Somebody suggested I shoot for free...

Your friend is cheap period .
She should have atleast asked you what you charge for doing a wedding.
I would only do this for a relative , someone who is related to me by blood and the offer comes from me . I did my nephews sweet sixteen in the beginning of this year people just stared at me with all my gear but it was memorable party.
 
You absolutely should not shoot the wedding.

Let them know that the experience of sharing the day with them is important to you. If they try to connect your attending with shooting the event(s), do whatever you can to convince them that it will be a compromise at best and will definitely remove you completely from enjoying their wedding.

I shot one wedding for my wife's college roommate. Even though they've stayed friends since school, I'm not that close to her and had never met her fiance, so I told them I'd shoot it for them. I did so somewhat reluctantly, but the fact that my own wife was going to be doing bridesmaid duty freed me up to concentrate on what was a very long couple of day's of work.

It was all work too... in a suit. Between the rehearsal, rehearsal dinner, morning shooting at three locations with the bride, one location afternoon with the groomsmen, wedding and reception - I struggled to even find spare moments to grab a meal.

Unless you're really emotionally removed from those getting married - or you're willing to botch the coverage to fantastic proportions - I'd opt out 110%.

Enjoy their day and be a real part of it.

e
 
A friend and colleague (not a film person) asked me to shoot his daughter's wedding for pay. I reluctantly accepted but never again will I work for friends. Too much pressure, you do feel like an outsider among your friends, and if you screw it up, you have to see the guy all the time.

Fortunately in this case, it all worked out. Keep business business, and friends friends, and never get them mixed.

The only exception I would make is if I donated some services as gift, like I took all the honeymoon pix and made a DVD slide show for one other friend. But at least then its your gift, so if they don't like it, well, that's that.
 
Yes, weddings are the most demanding filmmaking pressure you'll find. I worked banquets at a hotel and I had to make sure that everything went well, think that wasn't pressure?

If it were MY friend, there could be no one else that I would trust to film the wedding because I know I would tell the BEST story, show the best footage, get those right moments.

It wouldn't be about me. It would be about them. There's no thought of failure, no thought of not getting the right shot, it would be a challenge and an exciting one at that, from rehearsal, to getting that wedding gown on, to groom tying his bow tie, to the actual walk.

That dvd will then be show to their children and their children's children.

I am for it for the JOY of it and the CHALLENGE of it and because I would believe that NO ONE but a pretty good friend could get that best story out of that day.

I'm on the flip side of this coin.
 
Well don't go off telling them that. You are sure to leave the situation down a friend.

Like some other people said, tell them you'd rather be a part of their day rather than observe it behind a camera and leave it at that.
 
I shot a wedding last night and am shooting another today.

Seriously, someone please kill me. :crybaby::crybaby::crybaby: How do I get myself roped into these????
 
Talked to an old (great) friend yesterday. Once the topic of his impending wedding came up he said, "hey, I've been meaning to ask you something...we already found a photographer, but....."

As a backstory, we did all of our film projects together in school...so he knows exactly what goes into production. Preparing for the worse, I let him continue. "I want someone to film the wedding, but I can't afford it. So I wanted to throw this past you .......(dramatic pause)........ you think its a good idea to get a bunch of little Flip cameras, pass them out to friends, and let them film whatever the hell they want to?"

Not only was I relieved, I was kind of excited! He's going to take all of the footage and edit together whatever he gets. It's like the Wikipedia of wedding videos. I told him I thought that would be awesome, and that I'll just use my 7D instead of a Flip camera.

I'm probably going to steal that idea for my impending wedding, too. You guys think that is the future of low-budget wedding videos?
 
I think, in general, any professional finds friends asking for "free" stuff.

If it's a question to a doctor about what a pain could be and it requires two minutes, then I'm sure any doctor friend would be willing to give his opinion. But if it's a major examination or something requiring a week's worth of work, then I think asking for it for it -- or especially expecting it -- would be quite rude.

Then there's the possibility of having someone say later "well you did it for X, why not for me?"

So, it's not just a video/film thing. Giving advice on what to look for in a videographer? Heck, no sweat. Expecting you to commit to a good 60 hours of work (to do it right)? Quite presumptuous.
 
I read the whole thread and agree with the "don't do it" crowd.

I get ****ed into doing video and photography as favors... fairly often... and it has never led to anything significant (this does NOT count my participation on any FEST projects, which have been both a pleasure AND an honor)... but locally... anytime I shoot for free... it rarely gets much more then a quick thanks, and I always have the sinking feeling that they feel it was worth what it cost them.

The people who have HIRED me have called me back and had other people call me, who also want to HIRE me... the people that I've done freebies for call me back wanting more freebies and have other people call me, ALSO wanting freebies.

Paid work leads to more paid work... free work leads to more free work. If it's a couple hours for a good friend... do it... If it's a full day plus a day or days of editing... draw a line in the sand... with friends on one side and professionals on the other... and see which side your friend wants you on.
 
MattinSTL said:
I always have the sinking feeling that they feel it was worth what it cost them.

Paid work leads to more paid work... free work leads to more free work.
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As a young filmmaker, I'm slowly starting to realize the truth of this. It's odd how people value things that are more expensive eventhough the quality is so good for something that sometimes is offered so cheaply. I just recently used to offer my services for free to people, but I never got a peep from anybody.

My sis, a marketing major, told me a story about Martha Stewart one time. She said she used to make these gorgeous pies at some festival. She sold them for unbelievably cheap but nobody bought them. She finally upped the price and business started booming. It's just funny.
 
MattinSTL said:
The people who have HIRED me have called me back and had other people call me, who also want to HIRE me... the people that I've done freebies for call me back wanting more freebies and have other people call me, ALSO wanting freebies.

Paid work leads to more paid work... free work leads to more free work. If it's a couple hours for a good friend... do it... If it's a full day plus a day or days of editing... draw a line in the sand... with friends on one side and professionals on the other... and see which side your friend wants you on.
Click to expand...

That is the wisest post I have seen in a long time! Thanks. :thumbup:
 
ZazaCast said:
Blow it off... odds are they will be divorced in a few years anyways! :beer:
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:beer::beer: right back at ya ZaZa. Hey, as long as the checks keep coming in, I'll shoot their next one.

No seriously, I have to stop shooting weddings, it's slowly killing me. (I just shoot freelance for a couple of editors) It's like being a really crappy musician travelling to really crappy venues each weekend.

Putting the money away for my family *cough* and a 7D *cough* gets me through these boring gigs.
 
I recently had a friend inquire of I would shoot a wedding gift video of the bride and groom and bridesmaid and best man in a shot for shot of the THE BEASTIE BOYS SABOTAGE

At first I said "How much?"

and he said

"I think they want it cheap; like free."

Huh ?
 
People hardly ever ask me to do professional-type stuff for free.

I must radiate some kind of don't even ask field...
 
Oh shucks, Sad Max, and to think I was going to ask for some favors because I love the way you... draw (I'm such a character! - love writing subtext people)
 
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