Tips on Choosing a Wedding Videographer
When choosing a videographer it is important to realize that there are probably video companies in your area that can make a video of your wedding day that will resemble a Hollywood movie while there are others that don't do much better than your friends or relatives could do with their simple camcorders and tripods. It is becoming more common for couples to spend less on a wedding photographer and more for a video company since the quality of video has become so professional. Especially if you have your video made on DVD, you can have extremely good television image quality, music, sound, and motion, and a menu that allows you to skip around to watch different sections without having to fast forward and rewind. These are characteristics that simply don't exist with a set of photographs. With this in mind, many couples are hiring a photographer for an hour or two to take some professional photographs to hang on the wall and put in their wallets but are relying on their professional video to remind them of the happy tears, funny bloopers, vows, toasts and speeches, and all the other emotions shared with their friends and loved ones on that special day. In addition, having your wedding put on DVD ensures its longevity so your great grandchildren will be able to virtually feel like they were with you as they watch your wedding movie.
Here are some things to consider when choosing a video company:
- Samples! Samples! Samples! Be sure to ask to see recent wedding videos from each company you consider. You don't have to watch the entire video of course, but if you only watch the demos they choose to show you, be aware you are watching their best work. By asking to see whole projects they have completed, then telling them where and when to skip around on it, you will see a better cross section of their average work.
- There are many different video formats in use today, but the ones most commonly used by wedding videographers are VHS, S-VHS, and DV. VHS is the lowest quality of the three and S-VHS is just a little better. The latest and by far the best is DV, (digital video). Unlike the other two, DV can be recopied over and over without losing any quality, but just as important, its image quality is far superior. If you want a wedding movie that has the look, sound, and emotional feel of a movie made in Hollywood, you'll need your wedding captured with DV and delivered to you on DVD.
- Some video companies flaunt their equipment. Of course good equipment is necessary, but there is also skill, talent and creativity involved in the art of movie making. The best way for potential customers to judge what a company can do is simply to look at many samples of finished products. If a company representative starts telling you all about their equipment, simply ask them to just show you what they can do with it.
- There are mainly two methods of videotaping a wedding ceremony in use today. One is called live switching with multiple cameras and a better choice for the consumer is a multiple camera setup that will be edited later. Live switching requires cables to be run throughout the church to connect the various equipment and this can be messy. One person watches all the cameras on monitors and edits live by switching between them during the ceremony. This requires making instant editing decisions and all the edited video is instantly sent to one recording tape. The advantage to the company is that no editing has to be done later and this is a great time saving and money making device for them. The disadvantage to the customer is that it is hard to make the best decisions instantly, and it won't be viewed again later by an editor and fine tuned. The higher quality method is where each camera records its own tape because this allows an editor to take the best from each tape later, at the studio, without being rushed to make instant decisions. Your guests will also appreciate not having to worry about tripping over cords running throughout the church. Which method is used by a company might be an indicator of their attitude towards making a quality product versus doing less work.
- There are mainly three methods of capturing sound at the ceremony. The worst way is to rely on the mics built into the camcorder since the camcorders are never close enough to the sound to do a good job. The second worse way is to use wireless mics. Wireless mics transmit a signal through the air to a receiver that is usually monitored by the video company.
This signal can be interfered with by fluorescent lights, other signals coming from the minister's wireless mic, other nearby churches or even ham radio operators. Even though the video company may be monitoring the signal, once it is interfered with there is little to nothing that can be done to stop the interference in time to get good sound on tape. The best method is to use a later technology; digital sound recorders. These devices are so small they can be placed in the groom's pocket, another one at the podium, and still another where there may be singers / musicians. The sound is recorded digitally onto a disk and can be transferred to a computer where the video will also be transferred to for editing. This method is obviously more time consuming for the video company in that the best sound is not already on the tape with the video and has to be added and synchronized later, but is the least risky method and results in extremely high quality sound. When viewing a company's samples, be sure to ask to see sections containing vows, readers, and singers / musicians and pay close attention to what it sounds like. - Some video companies will edit your wedding video down to a half hour while others will give you four or more hours of footage. Most of the people we have posed this "how much is the right amount" question to have stated that a half hour is not enough and four hours gets boring. An hour and a half to two hours is the answer we get most often, but then again it seems like Hollywood has known that for years.
- Some companies, as an option, will start your movie with a section containing the bride's and groom's baby and childhood pictures, and then dating pictures. When added to music and romantic effects, this can tell a heart warming story of how the two grew up separately, came together and fell in love and are now getting married. (Many couples are having this section made in advance and showing it at their reception). Honeymoon pictures taken by the bride and groom can be added at the end of the movie in the same way.
- It is important for you to look at how a video company makes their movies flow. Some companies start the movie with a preview section and end it with a highlight section. The way these sections are put together, and how well the movie flows will really show you how creative a company can be.
- Some companies deliver the final product much more quickly than others. If this is important to you, be sure to ask about this.
- Contracts and payment policies vary greatly. Be sure to read the contract before signing and don't forget to ask about the payment policy. Most responsible companies will require a deposit. Some companies will want to be paid fully in advance and others will have some kind of payment schedule.
Watch wedding video!