How to Find Your Wedding Videographer
10 MUST ASK QUESTIONS
WEDDING FILMS ARE A BEAUTIFUL WAY TO CREATE AN EVERLASTING MEMORY OF YOUR WEDDING DAY, BUT HOW DO YOU FIND THE PERFECT VIDEOGRAPHER?
CREATING A BEAUTIFUL FILM IS ONLY A SMALL PART OF HOW A VIDEOGRAPHER WILL IMPACT YOUR WEDDING; IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE YOU FIND SOMEONE THAT WILL FIT SEAMLESSLY INTO YOUR DAY.
WE'VE THEREFORE CREATED A LIST OF THE 10 MUST-ASK QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU FIND THE VIDEOGRAPHER THAT IS RIGHT FOR YOU!
DOWNLOAD OUR CHECKLIST TO YOUR PHONE AND KEEP IT HANDY WHEN MEETING YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER!
1) HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR STYLE?
A VIDEOGRAPHER'S STYLE IS UNIQUE TO THEM, HOWEVER WITH WEDDING FILMS THERE ARE 2 MAIN CATEGORIES: DOCUMENTARY OR HIGHLIGHT. A DOCUMENTARY FILM IS OFTEN LONGER IN LENGTH AND FOLLOWS A NATURAL CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER OF THE DAY, WHEREAS A HIGHLIGHT FILM IS OFTEN CENTRED AROUND STORY TELLING AND PRESENTING THE DAY IN A DYNAMIC WAY TO EVOKE EMOTION.
ASKING ABOUT THE VIDEOGRAPHER'S STYLE IS A GREAT WAY TO GET A FEEL FOR THE TEAM AND HOW THEY WILL FIT YOUR WEDDING. IT'S A GREAT CHANCE FOR THEM TO DEMONSTRATE THEIR PASSION FOR THE ART - YOU WANT TO BE HIRING AN ARTIST NOT A BUSINESSMAN!
2) WHAT IS YOUR EXPERIENCE IN FILMING WEDDINGS?
WEDDINGS ARE MUCH DIFFERENT TO A CONTROLLED FILM SET, THEREFORE THE VIDEOGRAPHER MUST BE ABLE TO REACT FAST TO MAKE SURE THEY CAPTURE THE ORGANIC MOMENTS OF THE DAY. THIS COMES WITH PRACTISE THEREFORE IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW HOW EXPERIENCED THE VIDEOGRAPHY TEAM ARE. THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST DAYS OF YOUR LIFE, IT ONLY HAPPENS ONCE AND THERE ARE NO SECOND CHANCES!
3) WHO WILL ATTEND ON THE DAY?
IT'S NOT UNCOMMON IF THE PERSON YOU MEET WITH DOESN'T ACTUALLY SHOW UP ON THE DAY! SOME COMPANIES WILL SEND A TEAM OF VIDEOGRAPHERS THAT KNOW NOTHING BUT YOUR NAME! IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT THE VIDEOGRAPHERS THAT WILL BE ATTENDING YOUR WEDDING HAVE THE NECESSARY SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE - HOWEVER, MORE IMPORTANTLY, YOU NEED TO KNOW YOU GET ALONG WITH THEM! YOU'LL BE SPENDING THE MAJORITY OF YOUR DAY WITH THE VIDEOGRAPHY TEAM THEREFORE YOU NEED TO KNOW THEIR PERSONALITIES WILL GEL WITH YOU AND YOUR PARTNER!
4) WILL YOU WORK WELL WITH MY PHOTOGRAPHER?
THE STYLE OF YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER SHOULD MATCH THAT OF YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER. THE TWO MUST BE ABLE TO WORK WELL TOGETHER AS IT'S LIKELY THEY WILL BE LOOKING FOR SIMILAR SHOTS AND MOMENTS THROUGHOUT THE DAY. ASK IF THEY'VE WORKED WITH YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER BEFORE AND HOW THEY PLAN ON CO-OPERATING WITH THEM THROUGHOUT THE DAY.
5) WHAT FILMS DO YOU OFFER?
BESIDES THE STYLE OF YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER, THERE ARE ALSO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT FILM TYPES THAT ARE COMMON THROUGHOUT THE INDUSTRY. SOME OFFER LONG "UN-CUT" FILMS THAT CAN BE HOURS LONG. WHILST SOME OFFER SHORT HIGHLIGHT FILMS OR TEASERS THAT ARE PERFECT FOR SHARING ON SOCIAL MEDIA. AS IF THEY CAN EDIT FILMS SPECIFICALLY FOR YOUR NEEDS; SUCH AS VERTICAL VIDEOS FOR WATCHING ON MOBILE OR HAVING A BLOOPER REEL CUT FROM THE BEST OUTTAKES - YOU'LL BE AMAZED WHAT A VIDEOGRAPHER WILL SEE THROUGHOUT THE DAY THAT WON'T MAKE IT INTO YOUR ROMANTIC HIGHLIGHT FILM.
