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Wedding regrets…don’t have a few!

Posted by Terry Wall on June 27, 2013
Posted in: Event Videography, Videography, Wedding Videography, Weddings. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

For those of us old enough to remember Frank Sinatra, one of the most classic phrases in his signature song, “My Way,” is: “Regrets…I’ve had a few….” Despite all best intentions, no wedding is absolutely perfect. When newlyweds and…the less-newly-wed were asked to share their biggest wedding day anguishes, a few common threads started to emerge. Here are some highlights of their feedback:

1. Get It On Film (or tape, or chip…but record it somewhere!)
So many brides told us they wished they’d sprung for a videographer, or given their wedding photographer more specific directions. Your wedding will be FULL of special moments – make sure you capture as many as possible! I reported about this in an earlier post, but more recent surveys suggest that this is a biggie!

2. Beauty Accidents Happen

Wind, rain, and acts of God can seriously undo your hairdo. When you’re thinking about your wedding hairstyle, consider the locale, temperature, and time of year. Also, the week of/day of your wedding is not an optimum time to try exciting new beauty treatments.

The same goes for the right manner of dress. Do you really want to wear that long flowing gown for a destination wedding on the beach in, say, Hawaii or Jamaica? And this isn’t gender specific. The groom, while nattily attired, should be equally comfortable and dressed appropriate to the location. What no one wants to have happen is to see hair, makeup and clothing turn into a sweaty mess over the course of the ceremony. Once it starts, you’ll have to see it through to the end!

What’s your ‘Plan B?’

Whether you use the services of a wedding planner or not (especially if you don’t) it’s wise to think about a backup plan for things that can go sideways. A few years ago, I shot a wedding in a beautiful amphitheater that, unfortunately, sat immediately adjacent to Cal State Fullerton’s baseball field, where a game was in full progress. Imagine trying to conduct a wedding and right at a pivotal part of the ceremony, have it abruptly interrupted by the ‘clink’ of an aluminum bat followed by loud boisterous cheering! OOPS!!

Or…you might think you’ve timed it right to have your wedding outdoors, taking into account weather patterns, temperature and humidity for the time of year. But what you didn’t think about was that enormous swarm of bees that were migrating right over the wedding venue!! OUCH!!

The point here is obvious: be sure to at least give thought to a backup plan…just in case….!

3. Budget Your Time
Three words, ladies: hair and makeup. Too many wedding timelines get derailed when brides don’t budget enough time for wedding prep. Don’t let the primping get the best of your special day! See #2.

Oh, and grooms, this pertains to you, too. I recall a story told by a videographer friend who was shooting groom prep. The groom and his groomsmen all got dressed and after doing so decided that there was time to take another dip in the pool (at the private home where they were getting dressed)! After spending more time in the pool than they probably should have, there was then a mad scramble to get re-dressed and off to the church on time!

4. Don’t Succumb To Peer Pressure
So many brides felt their wedding suffered because they’d been prodded into letting friends handle important wedding services. “Friendors” can be fab—if that’s what they do for a living…but if not, they can also be a big flop, and remember what I said in an earlier blog post about having friends shoot the wedding video. Do you really want to put a friend under that kind of pressure?

So there you have it brides – wedding wisdom from real brides who have been to the altar and are now off on their journey as a new couple. If you’ve recently wed, tell us – what would you have tweaked about your wedding?

A message to brides who have elected NOT to include video in their wedding plans

Posted by Terry Wall on April 6, 2013
Posted in: Event Videography, Videography, Wedding Videography, Weddings. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I have read reports that suggest that about 70 percent of brides-to-be have decided to not have a video produced for their weddings. My advice: you will regret it! In my March 27 post, I cited several reasons why brides (and grooms)-to-be should use a professional videographer rather than a friend or relative. But what I want to say today to the fairly large numbers of you out there who may think it’s OK not to have your wedding videotaped at all, there are so many things that you are about to miss…

  • tears streaming down the faces of loved ones in the audience
  • the walk down the aisle
  • the exchange of rings
  • a sudden eruption of laughter during the ceremony
  • actions of the flower girl/ring bearer that are often funny (we edit out things that aren’t amusing or may be inappropriate)
  • expressions are not static! You want to see that emerging smile on your (and the groom’s) face
  • toasts, dances, cake cutting, bouquet and garter tosses
  • and lots of other actions!
  • sounds and music
  • the ability to share the event with people that weren’t able to attend

My wife, a writer, occasionally edits my blog posts for me and when we discussed the value of having a video of the wedding, she put it succinctly, “That whole day was a blur! With so much going on, I remembered very little of what was said, who was there, what we did (other than get married!), and without a video, I wouldn’t have remembered half of what took place that day!”

Now, let’s address the “gorilla in the room,” the price. My “deliverables” can be tailored to meet virtually any budget, so don’t let your wedding video get away for the wrong reason! Hint: this is why I avoid “package” rates…I’d much rather build a rate around exactly what you need. And as for that 70% I mentioned at the beginning of this post: most of them said—afterwards—that it was a bad decision not to include a video!

Don’t let that be you.  98% of newlyweds recommend that couples have their weddings videotaped, which means there are a lot people who wished they’d decided otherwise.  Give a call and let’s see how we can make it happen for you—and add to the memories of this special day!

Sources: The Knot, WEVA International, MSN

Why You Should Hire a Professional Wedding Videographer (Instead of Asking a Guest to Tape Your Wedding)

Posted by Terry Wall on March 27, 2013
Posted in: Videography. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

OMG!! The proposal just happened, and you are to be congratulated on the wonderful event that will now take place in the not-too-distant future, as you express your mutual desires to spend the rest of your lives together! Now the work begins in earnest planning the wedding day. It may be a short engagement or a longer one, but you’ve probably envisioned it many times. Invitations must now be sent out and you’ll invite as many friends and family members as your budget will permit. Despite the fact that you may select a wedding planner, you will immediately start getting input from everyone regarding every (and I mean, every!) aspect of this special day. Flowers, music, food, location and so many others, you’ll get opinions that reflect age, backgrounds, experience, musical tastes…you name it.

Sooner or later, the question will arise regarding how you will remember the day. For sure, you will have beautiful photographic representation of the wedding, but what about motion? Voices? Music? So much of this can be faithfully captured in video, and cannot in still photography. Consider the walk down the aisle…the exchange of vows…the first and last dance…the best man’s/maid of honor’s toasts, and so many more nuances of your wedding, that just can’t be captured in a photograph. Full disclosure: This is not a “dis” to photographers! I work with them and hold their skills in the highest regard, but it would be wrong to ignore the true value of video as an essential part of the “memories stash.”

Just as important: while it might be tempting to simply have a friend shoot some of the more relevant parts of your wedding to save money, beware! These are lifetime memories being captured and do you really want to put that kind of pressure on a friend who is there to enjoy the event? What if, because they are having a little too much fun with other guests, they miss a crucial part of the ceremony or reception? For the same reason that you entrust lifelong memories to a still photographer, you should be equally willing to commit that same trust to a videographer.

A professional videographer is there to not only record the events of the day; he or she is also charged with editing all the footage together into a well-constructed “movie,” so that years later, watching the video will bring back all the cherished memories, laughs, tears and emotions of your celebration. To enable this, the professional will have top level cameras, tripods, audio equipment, lighting (where appropriate) and computers for compiling and editing the raw footage and sound.

Think back to a special time that you had in the past and ask yourself if you wish you’d had a video to help re-live it. This is one time you can plan on future memories, for one of the most important occasions in the life of the couple-to-be. Keep professional video in your wedding day plans, and enjoy those beautiful memories…forever!