Last year, we introduced you to The Art of the Second Shot with Easton Reynolds. The art of finding a second shot or angle/composition on the same subject challenges wedding photographers to see “beyond what is right in front of them.” Many of you submitted your best Second Shots on The Art of the Second Shot Facebook group, which consists of over 4000 photographers. Here are our favorites from the latest selection. Congratulations to the winners! (See Round 1 results here.)
Winner – Laura Robinson
“At sunset, I took my couple outdoors to capture a few more images during golden hour. Their venue, an Embassy Suites hotel, is directly across the interstate from the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. In order to create something truly outside the box, I knew that it was going to revolve around a silhouette. After taking the “safe” sunset photos, I was able to enhance the already beautiful image by transforming it into pure black and white. An accidental slip of the vignetting slider in Lightroom completely changed the image. Not every incredible photo is in-camera… sometimes, they can be ‘happy little accidents’ in post-processing, a la Bob Ross.”
Settings
- ISO 100
- 1/160
- F/6.3
Gear used
- Nikon D750 with 24-70 mm 2.8 lens
- Processed with Adobe Lightroom CC
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/laurarobinsonphoto
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/laurarobinsonphoto
- Website: http://www.laurarobinsonphoto.com
2. Jennifer Ludwig
“There was a TON of space behind the bride and groom during toasts which almost never happens. I loved that the Best Man and the Maid of Honor both stood up there together. Since they were standing in front of the B+G I knew I could compose the shot to incorporate all of the important people for a nicely layered photograph. When the MOH reacted to the Best Man’s speech I knew this would be a really great memory.”
Settings
- ISO 1000
- 1/200th
- f/2.8
Gear Used
- Canon Mark III
- 85mm f1.2L II USM
- Bare Speedlights Crosslit
Social Media/Contact Links
3. Jeroen Van Eck
“This shot was taken at the end of a shoot in a carpark. When we drove out of the park I noticed a stairway. The first shot I took was a shot where they both were standing in de stairway. For the second shot, i put him in front of the wall with a flash behind him pointed against the wall with a blue gel. In the stairway, I placed a purple gelled flash behind the lady. Just a creative outburst and willing to take a last awesome shot.”
Settings
- ISO 200
- 1/125
- f/4.5
Gear Used
- Canon 5D MKII Sigma art 35mm
- Sigma Art 35mm
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram: @vonjecks
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/vonjecks
4. Amy Santos
“I already loved my “safe shot” from the front and back for this bridal photo. I had two lights set up high off camera at about 45 degrees to the right and left pointing down directly at the bride. Each had a Magmod grid on the end.
When I walked to the side I thought about the “second shot” and switched my lens to a 50mm but changed nothing else.”
Settings
- ISO 500
- f/4.5
- 1/400sec
- Flash power 1/64 and 1/32
Gear Used
- Canon 5D Mark III
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram: @PhotographerAmy
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElizabethBirdsongPhotography
- Website: http://elizabethbirdsongphotography.com
5. Nelson Santos
“It was over 100degrees at the park, and I had to really get the best out of the short time I was given. As the couple was walking back to the limo, i asked the gentleman to help her with the dress … i ran down the hill, and from about 80ft away i got this image. Decided to go with a natural light silhouette to bring the detail in the sky.”
Settings
- ISO 200
- F/5.6
- 1/3200
Gear Used:
- Sony A7s Zeiss 35mm 1.4
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram: @nefsantos
- Website: www.distilledemotionphotography.com
6. Mark Willis
“Had the couple placed here at first doing a natural light shot, and looked over and see a chandelier hanging from an arch way. It was glowing orange from the setting sun, so I set up a ladder, and framed them through the glowing chandelier crystals. Had a flash outside the frame camera right with a mag sphere, 1/2CTO to match the suns warmth, and a grid.”
Settings
- ISO 125
- F/4
- 1/200 sec
Gear Used
- Canon 5D Mark III
- Tamron 70-200 VC
Social Media/Contact Links
- Website: www.markwillisphotography.ca
7. Joey Bleiler
“After the tragic shooting in the Orlando nightclub, the rainbow flag made an appearance in many different places. We came up with an idea for this nighttime photograph for the same-sex wedding we were photographing.
The idea was to find a location that represents love for one another and what better place than Independence Hall in Philadelphia. We lit each column with different color gels to make the rainbow flag, using 6 Nikon SB 910‘s. We composited the silhouette as the extra light for the subject.”
Settings
- ISO 1250
- f/ 3.2
- 0.4 sec (with tripod)
Gear Used
- Nikon D750
- Nikon 14 mm 2.8
(To keep the image from motion blur we used the Wifi in the settings and shot from the Nikon Wireless Mobile Utility App on an iPhone.)
Social Media/Contact Links
8. Chad Winstead
“As the sunlight was fading fast, it left us with a nice pastel orange backdrop on the beach dunes. However, I wanted to make the couple pop with the orange tones of the sky and do something different other than a traditional silhouette. Using a MagMod sphere and 1/2 CTO gel, I was able to balance the tones exactly how I wanted and give the couple a nice glow just enough to see a part of their face and add some emotion to the image. Just a slight bump in the Shadows and minimal added vibrance/contrast in post and the image was perfect for my liking.”
Settings
Off Camera Right about 4 feet behind the couple and 7 feet in the air.
- ISO 400
- 200mm
- f/3.5
- 1/200
Gear Used
- Nikon D750
- Nikon 70-200 f2.8 VR2
- Godox v850 flash
- Phottix Stratto II Trigger/Receiver
- MagMod Sphere
- MagMod 1/2 CTO gel
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram: @ChadWinsteadPhoto
- Facebook: www.Facebook.com/ChadWinsteadPhotoVideo
- Website: www.ChadWinsteadPhotography.com
9. Darren Carter
“Shot at The Boathouse in Norfolk, UK, this venue typically sees beautiful sunsets. Unfortunately for the couple (and us), the skies filled with rain starting with the ceremony, and that beauty of a sunset was never going to be in the cards. So rather than be disappointed, we decided to use the rain to our advantage. Waiting until later into the night, we set up a flash gun in its little rain jacket, grabbed our white brollies from the car, and took the couple out right onto the end of the jetty. Set behind the couple at waist height, we blasted the flash at about a 45-degree angle up at the couple, catching the rays in the brollies and lighting up all the individual rain drops. Oh…and as for the bokeh? That I really love, but I’ve got my brother to thank for that – after a few shots he moved the brolly away from over me, and a few drops hit the lens. So that bokeh? A total fluke, But it added that little extra I think?”
Settings
- ISO100
- 1/160
- 16mm
Gear Used
- Nikon D750
- Nikon 16-35 f4 lens @ f7.1
- Nikon SB600 at full power
Social Media/Contact Links
- Instagram : @butterflyeffect_photography
- Facebook:www.facebook.com/butterflyeffectstudios
- Twitter: @_realitypaused
- Website: www.realitypaused.com
10. LuRey Photography – Easton and Laura
“Typically we don’t get excited for the champagne toast the limo driver normally wants the B&G to do before they drive off. Instead of just shooting the couple next to the car in direct sunlight, we decided to shoot through the car to include it in a different way.”
Settings
- ISO100
- 1/1000
- f3.2
Gear Used
- Nikon D750
- Nikon 24-70 f 2.8
Social Media/Contact Links
- Website: www.lureyphotography.com
