Wedding Videographer Mythbusters- 5 Myths Busted!

Choosing whether to invest in a wedding film for your big day is an important decision in lots of ways, and with some lingering myths persisting around wedding videographers we thought we’d help by addressing some of the most popular ones that we have come across when helping our couples!

Myth 1: Its Really Expensive!

Certainly weddings can be very expensive overall and considering a wedding film within your budget can seem daunting at first, but wedding films don’t need to have Hollywood level production crews and costs!

Unlike many wedding costs, a wedding film is a forever purchase, an investment in priceless memories for you and future generations of your family and one of the few things (including your spouse!) that you will actually physically have afterward. Imagine being able to look back on the wedding day of your parents ( perhaps you can!) or grandparents or great grandparents or great great…..Ok you get the picture!

Wedding Videographer prices vary greatly. Some from as low as £300 right up to £5000+ and as the old saying goes “you get what you pay for” and certainly the lower end pricing should be avoided if you want a professional highly engaging production.

A range between £1500 - £2500 from a professional wedding videographer will get you fantastic affordable results that you will love to watch time and time again.

Myth 2: Massive Cameras and Large Crews

Couples want guests to be comfortable, happy and remember the day as the highlight of the year and often worry that videographers may upset the aesthetic with big cameras and lots of equipment.

Luckily, the days of large shoulder mounted video cameras semi-ably wielded by Uncle Bob excitedly exclaiming “ I’m filming, I’m filming! Look Majorie!” are long gone! ( if they ever existed? I may have made that up!)

Today video camera equipment is very small using DSLR or Mirrorless cameras that are no bigger than a normal stills camera. Often a professional videographer will have that attached to a small handheld gimbal stabilizer, like a Ronin S or a Steadicam. Either 1 or 2 Videographers is normal, we always provide 2 to capture the day from lots of angles, not miss anything and to ensure a nice calm approach, so no large crews either.

Videographers are very nimble with these devices and adept at blending in with, and putting your guests at ease, filming the day as it happens without staging or directing the couple ( unless they want to do something special!). A videographer worth their salt has a range of lenses that allow for filming from the periphery and closer up when necessary. There may be the need for the odd Tripod or Monopod , for filming ceremonies or speeches for example, but should be positioned so they don’t interfere with guest views. In our experience most guests love the cameras and often like to get involved as they know its making your day special, but the shy will always be respected!

Myth 3: The longer the film the better

No…No…and thrice No! Its not about the length of the film its about the quality of film and the story it tells. A well produced cinematic film of around 7 minutes that tells your unique story, is highly watchable and has the ability to be easily shared online with family and friends is eminently preferable to an hour of long cut sequences.

A great deal of skill is required to make a cinematic film, many hours of editing incorporating the best shots of the day into a unique story. A long film doesn’t mean more work or more value from your videographer, it really just means longer cuts. Having a film that touches you and family and friends emotions should be the aim.

There are exceptions of course, Documentary style films including Ceremonies and Speeches will be longer and lovely for the couple and immediate family members to watch, but should be professionally edited to take out long pauses or other unnecessary parts that distract from the story. We will still say though that the maximum length a documentary or feature film should be is about 30 minutes , depending on the length of the ceremony and speeches.

Myth 4: The Photographer can sort out Videography

Yikes! Should be avoided, unless you have personally met the photographers videographer and reviewed their work and made a judgement for yourself. Same goes for videographers being photographers unless they have a body of work to prove it.

Often photographers will say they supply videography too, such is the rise in popularity of wedding films and their desire to get in on the action, but in reality they may well be outsourcing that work to freelance videographers they don’t really know found via Facebook groups or other means for a % fee.

You may be paying your Photographer good money for the videography but they may not be shooting it, or editing it for that matter, and paying peanuts for the videographer. They may also find an editor in the same way, again for peanuts, who has no physical connection to your story at all who’s then responsible for your film production.

Videography requires a different skill set from photography so its always advisable to use a dedicated, experienced videographer who you can meet, be comfortable with and cares about their work. A great photographer knows that too! What is important though is that the Videographer works well with the Photographer and each are respectful of couples requirements, working together to achieve it.

Myth 5: Photos are more important to have than Video

Well ultimately thats a personally choice I guess, but if a picture speaks a thousand words how many does a film speak? Millions we think!

In a survey by……well almost every wedding magazine/blog/online planner out there… say that one of the biggest wedding day regrets was not having a videographer, while those who did book one said they were glad they had taken the step.

In our own experience couples have said it was the best decision they had made. As we are filming so much of the day we have often been able to provide photos from video that the photographer missed that the couple would never have had otherwise.

So equally important at the very least!