Saturday, I had the honor and pleasure of second shooting for second shooting for a photographer in Jacksonville and let me tell you…it was so fun! Not only was the wedding out of a magazine, but the experience was what I walked away feeling so blessed from. I’ve second shot multiple times, but this time was probably the best experience yet. But before I tell you about that, you may be wondering what a second shooter is to begin with!
A second shooter is a photographer who has been hired by the lead photographer to assist him/her throughout the wedding. Usually, second shooters are hired to shoot, but sometimes they are hired to assist the lead photographer by handing him/her lenses, lighting equipment, and be his/her second pair of eyes.
In my opinion, being a second shooter is much less stressful than taking on a wedding all by yourself. When you’re second shooting, you get to photograph the unique, candid, and creative shots because the lead photographer is taking all the main pictures. For instance, the lead photographer will always shoot the bride walking down the isle, and if there is a second shooter, he/she will photograph the groom as the bride is walking down the isle. He/she gets to capture the groom’s emotion, or the mother of the bride’s emotion while watching the beautiful bride make her way down the isle; it’s a pretty neat position, actually!
I loved shooting with Sarahdipity Photos! Sarah was fun, energetic, and bubbly…who doesn’t want to be around that kind of personality?! She got my name from a mutual photographer friend, and I was so glad for the referral; I am always looking for photographer friends who I can connect with and learn from. What made Sarah even more enjoyable to be around was that she appreciated me and my work and treated me with respect. I’ve heard of so many lead photographers who are ugly to their second shooters, and basically keep them on a short leash the whole time without giving them any creative license. (This has never happened to me, but how awful!) In the photography world, it can be pretty cut throat, competitive and ugly. I’ve seen glimpses of it here and there. I’m sure it’s like that in other industries, but regardless, it’s unfortunate! There is a movement that has been sweeping across the nation called ‘Community Over Competition’, started by the incredibly talented Natalie Franke and instead of explaining it myself, I’ll allow you to read about it here. When I read that for the first time, I loved every word because it’s so true! It is so easy to allow competitiveness to consume us, when community should be our focus! I am in no way a threat to Sarah; she is a super talented and successful photographer, but she still demonstrated the community mindset in all our conversations leading up to the wedding, as well as the wedding day itself. I am oh so thankful for this new photographer friend! Check out how adorable she is, and a few romantic images from the weekend.
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