Wedding videos...just shoot me

A few years ago I made some side cash cutting weddings for a local shooter/editor who had over booked his time. On my end it wasn't too bad 'cause the ceremony was a 3 camera shoot (w/no camera stop downs) and the reception was a 2 camera shoot. But after like the third one (as I'd finish one he'd give me a new one) I was like, "Ugh." The dude had a template, which kept down the edit time, but it made the work just minding numbing and repetitive.

-A
 
thartley said:
The bride is actually a photography student and is aware of such things as lighting and what can and cant be done under certain circumstances.
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And won't offer any of her "insights" to you while you are working...:beer:

Hope it works for you!
 
ha! Actually, I hope we DO have that conversation. Maybe she'd like to be the DP as well as the bride! Then I just have to roll tape. :) Groomsmen could be the grips and gaffers, and her bridesmaids could be craft services, and her little cousins could be PA's.
 
thartley said:
Groomsmen could be the grips and gaffers, and her bridesmaids could be craft services, and her little cousins could be PA's.
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Perfect. Men doing manly stuff and the women in the kitching cooking up food. Thats the way it should be.


I know I am going to take a lot of heat for that joke...
 
So far all my weddings have gone pretty smooth *knocks on wood*

I know I'm in for a bad one though...and I know how you guys feel about the photographers...

I had about 10 minutes with the bride and groom after they were done taking family pictures, so I had them running around on the grass, playing, having a good time. This was MY time with them, and of course, the photog decides "hey - these might make for some pretty good stills!" and he can be seen wandering through my shots with complete disregard to where I'm standing. It was cool though, I just moved and I still got a lot of great footage.

I think that guy really was oblivious though, during the first dance, he crouched down to get a low angle, and he stepped right on my foot. I tried to take my foot out from under him, but it was stuck! and he didn't even feel me trying to un-wedge my foot. so I just waited for him to get up, and he did. really nice guy, just on a different planet.
 
That would have pissed me off! The photog running through YOUR shots. I would have said something or motioned to him.

Glad he was a nice guy... too bad he was so obliviolus.
 
yeah, I think that for so long videography has been the lowest on the wedding food chain. So it seems the mentality is that as long as the photographer gets the shots, and everybody else be damned its okay.

But, I think thats changing. Most photographers charge and can charge much more than a videographer. But, that might be changing. Its amazing to me that a photographer can easily ask $3-$6 grand for photos but if a videographer asks for $2k, with 2 cameras, he/she had BETTER not screw up and better give 'em a Hollywood production.

Go figure.
 
seriously!

I went to get a job with a wedding company just to see what they were about and they were probably the worst ever!

they shoot their weddings with sony best buy cams, usually one per wedding - and they do in-camera editing during the ceremony. i was like "HUH?" and the pay was crap, like $250 per wedding. LAME!

so far I've been putting out some videos and my clients are raving about me to their friends...so it's definitely worth it. I could see it being a full time job after i'm done with school this spring. I just don't have the time right now to do more than one per month.
 
overlandfilms said:
Working for the bride... or worse - her mother, is the ultimate punishment. I spent a couple of months posting the favor video I shot for my wife's college roommate. Every once in a while, she'd call and nicely harass me about when she was going to finish it.

Each time she did, I reminded myself that I was effectively trying to cut a single-camera, single-system sound featurette single-handedly. The final edit was almost 40 minutes.

It was an eye-opening experience for a broadcast producer / DP / shooter to say the least. I honestly don't know how these one-man shops do this work day in and day out.

More power to them. Poor bastards.

e
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lmao

I'm framing this and putting it on my wall. :thumbsup:
 
tjohara99 said:
seriously!

I went to get a job with a wedding company just to see what they were about and they were probably the worst ever!

they shoot their weddings with sony best buy cams, usually one per wedding - and they do in-camera editing during the ceremony. i was like "HUH?" and the pay was crap, like $250 per wedding. LAME!

so far I've been putting out some videos and my clients are raving about me to their friends...so it's definitely worth it. I could see it being a full time job after i'm done with school this spring. I just don't have the time right now to do more than one per month.
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That used to be me!!!!! Thank god for my dvx!!!
 
Hi guys, I'm new to your forum. I was alerted to this discussion and found it very entertaining. It's always interesting to hear how folks who don't regularly shoot weddings and events react to the flow of the day. It IS hard work if you do it right, and even some of the guys who have been doing this a while still react with the same frustration you guys have. The shame is that the frustration is with things you sometimes have little control over. You have to approach events with a different mindset so it doesn't drive you crazy.

About 70% of what we do is weddings and events. If any of you DO shoot more events in the future, be aware that 50% of the job is public relations. It's how you DEAL with each situation that is just as important as the shot. Sometimes it's MORE important. Your body language, your smile, your interaction with the talent can make or break you. In fact, an event client will decide how good your production is the DAY OF the event, not when they receive the DVD. A mediocre production will be loved if you are loved the day of, while a technically perfect production will be panned if you are an ass. Perception is reality.

And finally, it sounds like much of the frustration is because some of you are doing these gigs as a 'favor.' DON'T. Please charge a lot of money. Do us all a favor and get what you are worth. The industry is marred enough with low-end, cheap videographers who get no respects because they work for peanuts.

Have fun if you do it again, guys! Best of luck!

Dave Williams
DVideography

P.S. Maybe you should add "videographers" to the forum spell-check dictionary. :huh:
 
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Well, I can say that I went into this endeavor blind. I agree a lot of event work could very well be PR driven when on-site and shooting. But I am going to go out on a limb here and say that I dont believe the bulk of users on this site bought their gear with weddings or events first/foremost in their minds. People know people and some of those people get married and invariably camera owner/ops are gonna be approached, unsolicited, to shoot something like a wedding...and sometimes even get paid. :)

As for doing "favors", while I know I will NOT be making a habit of shooting these kinds of things, not everyone has the means to pay the money that's being charged. One of these "not everyone's" is a very dear friend of mine. Right now, I feel honored that she would ask me to shoot her wedding. Come the day of....I may be thinking something else. haha!!!

Sorry if people like me poison the pond.... :beer:
 
I hear ya T. I have several friends who've asked me to do it as well. I generally do it for free... but only do it for good friends.
 
What's funny is that if you do it for a good friend for free, chances are they won't be a good friend anymore when you're finally done editing it for them.

There's something about wedding video that makes people loopy.
 
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