DVX setting for wedding shoot - help!

RoamingBobert

RoamingBobert

Active member
I am shooting an indoor wedding in 10 days with my new 100A and I am unsure as to the best settings to use.
Anyone care to comment on what has been the best settings in this type of environment?
 
Well, your biggest concern has to do with dealing with LOW LIGHT. It's an indoor wedding. Chances are it will be very low light. What time of day is it? Are there many windows? Hopefully, there will be BIG windows that let outside light in.

60i is going to give you the best low light performance. Followed by 30p. Then 24p. Do you want slow motion footage for the edit? If so, count 24p out. So, you are down to 60i and 30p.

In a pinch, (if you don't already have one), get an on-camera light. They really do help. Sure, they are not sexy but getting the shot well-lit is of utmost importance. If you go this route, get one with a diffuser (or skillfully tape a Bounce dryer sheet to the light to diffuse the brightness to avoid blinding people).

I would probably try to keep the iris as open as you can.

Also, you can use gain, but I would rather get an underexposed picture than use gain. It puts SO much noise on the image that it's almost not worth it. But, if you are COMPLETELY screwed with the darkness....it's an option for you.

Rick
 
We always attend the rehearsal to check the church sound system and frequencies for wireless so we won't collide with them. In addition, we ask that the lights be turned to the setting that they are going to be during the wedding. This gives you a chance to ask for them to be turned up if they are too low. The fact is, that if you don't have adequate lights, you won't an adequate video. While there, take a camera and white balance and set it for the conditions. Take some test shots if necessary and include them on the pre-wedding session of the video. Also, the reception offers the greatest challenge. Make sure the customer realizes that you must have adequate lighting beforehand. Shooting with oncamera lights gives you a deer-in-the-headlights look, but it may be the only thing you can do. Sound is the most important source of entertainment for the couples memory of the event. Use wireless, handheld, and boom mikes and of course shotguns. Two cameras are absolutely necessary for shooting a wedding.
Good luck. Weddings are fun and very challenging. No 2 are ever the same.
 
Go to where the ceremony will be ahead of time, at same time of day (and hopefully weather) as the wedding. Shoot some test footage, ideally with someone standing in the right spot so you can see shadow issues. Take your time, and try a few different settings. Then go capture it to see which settings look good.

It's called a pre-production site survey. You can also use this to plan where you will stand at which times (don't forget that people will stand up).

Good Luck.
 
Thanks for the replies so far!

Unfortunately the wedding will be at 5pm in DEC in MICHIGAN. So yeah I am expecting lighting to be the biggest hurdle.
That being said though the interior will need to be lit regardless since no one likes to watch a ceremony in the dark...
I will be at the rehearsal the night before so that should give me a good idea of the expected light.

Does 24p just not offer enough footage for slow-mo? I haven't yet shot in 24p...

I plan on using 2 cameras, any suggestions on placement of the second?
 
24p run at half speed is 12 fps.
30p run at half speed is 15 fps. More frames = less movement between frames = smoother motion.

Second cam on the balcony in the back is how most people do it. Some people use a flash or similar to "slate the two cams together" for ease-of-sync in post.
 
In regards to audio what are thoughts on shotgun mics- do they provide good quality. Should I camera mount it or place it in a stand?
 
It depends on room, where you are, etc.

My guess: Maybe okay for reception, for ceremony get a Sennheiser wireless lav kit at $500. Audio is 70% of what you see. At a wedding ceremony, it is 95%.
 
I should have clarified - I will be using a shure wireless system for the ceremony.

I am looking into a camera mounted (or stand mounted) microphone and was wondering if I should be looking into something like a shotgun mic or a more short range condensor microphone as a backup.
 
The shure system is one I have used before, and it's great..escpecially if it has the XLR connection to link directly into the camera.

Also check into the possiblitiy that the church will be recording the ceremony. This provides INVALUEABLE B-Audio that you can splice into the final cut. Example: My last wedding included the wireless mic and the audio from the church since the sound was clear from the minister on the CD than what it captured on the shure system (This was because of a direction thing, and not the quality of the mic)

When it comes to camera placement, my advice is have one as static (non moving, or very little movement.) once the bride and groom are at the altar. (usually the balcony/back is the best placement). Of course as the bridesmaids move up the aisle you will want to capture that. Smooth movement, no jerkiness. Flow with the tripod, or whatever you are using, dont jerk it.

Your second camera should be the one that moves around and captures some dynamic shots. Some people may disagree with me on this...but leave the camera recording at all times (for the one moving around) yeah..you will get some walking around floor shots, but you can instantly whip up the camera for a particular moment, it also helps with keeping the audio synced up with the stactic camera that will probaly have the mic feed in it.

My biggest flaw that I am still working on: ZOOMING. Make sure your zooms..if any..are nice and controlled. I was zooming so bad on my last wedding.. it looked like over glorified home video footage.

As stated before, make sure you do a pre-production site survey to check white balance and color adjustments. It would also be a good time for some of that "site footage" you might want to include in the final cut. Test footage is essential.

Record 60i if you can...offers greater control in the post production especially if you want to slow things down for the recap montage. Thats my opinion, someone will probably disagree with me on this.

This is just stuff I have learned from reading this site, and going over my footage. I am sure more experiecned wed-vidders will chime in and help.

GOOD LUCK!! Remember - experience is the best teacher. You might mess something up, but learn from it..don't get down about it.
 
I shoot weddings at 24p, mainly because of the aesthetic quality of 24p. It "looks" so much better than 60i. Nothing against those that shoot in 60i. I agree that it does offer more flexibility in terms of slo-mo and so forth, but overall I like the look of 24p much more, and so do my clients.
 
My 2 cents. I've shot probably over 1000 weddings under almost every condition one could imagine. Many of the suggestions that have been listed are valid. No two videographers will shoot or edit a function the same way.

I normally don't like to give advice, but in this case I almost feel compelled to do so. If this is your first wedding then there really is no advise that will work 100%.

Weddings are one of the most difficult shoots that you can do. The reason is obvious. You don't get a second chance if something goes wrong, and trust me, something will go wrong at any ceremony & reception. Your job is to limit those mistakes.

Camera: Keep it simple. Don't even think about going 24P. Shoot it in 60i. Most indoor ceremonies are going to be somewhat dark. That's ok. I can't speak for the East coast, but most church's will not allow lights. If you're shooting with the 100, you shouldn't have any problem with light. Try to limit your zooming which of course will cut down on light. As for camera placement, the very best angle if the church will allow it is to be stage left (for Christian) and stage right for Jewish. I'm assuming that they will allow you to be on the altar. This way you can film the entire Processional plus get some shots of the parents. Try to be close enough to the Bride so that when you do want a CU, you can grab a SCU during the vows.

Back Camera: As mentioned, the balcony is probably the best. Do a medium wide shot locked down.

Audio: "If it wasn't for audio, video would be easy". Use at least one wireless microphone (I use a minimum of 2). If it's a Catholic wedding, then put the microphone on the priest. If it's a Greek wedding, the same. Christian, put it on the groom as long as the officiant will be standing close to them.

Don't get fancy. Just make certain that the audio is clear channel. Test it first with the house sound.

Final advice. Get your shot then take your hands away from the camera. Don't keep moving it. You can safely use up to 9db of gain if you have to. Don't push it past that.

Hope this helps.

eric

www.pvpweddings.com
 
Thanks for taking the time to post Eric, your thoughts are invaluable. Couple questions if you have the time.
Why 60i and not 30p or 24p? Is that to make it easy, or are there other reasons?
 
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