Hi! We are Jean, Brandon, and Katerina, a few of the people who make up the Smith & Co Photo team! Brandon and Katerina are our talented lead wedding photographers, and Jean works behind the scenes handling emails, timelines, editing, and everything in between.

Working with a fabulous second photographer contributes so much to a successful wedding day, so we’re thrilled to have you on board! While many factors contribute to a seamless wedding day, our top priorities are delivering stunning photos and creating an exceptional experience for our couples. We want them to look back on their day and photos and remember it as being organized, fun, and stress-free.

As photographers, we understand how much of that depends on us—staying on top of timelines and our positive interactions with the couple and their friends and family. Thank you in advance for your help in making all of this happen!

to the smith & Co Photo team

Welcome

EQUIPMENT:

  • Camera with dual slots (preferably two cameras if you have them)
  • At least one wide angle lens (ex: 24-70mm, 35mm) and one telephoto lens (ex: 85mm, 70-200mm)
  • Speedlight flash and extra batteries
  • Memory cards

CAMERA SETTINGS:

  • Please always shoot in RAW + JPG (RAW for the first slot and JPG as the second slot)
  • Sync camera times with your phone time before starting the wedding day
  • We understand you don't have the option in some situations, but if you find yourself having to push your ISO past 6400, please switch over to flash if possible (on camera flash is fine).

OTHER:

  • Touch base with lead photographer 



If you've photographed as a second, most of this will be obvious to you, but every photography business runs things a little different so we'll pass along our guidelines for before, during, and after the wedding day.

bEFORE THE WEDDING DAY

shooting the day

Three quick thoughts before you start the day:

  1. Attire - Please wear professional attire (while allowing you to move comfortably), opting for dark, neutral colors like black, navy, or gray, with simple designs, and avoiding anything too flashy or distracting. Please no jeans, t-shirts, overly revealing clothing, etc.
  2. Punctuality - Please plan extra time for traffic, parking, walking so that you can arrive to the groom's location 10-15 minutes early to set up and introduce yourself.
  3. Interactions - We absolutely understand that photographers encounter a variety of people and situations on a wedding day, some of which can be unpredictable. Please always have positive, helpful interactions with the couple and guests. The way photographers interact with the couple and their guests shapes their experience and the memories from their day.

on the
wedding day

on the
wedding day

There will be times during the wedding day when you and the lead photographer are working separately. However, when you’re together and photographing the same thing (like bride and groom photos), try to capture complementary images by using a different lens, angle, or composition from what they are photographing.

Or perhaps the lead photographer is directing posed family photos, you could document candid or posed moments of the parents or flower kids behind-the-scenes. The lead photographer is often focused on directing and may not notice what’s happening behind the scenes, so one of your main roles is to be their extra set of eyes.

Working with the lead photographer

Shooting

While you'll be documenting all of the events throughout the day, as a second photographer, these are MUST HAVE photos to capture:

GROOM GETTING READY PHOTOS:

  • Groom's details
  • Finishing touches of groom getting dressed
  • Groom portraits (full body and half body)

  • Candids of family and friends (if available)
  • Casual photos with groomsmen (if time allows)
  • Photos with family members (if available)

GROOM AND GROOMSMEN:

  • Group smiling shot
  • Groom with each groomsmen
  • Anything else you want (ex: serious photos, walking photos, silly photos, etc)

VENUES:

  • Please photograph inside and outside of church and venues. These locations hold special significance to the couple and we want those photos to be a part of their story.

COCKTAIL HOUR:

  • Candids and smiling shots of guests
  • Details

RECEPTION DETAILS:

  • Please communicate with the lead photographer to see who is photographing reception details (full room as well as closeups)

Shooting

Must haves for the second photographer

examples

Groom getting ready 

Groom portraits

examples

Groom and groomsmen

examples

UPLOADING:

  • We'll send you an email with a link to upload your RAW images to a dropbox folder.

IMAGE USAGE: 

  • We kindly ask that you don't use or post any photos of the couple or their guests. However, you're welcome to share images of the venue or details, please just credit @smithandco.photo in your social media posts. It's important to avoid any confusion for our couples about why their images might appear on someone else's social media.

PAYMENT:

  • Our preferred payment methods are Venmo and Zelle. If you don’t have access to either, just let us know, and we’ll work together to find an alternative.



Yipee! The wedding day is over! Hope you had a fun, creative filled day!

after THE WEDDING DAY

We SO appreciate your time and talent and hope to work together in the future!

Thank you!