Another highlight

[BillGrant]

Hey Guys,
Here's another highlight from June. On this one, I tried a new technique at the end. Once I finished the piece, I applied color curves and a vignette to the whole piece. Then I went through and adjusted the clips to match the new contrast setup, etc. Anyway this is with the Canon A1 and no light at the reception. The bride picked the song btw. Thanks for comments in advance.
Bill
www.grantphotovideo.com/mandeemark

[Harley]

Bill,

In the opening I enjoyed the dips to black with the beat of the song.  The quick cuts work very well after Mandee reaches the alter.  I believe it was a shot of the couple, the minister, the couple kissing, and then them walking down the isle.  Cool style.

There were four shots in the piece that really stood out to me:
-The silhouette shot of Mandee and Mark kissing is gorgeous.
-I love the shot when Mark dips Mandee and kisses her.  These two shots are by far the most powerful shots in the piece.  It is a shame they are so quick.  I had to watch that part a few times because the shots were so good and I wanted to see why I was so drawn to them.  If you could extend them out more or feature them in the piece a bit more that would be great.   
-The tight shot on the back of the carriage as it drives away is very nice as well.
-I also like the shot of Mandee's back as you slowly reveal her in the full length mirror. 

I noticed a lot of hand held shots which you executed very well but I tend to like shots on a tripod more for the most part.  I almost never go hand held.  The only time I go hand held is during the dance portion of the reception.  I also tend to stay away from the zoom in a piece as much as possible.  I get around that by cutting to a different camera to cover up the zoom on the camera I am operating.  I only noticed that once in the piece (when the bride's maids are walking down the isle) so it is not a big deal.  Overall, great job!  Thanks for sharing.  I think it is a very nice piece.  The bride should be very happy with it. 

Do you run 3 or 4 cameras?

Melanie
   
 

[BillGrant]

Thanks Melanie,
I really appreciate the in depth comments. This was a fairly difficult piece for me, mainly because of the song, but I needed to hit several marks like the bride walking in as the music fades, etc. The dip shot actually ends with her veil dropping off, and I cut it right before that. In the main video, I leave that whole piece in there, and use their laughing etc. On the handheld shots, I have gotten so used to handheld shooting that I hardly evey use a tripod. I either use a monopod or shoulder mount for 90% of the day. The only time I use a tripod is during the ceremony. I have found that I like a very up close and live feel to what I do, and triopod shots look a bit too sterile and keep you a little farther out of the action. I agree with you also on the zooming, it is kindof like the rule of thirds, it's ok to break it but do it on pupose. Oh, and I ran 2 cameras during the ceremony and 1 otherwise. And I also shoot alone. Thanks again for the comments.
Bill

[damian]

Pretty nice mix....alot of good shots in there for sure.  Only thing that really stood out to me is, was their reception in a hotel room...LOL?  I know it's not, but that looks like such a small room..haha.

[osbornes5]

Bill, more of the great work I have come to expect from you. I'll limit my comments to a few simple  observations since it's almost church time:

-I understand the disclaimer on the choice of music for the piece.
-I really liked the silhouetted kissing shot in the window
-That HD footage is spectacular when the light is good but man when it goes down it begins to look pretty ordinary. To me it looks a little wahsed out. It looks like you may have boosted it in post which typically washes it out. Is that the case here? Would a little added saturation help that?

Great stuff though!

[Jordan Berry]

Footage looks great Bill! I really like how you let the transitions reflect the mood in that particular part of the song.

The only really complaint i have is that I thought some of the shots could have held out longer before being transitioned. An example would be the shot that showed the INN sign, ended too soon for me.

Oh and you had your XH A1 set up where you could see it while people were walking down the isle and I disliked that. However, I'm sure the bride and groom wouldn't notice something like that.

I really enjoy watching the free hand video and enjoy shooting it that way too. It doesn't always look as smooth as a tripod obviously but I think it's worth it.

What monopod / shoulder mount do you use? I'm considering investing in one since I do a lot of free hand work.