Being a Second Shooter - Yellow Gold Farms, Albany Oregon

Last Summer I had a random weekend without anything on it … strange. I knew the weather would be great and I messaged my friend and fellow photographer crush Amanda ( Amanda Jae Photography) and asked if I could second shoot the wedding she had booked that weekend. Excited she said YES, I reviewed her clients information all about the wedding.

The wedding was held at Yellow Gold Farm in Albany, an absolutely beautiful venue I have shot at before. I was sad to hear the current owners were selling to “slow things down”, they were incredible hosts for these event but I know it will be under great new ownership going forward!

But back to this great wedding! I was going to be the second shooter and to be honest, I have only done this small number of times but I enjoyed it so much. I actually would like to seek out more opportunities to second shoot because it really allowed me to see things in a completely different perspective and not all the pressure was solely on myself which felt incredible.

Amanda and I discussed our gear and and game plan to ensure we covered everything. She and I have pretty different styles when it comes to shooting so it was really fun to balance each other out. She shoots with with a higher aperture while I shoot primarily wide open at 1.4 unless I am doing groups (then I bump it to 2.8-ish). We decided I could shoot with just my 85mm lens (literally I shot this whole wedding with the 85!) which gave a great contrast to the lenses she used throughout the day which allowed her to deliver a stunning gallery to her clients. I was able to float around and get a lot of great candid shots which I love shooting … I also love to grab little families and ask if they would like a quick family picture ( you gotta take advantage of the whole crew all dressed up!).

I highly suggest photographers at all levels really to find ways to be available as a second shooter … it allows you to slow things down and maybe have time to try a few new things without “all eyes on you” haha. But seriously, If there is another awesome photographer reading this and wanting a second shooter … I have some Sundays I would love to offer my services for 😉

enjoy!