All of our White-Tie packages come with Second Photographers, wether you are choosing all inclusive with video or without. These “Seconds” are an important part of our workflow and provide a great deal of benefits to our clients. However, we often get asked why couples need them and what they are actually going to DO on the wedding day. Well wonder no more, because here is our definitive guide to the how and why of hiring a second photographer (or videographer for that matter)
What is a Second Photographer?
Seconds are shooters that are secondary to whoever is in charge. Their job is complex, and requires a fair bit of training. They are generally in charge of two things.
- They act as an additional set of eyes on your wedding day. If I am shooting your flat-lays in one room, the second could be in the bridal or groom suite taking shots of you guys getting ready. This allows us to essentially be in multiple places at once- meaning you’ll wind up with more complete coverage of your wedding day.
- Second Photographers and Videographers create fluidity. They are often tasked with grabbing gear from our car, setting up shots, and making sure that all family members are ready for family formals. These little tasks can be a big time sink for us, so this allows us to be more efficient.
A Seconds Imagery
Seconds also have the important task of ensuring we get vital moments from various angles. In the photography world, this means that they will be shooting wide while I get up close details or vice versa. Maybe they’re shooting the grooms reaction while I shoot the bride coming down the aisle. All of these are important shots to get- and require a second set of hands to grab them.
Where Do RAA Seconds Come From?
We have a quite extensive list of seconds that we have sourced from years in the industry. Our usual go to girls are Grace and Liz.
Liz is a long time friend who owns her own wedding photography business. She is worth her weight in gold for her industry knowledge and ability to anticipate needs. She also compliments us well, as she tends to be more reserved and methodical where we tend to run with the art at times.
Grace is an RAA prodigy and part of the fabric of our day to day lives. Grace is a former student of ours (from back when we met as high school teachers). Once she graduated she asked us to teach her a few things and the rest is history. Grace immediately excelled at both photo and video and has undergone training directly from us. This focused training as a Second Photographer and videographer means that she shoots exactly the way we do, and knows our exact workflow moment by moment.
If you’d like to hear more about our work in training and educating seconds, or about how we use their talents to support our couples- let us know!
With love and extra coverage,
Becca & Mandy
