Becoming a 3rd shooter

I was thinking about asking a wedding photographer to be a 3rd shooter. Trade my pics for knowledge without pay. Is this normal? I've never done a wedding but would like to get into but would like to tag along with some one for a couple of years.

I'd personally have to know you to allow you to do this. If I was confident you'd A. not get in our way and B. Keep your distance I would probably be OK with it.

I know first shooters that bring 4 or 5 extra photographers to a wedding as an educational experience. However, the bride & groom would definitely have to be OK with that.

Some photographers may do it, but if it was my wedding I wouldn't want a 3rd shooter there. Might not even want a 2nd shooter.

We'd be willing to do it, but we'd need to carefully vet the potential shooter and of course clear it with the bride and groom ahead of time.

I got into wedding photography by partnering with a DJ.

In my market, a lot of weddings get a kick out of having zap shots - where a photographer working with the DJ takes candid shots and displays them on a flat screen TV. Those pictures are then given to the couple as part of their DJ package.

This eventually led to me partnering with a small venue, acting as their "house" photographer. It was an exciting process that really helped build my experience and portfolio.

mike3767 wrote in post #14497911
I was thinking about asking a wedding photographer to be a 3rd shooter. Trade my pics for knowledge without pay. Is this normal? I've never done a wedding but would like to get into but would like to tag along with some one for a couple of years.

This could work Mike - some may be open to it.

But keep in mind that if he plans to use your images it would involve integrating your shooting style and exposure methodology into his workflow "pictorial look." This may or may not work and could be more trouble for him than benefit for you.

I've second shot on and off for other pros in the area when the need arose - they contacted me because they needed another body due to the size of the job or other circumstances. But they knew my prior, how I worked, and what my personality was. We knew when to stay out of each other's way, and we could both anticipate the action and where to place ourselves. What I'm saying is that it's a lot about personality and the ability to play well with others .

CameraMan wrote in post #14498063
I know first shooters that bring 4 or 5 extra photographers to a wedding as an educational experience. However, the bride & groom would definitely have to be OK with that.

Alan makes a key point here - it may be fine as an educational experience for extra shooters to be tagging along but you don't want to turn it into a 3-ring circus for the B/G. As a B/G I'd be a little annoyed if anybody other than the first or maybe second shooter started managing my day with a lot of extra shots.