. Sometimes your lead photographer and the second shooter will divide and conquer, with one photographer in one place and the other photographer in another place. Sometimes the lead and second shooter will stay together to capture different angles of the same moment.
For example, a second shooter may photograph a groom and his guys by themselves, and then later join back up with the lead photographer to photograph the full wedding party, couples portraits, and the ceremony itself!
A second shooter is NOT…
A second shooter is NOT a beginner photographer. The second photographers that I work with often have their own photography businesses, and also lead shoot their own weddings. They are a professional who knows what they are doing.
A second shooter is NOT hired by the couple. It is SO important for your lead photographer to know and trust a second shooter that they are photographing your wedding with. I always choose and hire my own second shooters for just this reason.
How do you know if you NEED a second shooter?
The biggest deciding factor in whether or not you need a second shooter is your timeline. Depending on the timeline of your day you may need an additional photographer to make sure that your entire day is captured. For example, if having getting ready photos of both the guys and gals is important to you, and they are all getting ready at the same time, you’re going to need a second photographer.
A second factor in deciding if you need a second photographer is how you dream of your day being captured. Do you have specific ideas about your first look? Or your portraits? Or even your ceremony? You may need a second photographer to make sure that we can achieve that vision. For example, I had a client who really wanted to do a first look with her fiance on this beautiful bridge at her venue. In order to be able to photograph both the bride and grooms facial expressions during the first look, you’ll need a photographer on each end of the bridge. There just isn’t another way to do that.
Are you looking for more creative, artistic shots of your wedding day? A great way to get more of that is by having a second shooter. Now obviously, before anyone freaks out by that statement, your lead photographer that you hired is an artist. They are creating art on your wedding day. But they have a specific job to do. They have a list of shots in their mind that they are going to capture on your wedding day.
A second shooter is there to look beyond that standard list of shots, and capture additional details and angles of your wedding. For example, the lead photographer is going to be at the front of the aisle to capture your wedding party as they proceed into your ceremony. A second photographer is going to be behind you as you enter your wedding to capture everyone as they are looking at you. This picture is an example that I took while second shooting for the incredible With Whimsy and Wilder. Since she was the lead photographer for this wedding, she is up at the front, while I as the second shooter remained behind the bride to capture this secondary shot of her dad walking her down the aisle. You can’t see the Brides face, but you can see all her guests looking at her. Also, check out that incredible draping by Event Floral at The Pavilion at Orchard Ridge Farms. Just stunning.
Ultimately, the decision to hire a second shooter or not is up to you. I discuss with each and every one of my couples during their timeline planning call if having a second shooter will help their wedding day move more smoothly, or not. Not every wedding needs a second shooter, but almost every wedding gallery can be improved, and enlarged, by having one. If having those additional perspectives is important to you, than you may want to consider working the additional cost of a second shooter into your wedding day budget.
Want to compare and contrast? Here are two different Blumen Gardens weddings. Brandi and Brandon had a second shooter, and Kat and Rob did not.
Do you still have questions? Want to talk about it some more before your timeline planning call? Send me an email! I’d love to talk about it with you.
