What to tell your videographer
Why do you want a wedding film?
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It might seem obvious, but there are so many reasons why people opt to have a wedding film. Maybe it's for absent family and friends, or maybe it's a private romantic keepsake for you as a couple... Or maybe you can't bear missing out on what's happening elsewhere? No reason is stupid, but it's important to know as this will set the style and the content of the film, and possibly the length of it too.
to get the best wedding film, your videographer needs to know you...
Where do you expect the film to be seen?
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If you talk to your videographer about what you're like, and what you like, you stand a far better chance of getting a wedding film that you love, possibly more than you ever dreamed of.
Having a wedding film is an incredibly personal thing, and I always think a film that hits the spot, is one that reveals the personalities of the people there on the day, and the emotions you and others felt, as well as capturing all the action.
Scroll down to see more information on the different styles and lengths of wedding films that are available...
Maybe it's to show off on social media, or maybe you're having a second wedding (quite common for international or fusion weddings) and need to be able to show the film on a large screen or to project it on the wall at the next venue. Regardless, it really helps me to know who will be seeing your film and where...
What do you expect to see in the film?
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Maybe you want the best bits and the general feeling of each part of the day. or perhaps you want indepth coverage, from different angles. Do you want everything from bridal preparation to the fireworks at the end of the night? And if there are particular members of your family, or long lost friends coming over, that you really want to feature in your film, be sure to mention them, so I know to include them.
What's your budget?
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If you've got questions about wedding films or the process, please get in touch with me...
Wedding videos are very labour intensive, and almost all of the work is actually done after the wedding, in the edit and there are a lot more elements in the mix than with photography. As there are unavoidable costs (the preparation, filming, backing up and review of the footage) which are the same for all shoots, a short wedding film might sound quite expensive. Generally speaking, the longer or more videos you have, the cheaper the overall price.
Storytelling
What style of wedding video do you want?
Often this style will use a speech, or a letter, or the vows from the day as a starting point to tell the story of the day, and it may follow a linear timeline or be mixed up. It often blends documentary and cinematic styles to show the emotions as well as what happened on the day.
Documentary
Documentary style films generally follow a linear chronological timeline of the day, and filming the action as it unfolds, with no staging or posing, literally as it happens.
Cinematic
When someone refers to cinematic style footage, often the film focuses on the feelings and emotion of the day rather than a linear timeline. They use shot angles, colour grading and transitions that mimic those used in movie films.
How long should your wedding films be?
Feature Film
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The feature film is the longest film I provide and generally it's about 20 to 25 minutes long and use the storytelling style, blending a chronological clips from the day with cinematic shots, and with audio pulling all of it together, as well as including licensed music to overlay the ambient sound.
Highlights film
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My highlights film is generally around five minutes long, uses both ambient sound, audio and music overlay. I like to include the best bits from the whole day in this film—after all this is very likely the film you'll show off to your friends and family, unless they've specifically said they want to see a feature film.
Teaser | Trailer Film
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A teaser or trailer film is usually produced very soon after the wedding and is short—usually 1 minute or less, although sometimes it might stretch to a couple of minutes. It's usually either a sequence of the best shots of the day, or focuses on one particular part of the day. Because they're so short, they may just have music overlay; other times they may be mainly audio from the day.
The terms 'Teaser', 'Trailer', 'highlights', and 'feature film' seem to vary in meaning so much depending on which videographer you're talking to... here I explain what these terms mean for my films...
More helpful information for your wedding videographer...
How many locations are there?
It goes without saying that if you're using just one location for everything from bridal preparation to the evening celebrations, a solo videographer can capture much more of the day than if you're using multiple locations for bride and groom preparations, the ceremony and the reception, as they'll have travel time to factor in.
Depending on how far away the different locations are, you may have to compromise on what can be filmed, or opt to have a second shooter if you want some things caught on film.
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What's your timeline?
A rough idea is fine, you don't have to have these set in stone, but it's enormously helpful to have these in advance, for preparing in advance for where to be when. Bear in mind the videographer needs to be everywhere beforehand to set up the camera or cameras so they're all ready to roll.
I've always been super-organised and I know it helps me become more 'invisible' so you don't even know I'm there sometimes!
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Tell me about you...
What are you like? How did you meet, fall in love and end up getting married? What have been the high and low moments in your life? Who and what matters most to you, and why? Are you an introvert or extrovert? A glass half-full or a glass half-empty kinda person?
I'd love to hear your stories, and your family stories, what brings a tear to your eye, a lump to your throat, or makes you laugh? What do you wish for in the years to come? The more you reveal, the more meaningful your film will be to you and everyone you know.
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