Priceless Moments
New technology and professional expertise create stunning wedding videos
Kaydee Wilson
The most priceless moments of a lifetime are the ones that only happen once. For Matt Pine, owner of Lifetime Films in Anderson, the most remarkable experience of his career happened during a wedding in which the father of the bride had recently had a stroke. He recalls:
“The wedding is getting ready to start, the doors to the back of the church are closed, no one can see what’s going on, and we literally thought this man had another stroke because the bride was just not coming down the aisle.
“All of a sudden the doors opened up, and this man had actually gotten out of his wheelchair and his daughter was helping him down the aisle with a cane. It took them a while, but I mean I was crying, everyone in the whole congregation was crying. The photographer got a ton of pictures of it, but when you see this moment on DVD: The emotion, and the music, and the movement of this man walking his little girl down the aisle was just incredible.”
The professional touch
Whether tear-jerkingly sentimental or gut-wrenchingly funny, every wedding is worthy of a video. Though family members are always on call as cheap and available cameramen, couples should be wary of having anyone less than a professional record the precious memories of their big day. According to Jay Bachemin, owner of Broadway Photo & Video in downtown Cincinnati, videographers offer a level of quality unsurpassed by even the most artistic of relatives. “It’s not just about turning on the camera and shooting the wedding. Videographers have the ability to tell the story of the event,” he says.
Recent innovations in media technology ensure that a video done professionally will have the picture and sound clarity of a feature film. High-definition, for example, allows for the utmost in visual quality, while subtle recorders like omnidirectional microphones help videographers capture amazing sound without using obnoxious equipment during the wedding.
In fact, with these new filming techniques and creative camera technologies, it’s easy to feel like videographers really are part of the family. “We always joke with people that we just want to videotape their wedding, we don’t want to be in it. The key is to kind of stay in the background,” Pine says. “Believe it or not,” he adds, “one microphone on the groom’s tux can capture everything at the podium.”
Just as important to the creation of a sensational video is professional editing. According to Bachemin, “what videographers are doing these days is much more sophisticated than five or 10 years ago. We do much more story-telling now, and editing the footage in order to create the story is a very time intensive and detailed process.”
One of the more recent trends in wedding video is the trailer, a short film highlighting the biggest moments of the day. Slide shows of family photographs and feature segments on the bridal gown are also popular ways to add that sentimental touch. Whatever the format, videographers spend hours after the wedding pulling things together and adding music to create a perfect video that’s loaded with your style and personality.
Video biographies are also in demand. David Huey of Lights, Camera, Wedding, offers a package called Love Story. “We conduct an interview with the bride and groom separately,” Huey says, “and we ask them things like, ‘Tell me about the first time you met Sarah,’ or, ‘Tell me about your first date.’ Those are the things that are fun to play back and share at the reception,” Huey notes.
Choosing your videographer
With all of that time, work and quality, professional videography can get costly. Though a great wedding video will always be well worth the money, couples should take time to select the perfect company to capture their memories.
“With photography, it’s easy to look at print ads to get an idea of the photographer’s style. It’s not that way with videography,” Bachemin says. He and Pine both suggest that couples check out company Web sites, speak with former clients and meet with videographers face-to-face before they enter into a contract. By meeting the videographer in person, you can be sure to hire a professional who matches your style as a couple.
“When you get a bad wedding video, that moment of your wedding is gone forever,” Pine says. “A good videographer should be proud of his clients, and his clients should love his work. Don’t be afraid to ask couples what they thought of their wedding video.”