It can be tricky for brides and grooms to know just how long they’ll need a photographer on their wedding day.  Or a second shooter for that matter.  Of course there’s no right answer as it largely depends on the couple’s desires, but when there is uncertainty, I like to suggest a few considerations to help in making that decision. Also, I’m pleased to share some highlights from this beautiful wedding which was captured in just six hours.

The first consideration: are there multiple locations throughout the photography coverage?  If so, a second shooter can help the primary shooter in quickly transitioning gear from one location to the next, saving precious time on your busy day.  However, with one location, there is no travel time and a single photographer can efficiently cover a wedding in less time.  This wedding took place at The DoubleTree by Hilton in Moon Township.

The second consideration for the coverage needed is based on the size of the bride and groom’s family, the size of the bridal party, and the number of guests.  Large families and bridal parties require more time during family portraits.  And if the couple is planning to do a receiving line after the ceremony, that can take more time than expected depending on the number of guests.  This wedding had a small family and bridal party.  While they had around 150 guests, they did not do a receiving line and instead visited with their guests throughout the reception.

When considering a second shooter, there really are two main benefits: being able to simultaneously capture the bride and groom getting ready at separate locations and multiple angles during key parts of the ceremony.  For example, your primary photographer will want to be positioned at the front of the aisle for the processional, but a second shooter could be capturing moments with the bride and her father before walking down the aisle and then quickly capture the look on the groom’s face from just behind the bride and her father.  Being a single photographer at this wedding, I was able to capture the groom moments before his bride appeared and turned to capture her as she walked down the aisle.  Then as she got closer, I backed away from the groom to capture more of his reaction.

As a business owner, I’d rather not over-sell the need for longer coverage.  And it seems like most brides know when they want longer coverage, resulting in more photos delivered.  It’s when they’re not certain that 6 hours of coverage is enough, that these considerations come up.  For this recent Moon Township wedding, 6 hours of coverage was really fitting.  I’d rather see brides and grooms save money on wedding coverage and spend it on a beautiful album to remember it all by!