I get to see more wedding videos, by more videographers, than most, so you might like to know how they range and what the common features are, if any..

Let me start off by saying that I have purchased the offerings of award-winning "experts" who charge $10,000+ for wedding videos, thinking that surely these will make will make good benchmarks. NOT! Somehow, it would appear, the wedding video industry has put little emphasis on the basics like exposure, focus and composition and little emphasis on something that all other forms of videography and filmmaking hold as a holy grail - "story telling".

TILTS; SLOW-MO; B&W & BLURS

Instead, what is held in high esteem is dutch tilts, black and white, slow-motion and an occasional mild gausian blur - all things that could be added in post, so why should it even matter who handles the cameras? Now, I'm not saying that these effects don't have their place, just not overdone and not throughout the entire wedding video when doing long-form style.

It appears that many wedding videographers have taken this "lesson" to heart by forgoing storytelling, paying no mind to composition and totally ignoring technical issues like audio, exposure, focus and white balance, and I see more shaky camera work than anyone should have to expect from a "professional". Yes, there are times we must get off the sticks, but not for an entire long-form wedding video, not through the whole ceremony - and even those times should be fairly steady.

Fancy effects and blurred, slow-mo, tilted shots do not, in themselves, add up to good work, in fact, from what I'm seeing, they can often detract more than they help tell the story.

A-FEW THINGS

First and foremost, the technical issues must be done properly. Remember an earlier article I wrote here that preached "A-FEW Things to Remember", with 'A-FEW' being an acronym for audio; focus; exposure; white balance. If any of these are not right, then you do not have a professional wedding video.

COMPOSITION

The next biggest problem I see is composition. I sometimes wonder if someone has gone through all the libraries and book stores and burned all copies relating to composition. Nearly every commercial you watch, every tv series and every movie has wonderful composition. So why is it that so many "professional wedding videos" look like Uncle Herbert framed them?

And why am I seeing wedding videos with no close-ups at all, or only one or two? The close-up is where video really shines. Replace some of those b&w, dutch-tilt, slo-mo scenes with a close-up or two to really put the wow factor in your videos.

AUDIO - HOW MANY MICS?

And don't even get me started on audio. The vast majority of wedding videographers feel that one or two wireless mic sets is sufficient. (See Wedding Videographer Survey ). Since they pay so little attention to audio, they probably wouldn't hear me if I shouted "Every important sound source needs a microphone within twenty-four inches or less!".

True, some news people and documentarians can't always take time to mic people, and they sometimes use shotgun mics for these run-and-gun situations. During receptions, we use shotguns as backups also, but as "backups" only. Consider that we have already tapped the sound board or dropped a lav over the DJ's speaker or both AND if mic stands are being used, we'll setup our own mic stand next to it or piggyback our mic with the DJ's mic. Where there is speaking or singing that isn't already covered by a mic and a backup, we'll have one of the shotguns get as close as possible. Our audio is nearly always crisp and clear. We take the time to turn up the guests audio track when there is laughter or applause at the ceremony, then turn it back down again when the officiant speaks. (Yes, we have a mic to get the guests' audio!)

I can't count the times I've heard wedding videographers say that there is no need to mic the minister because he stands so close to the groom. First, there IS a difference. Even when they are fairly close, the minister's voice will be clearer, crisper, on his own mic than on the groom's. Second, the minister often speaks very loudly, while the couple often speaks meekly. You'll likely to either have to boost the couples' voices a bunch (and thus encounter difficulty with ambient and other noise) or the officiant will clip - and there is no cure for that. Thirdly, there will be many ceremonies you'll shoot where the minister is fifteen feet or more away from the groom, yet he is speaking. Tell me THAT is going to sound crisp!

So, you definitely do need to mic both groom and minister. Now, is there someone else who will do some reading or a homily? That person must be miked also. Is there a string quartet? A singer, etc.? All need microphones. To get an idea of what a singer might sound like through the groom's mic, order one of my complete wedding video DVDs with my "How to Choose a Wedding Videographer" video, where I have the singer on her own mic, then on the groom's for comparison.

Camera jib at ceremony

COVERAGE

We used to cover receptions with just two cameras, both manned. Then we went to three, with the third on sticks, covering wide - usually the dancefloor or the cake, etc. Now, where possible, we use a camera jib to get greater height for that third camera. You'd be surprised at not just how often it has the only shot for a few seconds, but also at how often it has the best shot. (By the way, this jib cam is often the best for getting the guests audio, since it isn't too close to any one person.) Not even the news talking heads are shot with just one camera. Your audience is accustom to viewing from multiple angles. Why should a wedding video be different? With one wide on a jib, one manned on a tripod and one shoulder-mounted, running free - you at least better your odds of shooting more than the photographers' butts.

CERTIFICATION - PASSING OR NOT

I've had a submission of a wedding videographer newbie's first wedding video, done with just two cameras - a prosumer cam and a consumer cam, and it passed for certification. I've also had one from a twelve-year veteran that didn't even come close to passing. Occasionally, I'll see a wedding video that makes me say, "Wow! I want mine to look like that!". I want to see more like those. That's what our goal is here, to help the pros differentiate themselves from the pack and to help those who want to improve (and don't we all want to improve?).

In short, get your technical stuff right - 'A-FEW' things! Watch your composition, and remember to tell a good story.

- Hank Castello

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Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved.