Comments On My Wedding Video Montage

[andybiz_2005]

Hi friends,

I'm a pretty new wedding videographer & have posted a short 2 min wedding video montage :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5b4QDX6GC0


2.9MBs in size, MPEG2 format.

I recorded in 50i interlaced, set the matrix to Norm2, which gives more vibrant colors. In the outdoor wedding shoot, I used 1/64 ND filter & adjusted my iris for optimum exposure. The uploaded is not ultra sharp due to video comperession.

Please feel free to comment, criticise & give suggestions for improvement on my montage. Areas to comment on can include :

Camera angles used as in composing (whether suitable or not)
Colors, whether they're vibrant & vivid
Jerkiness, whether video was steady, or excessively jerky
Artistic or not artistic enough, boring, or interesting
Over use of zooms or pans, or not enough of them
Does my montage tell a meaningful story, or no storyline whatsoever
Appropriate transitions used throughout
Suitability of music to wedding montage
Lighting alright, or too dark, too overexposed, etc

What overall rating would you give this montage : 1 star the worst rating, 5 stars the best rating.

I welcome comments from you all so that I can greatly improve. Thanks in advance.

Andrew

[mystico]

Overall, I thought this was a quick moving, vibrant video montage. Decent colours, though I think youtube's compression likely took alot away from the original. Good framing of shots. As for editing, I think you overdid it a bit with transitions. Stick mostly to cuts and dissolves ... maybe throw in a few slides and wipes in a moving piece like this one. Otherwise it looks like you're just searching for transitions to throw in.

I'm too sleepy to comment on other stuff. I think I've said that on enough posts now that I should probably go to sleep. Nice work.

[sonic freak]

good job overall. I like the quick cuts. But I agree with what mystico said about transitions. remember, do your editing so that people don't notice your editing. btw, hows the pay on those weddings?

[andybiz_2005]

Thanks mystico & sonic freak for your honest feedback on my montage.

Yep, that's true, because of the MPEG2 compression, the sharpness was lost, but the original is clear & crisp as ever. Yeah, I do agree with both of you that I used too many transitions & they looked pretty obvious that they're in there. I actually used the "Cross Dissolve" transition in Adobe Premiere Pro.

Concerning the pay, these 2 wedding you just saw were done for free. But the couples gave me permisison to show portions of their wedding video (the best parts ofcourse) to future clients. The couples were very appreciative when I gave them the rendered full-length DVDs. These were my 1st two wedding shots when I first started actually. But now I charge from $1600 to $2200 for a full-day wedding ceremony plus dinner depending on couple's budgets, requirements, etc.

Actually after reviewing the video montage a few times myself, I thought that I had included too many shots of the couple kissing, esp the outdoor wedding. Do you think the kissing part was a tat bit overdone? To me, I think so. Thanks again for your feedback. Perhaps you can also show me some of your work.

[andybiz_2005]

1 tip I found extremely effective in steadying moving shots are to have my DVX mounted on my tripod. I then loosen all the locking screws so that the camera can pan & tilt freely. Then I retract all 3 tripod legs & close them so they're together. With my right hand in the camera saddle, the DVX 3.5" flip-out screen opened & my left hand grasping the closed tripod legs, I found I can dolly around the walking couple & still obtain super steady shots. So instead of using a SteadyCAM, both my hands act like the SteadyCAM isolating the motion from my walking body. But I choose a light tripod, so that my hands don't ache so much on extended handheld shots.

[mystico]

Your idea about tripod use is basically turning the tripod into a monopod. Works quite well as you stated. Check out the samples page on my website. I also posted my Highlights reel here and got quite good and thorough criticism. I too overdid it a bit, not with transitions but with Fx. I also learned to do more close-ups, which you seemed to have captured well already.

I too am a newbie to the wedding and event video scene. I've only done two weddings professionally and a retirement party. The first wedding was a freebie for my niece. Gave her a great video and me some footage for use in demos and such. Anyway, great work. Watch lots of footage online--especially from established wedding videographers. Check these two out. They're currently on my most wannabelike list ... www.blueskiescinema.com (http://www.blueskiescinema.com) and www.dvideography.com (http://www.dvideography.com).

[andybiz_2005]

Wow! That's great. Well, we are all learning to be better than the previous shooting :) Yep, you said the word aptly, a monopod. I described it the roundabout way. There is one wedding montage that won the artistic awards & this guy used a lot of FX, but they seemed to just fit in to the theme & occassion of the wedding. Here's the link : http://www.4evergroup.org/artisticachievementawards.html

What you need to do is scroll the page down to "WEDDING POST-CEREMONY PRODUCTION" then the "view sample" link that comes under :

Diamond Winner
DMB Video Productions
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Walter Chelliah
Tyson Wedding

His is the best, most creative montage I've seen, with lots of effects. Spent a long time on it too. He used Adobe Premiere 6.0 as NLE (according to him version 6.0 gives better slow-mo than version Pro 1.5) & plenty of After Effects.

Yep, will take time to visit your website.

Actually I frequent www.youtube.com & search for wedding videos to watch. Most of them, honestly are quite bland. Oh well.

[spotlightpro]

The two best wedding videography sites I have seen are http://www.petermackstudios.com and http://www.iriscinema.com

[spotlightpro]

I watched your video and I think you made the "mistake" that most wedding videographers make: trying too hard w/ too many effects. The reason I put "mistake" in quotes is that it is a subjective thing and some may prefer it. However, if you want to get into the high end (2 previous websites I gave you would be an example) stuff, you have to keep it simple. Editing should simply be finding the right cuts to use at the right time. Let your camera work, angles, close ups, movement, tell the story. So many wedding videographers try to throw in as many transitions/effects as they can and it ends up being a cheezy music video that happen to have a bride and groom in it. Keep it simple. Keep the shots stable, find the best angles, play with the focus, use CC'ing in your edits, and keep your effects to a minimum.

My 2 cents.

[andybiz_2005]

Thanks very much spotlightpro for highlighting the overuse of transitions to me. Yes, next time my montage wouldn't have too fancy transitions. I realize the goal of transistions is not to be noticed by the viewers. But for them to concerntrate on the story of the montage.

Maybe I should include a transition only during a significant change in events. Like from a couple saying their vows to the next scene of maybe a live band performing a number for the couple. Maybe then I can add a transition like a clock wipe to show that some time has passed between saying of vows & the performance.

What ya think? Btw, what do you mean by CC'ing? I'm not too familiara with this term. Thanks again.

Andrew

[CORUSA Design]

i think the music was inappropriate, and the cuts were like a sports highlight video...star iris transition? maybe for a kids show or a reception highlight reel if you have to, but nto for ceremony highlights or wedding videos in general

::: Connor

P.S. - CC'ing = Color Correcting

[andybiz_2005]

Thanks corusa for you comments. The reason why I put in the star transition was because it highlighted the couple as the main stars, so called. Otherwise, I wouldn't have used this transition.

What music would you have put in for this wedding montage if you were doing it? Slow & romantic, or a lively, happy number like what I did?

Well, as the CC'ing goes, I didn't have to do any color correction because I made sure all my white balancing & exposure setting on that day was done well. My philosophy is to get the shooting right as best as possible, then I don't have to touch up too much in post, which would take time away for editing the clips.

Thanks all for your comments. Appreciate it.

Andrew

[CORUSA Design]

All of the above...you have to incorporate fun, romantic, slow, fast, all into the DVD...Every DVD we do has 7 buttons...PreCeremony, Ceremony, Post Ceremony, Reception, Ceremony Highlights, Reception Formals, Photography Slideshow

Here's a Intro/PreCeremony sample...
http://www.corusa.com/media/wedding_sample_01.wmv

::: Connor

P.S. - As far as color correction goes, yes, it is best to shoot as good as possible, but most wedding videographers do 2 or 3 camera shoots, and even with the EXACT same camera for both or all 3 cameras on the same settings and all white-balanced you will have to do color correction. If you are just using one camera then you dont have to worry about it, but then you sacrifice having a multi-angle ceremony. We do back camera (usually in balcony if it is a church), then front side camera facing bride from the altar, and 3rd camera is on the bottom floor, in the side isle facing the back entry door for the processional.

[andybiz_2005]

HI Corusa,

So far I've been shooting wedding videos on my own. Haven't really linked up with other cameramen to shoot multiple cams. But exploring that possibility as I'm still new in this business.

I will view your sample & also give some comments about it. Thanks & have a nice day.

Andrew

[mystico]

Andy,

It's quite possible for one operator to do multi-cam shoots. I haven't had the opportunity to put this into practise yet, but my layout involves unmanned camera at back of church as CORUSA said, while I roam with handheld or monopod-held in front. The easisest way to do this when starting out (and you only own one camera) is to rent the 2nd camera. My dream camera at the moment is the DVX100B, but I currently own a DVC60. So I would rent the DVX and roam with it while setting up the DVC on tripod in back. I rented a DVX for the second wedding, as at that time I only had a 1ccd camera. To give you an idea of cost, the production/rental house I use charges $125/day for DVX or XL2, and the pkg includes a tripod (Manfrotto/Bogen) and Kata bag. I also rent a wireless handheld system to use at the reception. That was $30-$40 and included handheld with butt-plug transmitter and receiver. Renting is a great way to have the equipment you need before you're able to own it.

[mystico]

CORUSA, I've seen you post your DVD layout a few times and am starting to wonder whether I should rework my pricing and packaging. I think I have too many things as add-on options--like Pre-Ceremony prep, Action Photo Shoot, etc. I could ask you a bunch of questions but I think I'll check out your site then ask ...

[mystico]

Nice site CORUSA. I must have seen your posts on videouniversity because it looks like you just joined DVXuser recently. Anyway, I see that your packages are quite inclusive. As I see how more and more people are bundling their packages, it seems less explanation actually yields better results. If you've seen my site, you've noticed I do have packages which include options bundled in with lower overall cost than doing the 1-by-1 add-on thing. However, maybe I have too many options and too much explanation. Not sure really how to do it. I don't mean to take over your thread andy. Just thought since you're starting up this conversation might be useful as well. Otherwise, CORUSA we can do PM.

[andybiz_2005]

Haha,

Mystico, no problem about taking over my post. What you're discussng about the pricing & packages is also relevant to videographers like me, who also may need to improve on my pakages to remain competitive, yet deliver quality services.