WE'D ALSO ALWAYS SUGGEST ASKING FOR A CONTINUOUS EDIT OF YOUR WEDDING SPEECHES. A VIDEO IS BY FAR THE BEST WAY TO PRESERVE THE TOUCHING WORDS GIVEN BY YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS.
6) HOW DO YOU STRUCTURE YOUR PRICING?
WHILST KEEPING YOUR EYE ON YOUR BUDGET IS SO IMPORTANT WHEN PLANNING A WEDDING, COUPLES OFTEN OVERLOOK HOW A POOR PRICING STRUCTURE CAN ADD UNNECESSARY STRESS TO YOUR DAY. SOME VIDEOGRAPHERS WILL IMPOSE TIME LIMITS THROUGHOUT YOUR DAY AND CHARGE HEFTY OVER-RUNS FOR WORKING OVERTIME. THIS CAN NOT ONLY RELATE TO THE LENGTH OF YOUR DAY, BUT ALSO THE LENGTH OF YOUR CEREMONY OR SPEECHES AND EVEN THE LENGTH OF THEIR LUNCH BREAK!
TRY AND LOOK FOR A COMPANY THAT IS FLEXIBLE AND WILL WORK WITH YOU TO FIND A PRICE TO FIT YOUR DAY. PAYING A LITTLE EXTRA FOR A VIDEOGRAPHER THAT IS WILLING TO ALWAYS GO THE EXTRA MILE IS ALMOST ALWAYS A WISE INVESTMENT.
7) ARE THERE ANY HIDDEN COSTS?
DEPENDING ON THEIR PRICING STRUCTURE, THERE COULD BE HIDDEN COSTS IN YOUR PACKAGE THAT ONLY BECOME APPARENT WHEN IT'S TOO LATE! IN ADDITION TO CHARGING OVERTIME, SOME VIDEOGRAPHERS MAY CHARGE EXTRA FOR USE OF SPECIFIC EQUIPMENT (SUCH AS DRONES), OR CHARGE EXTRA FOR A FASTER DELIVERY TIME. ASK YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER TO BE UPFRONT WITH THESE COSTS SO YOU CAN ESTIMATE THE TOTAL COST OF YOUR PACKAGE.
8) DO I NEED TO ORGANISE ANY LICENSES?
SOME VENUES MAY REQUIRE YOU TO PURCHASE A LICENSE TO HAVE YOUR DAY FILMED. THIS IS MORE COMMON IN CHURCH CEREMONIES WHERE THERE IS A CHURCH CHOIR OR AN ORGANIST PLAYING DURING YOUR CEREMONY. HOWEVER THERE ARE MANY DIFFERENT LICENSES THAT COULD BE REQUIRED FOR YOUR DAY, IT'S BEST TO SPEAK TO YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER ALONG WITH YOUR VENUE CONTACT.
9) DO YOU NEED TO CONTACT ANY OF MY OTHER SUPPLIERS?
AS YOU KNOW ALL TOO WELL BY NOW, WEDDINGS REQUIRE A LOT OF PLANNING AND THIS ALSO APPLIES TO THE VIDEOGRAPHER THEMSELVES. THEY MAY NEED TO LIAISE WITH YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER, YOUR VENUE, YOUR DJ... THE LIST GOES ON! A SIGN OF A GOOD VIDEOGRAPHY TEAM IS IF THEY OFFER TO CONTACT YOUR OTHER SUPPLIERS THEMSELVES, SAVING YOU ANY FURTHER STRESS AND NOT ADDING TO YOUR ALREADY LONG TO-DO LIST.
10) CAN I SEE THE FULL FILM(S) FROM YOUR LATEST WEDDING?
WEDDINGS ARE NOT ALWAYS THE EASIEST EVENTS FOR YOUR SUPPLIERS AND EACH WEDDING IS UNIQUE! THE SIGN OF A STRONG VIDEOGRAPHER IS THEIR ABILITY TO ADAPT TO FIT THE NEEDS OF EVERY WEDDING - IT'S EASY TO PRODUCE A NICE PORTFOLIO PIECE ONCE IN A WHILE, HOWEVER YOU MUST MAKE SURE YOUR VIDEOGRAPHER IS CONSISTENT!
YOU ALSO WANT TO CHECK THEIR STYLE IS NOT CHANGING OVER TIME AND THEIR CURRENT STYLE IS THE SAME AS THE FILM THAT YOU LOVED ON THEIR WEBSITE.
WE HOPE YOU FIND THESE TIPS HELPFUL WHILST LOOKING FOR YOUR DREAM VIDEOGRAPHER!
DON'T FORGET TO DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY OF OUR CHECKLIST ONTO YOUR MOBILE TO KEEP IT HANDY WHEN MEETING YOUR VIDEOGAPHER!
WE CREATED LEWIS JACK MEDIA WITH THE GOAL TO PROVIDE STRESS-FREE SERVICE FOR ALL OUR WONDERFUL COUPLES, WEDDING VIDEOS ARE OUR PASSION; CREATING BEAUTIFUL FILMS FULL OF STORY AND EMOTION THAT WE KNOW WILL BE TREASURED FOR A LIFETIME!
