Once second shooting job can lead to a full time career in wedding photography. Your first main photographer might hire you again and again, they might pass your name to other photographers, and in time you might have a calendar filled with weddings, a diverse portfolio, and lots of experience that will allow you to start booking your own weddings.

But this will only happen if you do a great job.

So how do you do a great job?

Here’s exactly how to be an awesome second shooter!

P.S. Want to learn how to get second shooting opportunities? Check out this blog post!

How to Be An Awesome Second Shooter Before the Wedding

Before you leave for the wedding, you need to make sure you’re physically and mentally prepared for the big day.

First, you need to dress professionally. Ask your lead shooter if they have a dress code they want you to follow, certain things they want you to wear, or certain colors that match their brand or that you should avoid. Personally, I just ask my second shooters to not wear the color of the bridal party and to wear something professional but comfortable. Typically this means a jumpsuit or nice pants and a shirt.

Next you need to get your gear ready. Clean all your lenses and back your bags. Charge all your batteries. Format all your memory cards if you can. Do all this the night before so you’re not scrambling to charge everything and pack the morning of.

Next pack lots of snacks and water. At the end of a wedding day you’re going to be exhausted, hungry, and dehydrated, so do everything you can to lesson this. Eat at every opportunity you can.

Next pack your own wedding emergency kit: tissues, wet wipes, tide to-go sticks, hair pins, and anything else you can think of. You will be a hero.

The last and most important thing you can do before the wedding is to get your mentality straight. You need to understand that you are there to help your main photographer and to serve the couple. You are NOT there to boost your portfolio.

It is painfully obvious when a second shooter is there for themselves. Not only will you fail at your job, but the main photographer will never hire you again and will spread the word for others to not hire you.

If you want to make it in this industry, you have to understand that it’s a service-based industry and you have to be there to help others. Only in doing this will you succeed and thrive.

How to Be An Awesome Second Shooter At the Wedding

Once you make it to the wedding, the real work begins. Here are some tips to get you through the day as the best second shooter ever.

First, do what the main asks you to do throughout the day, even non-camera stuff. If they tell you to put on a certain lens, stand in a certain spot, or get a certain photo, do it. If they tell you to run to their car and grab their flash kit, do it.

Most photographers have systems for how they go through the day, and a second shooter is absolutely part of that system. Do what the main photographer asks you to do, and they will be happy you’ve fulfilled your job.

It’s also a huge relief when a second shooter is there and they actually do what you need. It takes a big weight off the main’s shoulder and they will begin to rely on you.

If the main shooter doesn’t tell you exactly what to do, here are a few extra things you should be doing:

1. Get alternate angles and crops. We want to maximize the variety in the final gallery, so make sure you’re getting images that are different to the main shooter. Put on a different lens, shoot from different perspectives, go horizontal when they’re going vertical, etc.
2. Get behind the scenes photos of your main photographer. Photograph them shooting the details, photographing people, and interacting with the couple and other guests. I promise that when they go through your photos and see those behind the scenes, they will love you forever. It’s the best gift to have this kind of content that we can use over and over again. Every photo you see in this blog post was taken by my second shooters, and I absolutely love them for it.
3. Keep an eye on the timeline, time, and other vendors. The main photographer and planner will also be doing this, but it’s nice to have someone else do it too. Give gentle reminders to the main shooter that you have this amount of time left or you’re running that many minutes late. Don’t be pushy, just tell it to them quietly and ask what they want you to do to help.
4. Help with family formals. There is always something you should be doing during this time. You might be calling out names of family members and getting them ready for the next pictures. You might be fluffing dresses or posing people in between shots. If you don’t have to do either of these, make sure you’re taking photos. Get candids of people waiting and interacting, side shots of the groupings, and behind the scenes photos of your main photographer. You should always be doing something at this time.
5. Smile the whole time. This helps so much. When you smile, people will think that you’re having a great time with your job and they’ll be more likely to like you and your photos. Just remember to have fun, enjoy the day, and don’t be afraid to talk to people!
6. Ask questions only when there’s down time. Ask during details, before the ceremony, during dinner, or during the reception. Don’t bombard your photographer with questions when they’re focused on something else or the time is crunched.
7. Lastly, don’t overshoot. I know it’s exciting, especially at your first few weddings, but please don’t take a thousand photos of the rings. Get creative, but don’t overdo it. This especially applies to the reception. If it lasts a few hours, you don’t need to be taking photos the whole time. Limit it to a few per minute in the beginning, then only one or two per minute towards the end. Don’t only get photos of people dancing. Get photos of people talking, of the couple interacting with their guests, and group photos where they’re smiling at the camera.

How to Be An Awesome Second Shooter After the Wedding

Once you get home from the wedding, there are a few extra things you should do to really stand out in the photographer’s mind and to make sure you’re the best second shooter you can be.

First, reach out to the photographer to thank them either the night of the wedding or the morning after. Tell them what you learned, what your favorite parts were, and ask follow up questions. Show that you’re genuinely happy with the day.

Next, wait to post the photos until the main photographer tells you to. Some photographers want you to wait until the final gallery is delivered, others want to wait until they blog it, and others want you to wait a certain period of time (ex: 6 months). Abide by this rule. Do not post before they tell you to.

Then once you’re given the green light to post, you need to make sure you do a few things:

1. Always tag the main photographer in the caption. Don’t tag them in the photo, because then it will show up on their tagged feed. Instead, write your caption, then end it with “Taken while second shooting for @” and tag their handle there. This way people know you were the second shooter and you’re not claiming the wedding as your own
2. Don’t tag the vendors, the couple, or guests at the wedding. You don’t want them thinking that you were the main photographer, and you don’t want them reposting your work. This reason makes some photographers have the rule that their second shooters can’t post their photos ever. If you work for a photographer that has that rule, make sure you follow it.

And that’s how to be an awesome second shooter! Here are the biggest takeaways:

1. Make sure your mentality is correct: you’re there to serve the photographer and the couple, not to boost your portfolio
2. Do whatever the main photographer tells you to do, even if it’s not photo related
3. Do everything with gratitude
4. Have fun!!

I hope these tips helped! If you do a great job as a second shooter once, it will lead to more opportunities. Soon, you’ll have a calendar filled with weddings and a diverse portfolio, and you’ll have enough experience to start booking your own!

Good luck!

Also, if you missed the blog post about how to get second shooter jobs, make sure you check it out!

Check out this post if you want to build your portfolio!

If you want to learn more behind the scenes tips of being a photographer, check out all my photographer education blog posts!

Pin this blog post here!

• 

• 

•