Do you really need two photographers on your wedding day?

Instead of our Picture of the Day blog, I have decided to write about an important topic for brides to consider.  Do you really need two photographers on your wedding day?  Only you can answer what is right for you, but I hope I can help make that decision easier by writing this blog.

The most obvious reason to have two photographers is that you will have double the coverage.  While Trisha is taking pictures of the bride and bridesmaids getting ready, I am with the groom and groomsmen.  When we split up, you get coverage that you wouldn't get with one photographer.  If your groom is getting his boutonniere pinned on him, while your mom is putting your veil on you, the only way to capture both of those moments for you, is to have two photographers.

We also work together, and there is an added benefit here, too.  When we are taking your park pictures, one of us can hold a diffuser or reflector to improve the quality of your images.  We are able to take the same pictures from two different perspectives.  Trisha and I have very different styles, and taking the same pictures results in two vastly different images for you.

Because Trisha and I have two very different styles, hiring us is truly like hiring two photographers.  If you hire someone else, whose second shooter was trained to shoot the same as the main shooter, you will have more images and more coverage, but not the same variety that we offer.  I shoot more traditional images and posed portraiture, while Trisha is more contemporary with a love for candid and detail photography.  This translates into great portraits and lots of journalistic coverage of your day, which go together wonderfully in your wedding album!

All of those reasons above are great reasons to hire two photographers for your wedding day, but there is another reason, and one that no bride (or photographer, for that matter) wants to talk about.  Missed shots.  Every wedding photographer understands that your wedding day is a once-in-a-lifetime event, and most of us thrive on the pressure - that's why we're wedding photographers.  But, with all of the experience and planning and preparation, there will still be times when circumstances get in the way, and a photographer can miss a shot.  The circumstances can be an equipment malfunction, guest interference, unexpected (for the photographer) events, or simultaneous photo opportunities.  Whatever the reason, with two photographers, we're less likely to miss something big on your wedding day.

I mentioned equipment malfunction in the previous paragraph.  We have back up cameras, lenses, flashes.  We're prepared for malfunctions.  Every wedding photographer should have this equipment.  If your photographer doesn't have back up equipment, this should be a red flag for you.  It's wedding photography 101, make sure you have back up equipment!  We do.  But, wedding photographers will also agree, that the most important tool I have, is me.  My brain.  My creative talent.  And, when you hire two photographers, you are allowing us to have a back up photographer, too.

Maybe you're reading this, and thinking to yourself, "I don't need coverage of the boutonnieres, and I love candid style, and don't need traditional, posed portraits.  Heather, this doesn't apply to me.  I only need one photographer."  That's great!  You can likely save money by hiring only one photographer.  I have photographed weddings by myself before, and it is entirely possible to get a lot of great pictures from one photographer and save money by doing so.  I can't think of any other benefits to having only one photographer.

Whatever you decide, we hope your wedding day is the day of your dreams!