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Second Shooting a 9 hour day coverage wedding - A timeless Church ceremony in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and a Wadhurst Castle reception

Second Shooting for the wonderful Terri Pashley <3

I absolutely love second shooting weddings. Second shooting means that a main photographer has a wedding client booked for a date, and hires a second photographer for the day to take additional images throughout, of which are all handed straight to the main photographer at the end of the day for them to edit into their gallery that they'll send to their client. Some photographers hate second shooting, saying it's more stressful than shooting your own wedding booking because it's for another photographer, and there's more pressure. But for me, apart from the fact that I do miss being the one to have 100% creative control of the day, I love SS weddings; I get to meet other wonderful photographers, I can relax, and I get to be a part of beautiful weddings where I can shoot freely and outside the box, focus on capturing candids of guests, and not be totally caught up in capturing what I would normally have to capture when shooting a wedding by myself. I can get different perspectives than I normally would, shoot from further afield, get a wider view and get more aquatinted with the guests themselves. Some of the conversations I've had with guests as a second shooter have been riveting, specifically one being a famous artist, and showed me work that descended through their family from Monet himself!!

Would I recommend having a second shooter for your wedding? Yes. Absolutely. Because whilst you'll get close main focus images of your day having one photographer, a second shooter will get you an abundance more images that are often overlooked moments of the day, moments that happen where the main photographer physically cannot be; candids of guests whilst the main photographer is doing family portraits, capturing groom prep whilst the main captures bridal prep, or decor details whilst the main captures romantic portraits and so on.

In my pricing brochure, I have the full layout of hiring a second shooter, and so if this is something you'd be interested in when booking a wedding with me, be sure to let me know as soon as possible so that I can secure a great second shooter before they get booked up - I have personally worked with some wonderful photographers who I know would make perfect second shooters to my packages! Photographers who I would now call close friends, which absolutely fills my heart<3

H & E's special day was a calling for elegance and traditional British charm. Their mornings began with preparations in two beautiful settings; the main lead photographer, Terri, beautifully captured bridal prep at the bride's home, whilst I met with the guys at their hotel, Hotel Du Vin, in Tunbridge Wells, to capture their getting ready process. The room delivered a gorgeously refined luxurious backdrop to groom prep, providing generous space to capture the guys doing up their ties, fastening cufflinks, and putting on their waistcoats & tailcoats. And of course, they were also watching the football game (their teams scored, and they were very happy lads)! There's always time for football, even with a wedding ceremony rapidly approaching😂

The ceremony took place in the beautiful St Peter and St Paul church, in Wadhurst. The atmosphere inside was incredible, made even more special by the uplifting choir that H used to be a part of singing beautiful hymns throughout the ceremony. Heartfelt and joyous, their ceremony was a religious ceremony, meaning it lasted around 50 minutes. Plenty of time for me to quietly sneak around the church and get all the back angles that are impossible for a lead photographer to get alone in a church ceremony, where really you're kind of stuck behind the couple, unable to move forwards due to the priest being stood in the only entry / exit.

Following the ceremony, the guests made their way up the hill to Wadhurst Castle for an unforgettable reception, whilst the newly weds got a ride in their breathtaking vintage Rolls Royce (!!) to the top. Wadhurst castle is simply a location that had my jaw floored. As featured in "The Crown", this historical castle with stone walls of pure grandure boasts 140 acres of land, holding 6 unique gardens, and 4 huge beautifully decorated rooms, not to mention the barn for the reception dinner, holding up to 100 guests.

Greeted by an incredible singer / musician , the guests chatted in the castle Victorian Winter Gardens with drinks and canapés, until it was time for the laughter inducing speeches and wedding breakfast in the beautiful barn.

After a stunning cake cutting, the guests all then headed into the party room, wherein the DJ played the best naughties era tunes, and you can imagine how amazing the dancelfoor became! You cannot beat a naughties era dance floor vibe, and of course myself and Terri had a good old sing along together when Dancing Queen blasted out.

Terri, thank you for trusting me to be your second shooter for the day! I had such a blast with you, and absolutely can't wait for our next upcoming wedding together this coming August🤍

If you're looking for a wedding photographer for your special day at Wadhurst Castle, or are interested in hiring a second photographer alongside your package, I'd love get chatting all things wedding with you! Get in touch here!

Sending love,

Jess🤍