How to choose a great videographer.
Great, you’ve decided to have your wedding professionally video taped. Now what? Just how do you choose a great videographer? It’s true anyone can go to the “big box store” and buy a really great camcorder but that doesn’t make them a great videographer. That is like someone having a digital point and shoot camera and calling themselves a professional photographer. Would you hire them to photograph your wedding?
When picking a great wedding videographer think of it like choosing a photographer. It is often best search for both at the same time. Start off on the web of course. Most professional videographers have a web site, and on their site should be clips of their work. If you don’t see clips on their web site this should raise some concerns. The clips on line will allow you to see some of their work and will give you a good idea what their style is and if their style will fit what you have in mind for your wedding video.
Ask other brides, family or friends whom they have used in the past. Watch some wedding videos of friends who have gotten married. If you see one you like, ask who did the video and start there.
Here are some other questions you should ask yourself once you find a videographer:
- Are they professional? Just because they meet you at a coffee house doesn’t mean they aren’t professional. Some of my best consultations with brides were in coffee houses. Everyone is a bit more relaxed in a public setting. Plus if the coffee is good, that’s a bonus. Do they present themselves well? Do they understand what you are looking for in your video?
- Is the videographer knowledgeable? You’ll know right away on this one. A knowledgeable videographer will answer your questions without pause. They will listen to your ideas and know how to make them happen on your video.
- Most importantly, is the videographer’s service a reflection of their product? Look at the demo video and ask your self, “Is this video worth the cost they are asking for?”
Just as every wedding is different, so is every videographer. We all have different styles, techniques and taste. There are videographers that do a, for lack of a better term, “goofy” video. They put in silly graphics and sound effects. They have you do off the wall things and incorporate that into your video. While it may be fun to watch now, you have to wonder how much fun will be to watch in 20 years? Will it still mean the same thing to you then?
Other wedding videographers use a “canned” video style. This means they shoot the same shots every wedding, the same angles, the same thing every time. Then they go back to their studio and simply “drop” these shots in a pre-set timeline and burn a video. These types of videos you usually get back in about a couple of weeks. These are the videographers who have no idea how to edit a video. Basically, they bought a pre-set timeline will all the graphics set so that they can get a video out quickly. You want someone who not only knows how to shoot video but who can edit them as well. I will explain more on that in a moment.
Another type of wedding video is what I like to call a “classic” video. This is just another way of saying “documentary” style. The day is captured as it happens, no staged events, no silly antics. Just the videographer capturing the day as it happens. I like to call it “Classic” because to me, this will be something you can watch in 20 years and still be able to relive the day with all the emotion and feeling that was present at the time.
We all use the same basic type of equipment: 3 chip digital cameras, wireless microphones and heavy-duty tripods. Don’t get me wrong, the equipment is important. Most videographers spend anywhere from $15,000 to $30,000 on equipment, but just having the equipment alone doesn’t make them a great wedding videographer. What kind of experience do they have? How many weddings have they done? Do they do this full time or part time on the weekends to supplement their full time job? What do they edit their video with? Do they use the software that came with the computer or do they have a professional grade editing system?
Above all else, don’t ask for a demo video. Let me repeat that; DON’T ask for a demo video. A demo video is nothing more than a short video of all the best clips they can put together. This is not a true reflection of the videographers work. When I first started out shooting weddings professionally, the first two wedding I shot was for free. I made a deal with the brides that I would shoot their wedding and edit it together for free with the understanding that I could use the footage to help promote myself. It worked. The next 12 weddings I booked were based on the demo video I put together from those two wedding.
Instead of a demo video, ask to see a copy of their last wedding. A professional videographer will have no problem with this. In most cases when they meet with you for your consultation, they will have copies of their recent weddings with them to show you. This wedding video will give you a true sense of their work and how well they edit the video and compile it together.
Last, but by no means least, are they an editor? Most new computers come with a preloaded video editing software. Mac’s have iMovie and PC’s have VideoMaker. These are great software programs for the novice. They are not, however, made to edit a wedding or any professional video. There are two editing software that are industry standard, Avid and Final Cut Pro. Both of these editing programs are designed for the professional editor and require a lot of training before you can use them correctly.
One of the most important elements of these two software programs is the ability to correct color. Let me explain why this is important: you have picked out the prefect white dress for your big day. The church is set and ready. You walk down the aisle a true vision of beauty. When you get your video and watch it for the first time your white dress now looks yellow, a pale yellow. Your pictures show your dress is white, why does the video show it a pale yellow? The simple answer is the lighting in the church. Most indoor venues use fluorescent lighting. This is great for energy savings, but they are awful for weddings. The lights give off a yellowish green color thus turning your dress a pale yellow. Using a professional editing system by a trained editor, that color can be corrected back to the white you remember your dress being.
I know that I have given you a lot of information, but choosing a great videographer is more than just asking what they charge to shoot your wedding. Price is not, and should not, be the only thing you use when choosing a videographer. You are not paying for a service; you are investing in a family heirloom that you can share for years to come. Most brides say they look at the video as much as they look at their rings, plus, the video will last as long as the rings.
