One Cam Wedding

F

FourFourtyNine

Member
Hey guys, thought this was a reliable sight to come and ask a few questions. Not sure if this would be the right section to ask this in: but I'm doing a wedding next month, a one cam shoot, and for the actual wedding ceremony the minister is allowing me to set up a tripod in the church, but I'm not sure where the best place to set the cam would be. Camera will be a DVX100b. Any thoughts would be much appreciated. I also have a spiderbrace, does anybody this mounting the cam to my shoulder would be better?

:dankk2:
 
For a one camera shoot, I would say the best position would be an upper back balcony, centered over the aisle way.

It will have a very open view of all events, which you can zoom into the action directly ahead and get both bride and groom. A great advantage of this point is getting them coming straight at you after walking back down the aisle.
 
i agree with Ryan. When i used to use one camera, the best spot I found was on a balcony. Without a second or third camera to go to during editing, the one cam's going to have to get it all. This is my own opinion, of course, and is generated from a few years worth of single cam. shooting but I'd recommend a tripod. Even with three cameras, I still make sure that third cam, for the wide angle shots, is on a tripod. Just my two cents.
 
I shot my son's wedding with one camera. I positioned it off to the side, behind the preacher, in such a way that when my son and his bride were facing each other exchanging their vows, I got an excellent shot of her face from over his shoulder. She is going to watch this video way more than he will. So I felt it was best, if I could only capture one face really well, to capture hers.

From this position I was able to get good footage of the processional and recessional. I was also able to pan out across the congregation and get the smiling, tearful faces of all their friends and family. All things considered, it worked out very well. They are quite pleased with the results.

The problem with shooting from the balcony is you won't get to see the bride's glowing, beaming face as she enters the church and walks down the aisle. And while it's true that you'll be able to zoom in on each of their faces when they do their vows, their faces will be in profile. For me -- and it's just personal preference -- I think it's a much more appealing shot having her facing obliquely towards the camera, and seeing the love and tears in both her eyes as she cries her way through the vows she wrote from her heart.

Again, it's just personal preference.

Good luck!
 
Interesting take, David. I actually had to do something similar once, though not from choice or artistic intent--it was the only place the priest would let me be. :D Probably the youngest officiant I've ever worked with, but by far the biggest technophobe.

That idea is definitely worth a look, but I've also been in churches that wouldn't lend themselves very well to it, so I'll also throw in a recommendation of the balcony idea. It does definitely have some cons, but I've had good luck with it. (Although, in the interest of full disclosure, I should point out that all my wedding shoots are freebies for friends and co-workers. :) )
 
Hey,

I'm looking at getting into this sort of work with a Panasonic HVX200. What would one charge for a single cam shoot for a wedding?

Chris
 
Chris,

I wouldn't use an HVX200 for event (wedding) work. Its low light capability is not very good and the recording times on memory cards aren't great either.

I'd recommend an HVX200a (a lot better in low light/less noisey) with a Firestore drive if you really want to go the Panasonic route OR get a Sony EX1 or Canon A1.
 
I´d rather move around than be on a fixed place/angle.
Maybe it´s different in the US, but if the bride and groom talk to the priest and tell them, it´s important for them to get a nice video for the ceremony and if the cameraperson assures to not go paparazzi style, the priest are very cooperative.
Just always keep your distance, move slowly and try not to draw attention.
I´d also ask the couple to ask their guests, not to take photos or film during the ceremony.
IMHO this is what annoys many priests, having 10 "photographers" and 4 "cameramen" on the "set".
If there´s another friend or relativ who desperately wants to film too, ask him or her to do a wideshot from a tripod;o)
Also, I´d get a monopod, it will help you get steadier shots and you can move around freely and easy.
 
So I finished the wedding and handed the couple the dvd. I'd like to upload an example, but dunno really where to upload. Should I make a Myspace or something? Or post on YouTube?

Some strange things... The minister of the church had me set up right behind the bride, so I had most of her (vail? Is that how its spelled?) during the vows and ring exchanges. But we got lucky enough to do reinactments of the ring exchange and kiss.

For the most part, everything else was nice, but for some reason the tape tangled up in my DVX. So I lost footage of... Guess what... THE FIRST DANCE! And the mother-son + bride and dad dance. Good thing I switched tapes for Guest Comments... One problem... Didnt notice the tape was TANGLED! Ahh!

Also, is there some type of survey I can give the family to see what they thought of me overall doing their video? And/or is there somewhere I could mail the dvd to for crituque? Please let me know.

Thanks again
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top