Hello and welcome to this, the third in our series on shooting videos with your camcorder.
In this series we have covered the aspects of shooting with your camcorder and followed
on with editing your footage and along the way have met experts and professionals in
their own field and the consensus of opinion is among them all that a camcorder has revolutionised
the way in which everyone can keep a record of family life.
Once in a while there is an occasion which has the ingredients of a perfect marriage
between camcorder and its user and that's a wedding and there can be times just like
in all marriages when things don't go quite as smoothly as they might.
Up till now we have shown you how you can use a camcorder effectively, how you can edit
your footage to make your finished programme more entertaining and informative.
However there's nothing quite like a wedding to put all these skills to the ultimate test.
There is nothing the professional video maker dreads more than going into a shooting situation
over which they have no control.
Even in a controlled situation such as a commercial film where they might be working to a planned
script and storyboard they can still be at the mercy of the weather, unforeseen changes
in location, breakdown of equipment and a whole host of other variables.
It doesn't do to think about everything that could go wrong too much otherwise I'm sure
that many of us wouldn't go outside at all.
Timings have the added and unsurmountable problem that perhaps dwarfs all other problems
mentioned before and that is the unknown factor.
When you take a camcorder to a wedding you might have some idea what is likely to happen
which is a reasonable assumption given the timings of the church service and the date
on which it is set.
I suppose that the date and time in the ceremony itself are probably the only really permanent
pieces of information that are unlikely to change having been given to you well in advance.
It's surprising but even the situation where you might be filming two weddings at the same
church but spaced just a week apart, just how different they can be both in style and
content for a video.
In this film we shall be looking at the footage shot over a great many weddings.
We will show you how you can plan a shoot to try and work around and avoid common problems
for video makers on the day.
We will talk to people in the industry to get their views about shooting and editing
wedding videos and hopefully gain a few hints and tips towards better production for the
future.
For those who have turned their hobby perhaps into a source of income the most likely way
in which someone can cut their teeth with commercial work is with a wedding video commission.
This is a very good discipline to work within as it involves all the key elements in programme
production.
You have to meet the client, in this case perhaps the bride-to-be or her parents or
whoever has decided to engage as services.
Obviously before you get to this stage it is assumed hopefully that you will have worked
on weddings before, perhaps for family or friends and that encouraged by their feedback
on the quality achieved have decided to offer your services with this in mind.
Today more than ever before people have switched on to video and moreover as to what can be
expected from a wedding video.
Whereas say 10 years ago the novelty of a video was such that a wedding film could be
considered good even though it might have contained some very big errors in production
values.
The novelty factor would have discounted this as the camcorder was not so readily available
or as well specified as those today.
A whole new industry has emerged and is now seen by some as a contender along with a long
established stills camera as a means of capturing the atmosphere of the day.
We will come onto the relationship of photographer and the videographer a little later on in
this programme.
Right, even if you are watching this and don't want to get into a profession of making wedding
videos you can still gain a lot from the professional aspects of planning and producing a film.
Preparation is the key in both good production and in the practicality of what is and isn't
possible when shooting a wedding.
In the course of my professional career in terms of teaching and training I would say
that the success of any video at any level from the amateur through to broadcasting is
in the preparation, it's in the planning, it's in the development of ideas, it's the
careful structured planning of what you are actually going to do.
That in my opinion is at least 80% of whatever you are going to do.
That I find is very difficult for people in the early stages to actually accept and be
able in advance to put their ideas down on paper to think it through.
Most people are very anxious just to pick up the camera and just shoot for hours and
hours really but that doesn't make for a successful production so planning really is the key to
it all.
Martin Phillips
If you don't plan properly you can end up at the wrong church, you can get the wrong
time.
Also it's a very very good idea to try and meet the bride and groom before the day because
if the church is having a number of weddings on the same day it is very possible that you
can be starting filming the wrong people.
I know it sounds obvious but a checklist of equipment especially if the wedding is a long
way from home is essential and what the professional videographer needs to take along to cover
for most eventualities is very comprehensive.
This might include tape stock of course, batteries not only for the camera but also for the microphone
perhaps, microphones themselves, mic stands, headphones for monitoring your sound, a main
supply adapter, extension cables, fuses, a tripod of course, lights, don't forget a lens
cloth oh and the camcorder.
There is a story of a very well known video company, a very highly thought of video company
that actually made a very major mistake by doing a wedding about 200 miles away from
its base and forgetting something as basic as the batteries for the camera.
So always check your equipment before you go especially if you have to travel any distance
to get there because if you find yourself in a situation like that it can be very awkward
for all involved and it certainly doesn't do your reputation any good whatsoever.
One thing you definitely can't plan for is of course the weather and even in summer after
the longest spell of dry weather you can bet that come the big day you will be the one
trying to make a video in driving rain.
You've got to make the most of things.
Umbrellas seem to come into play for some reason with the result that most shots could
end up with just being a sea of coloured canvas with legs.
This is hard work but again as I've said before when they're watching the completed video
in a week or two they won't appreciate it if you give up here.
You've got to try and capitalise on a situation.
It's strange I know but it takes a lot of rain to look like a lot of rain on video.
The weather is another very big variable because if it's raining the whole structure of the
day is altered.
You tend to find that everyone will be inside rather than outside obviously because they
don't want to get wet and that dramatically alters the light levels.
So if you do have lighting take plenty of it along.
Also cover for the camera and yourself because as many cameras have very highly sophisticated
electronics in it, water and electronics as you know don't mix very well.
So try and keep that covered.
Use your camcorder with a good rain hood cover and have a lens cloth handy at all times.
Can rain or shine for that matter?
Bob Cartwright of AVP.
I know weddings are a whole new ball game and you have to make a decision with your
camcorder whether you're doing it for pleasure or you're doing it for profit.
Because quite honestly let's face it if you just popped out and you bought yourself a
£1000 camcorder you are not going to get the same results as the professionals who
have been doing it for a long time who have spent £10,000 or £15,000 on their camera
equipment and can support it with the same amount of investment with editing.
However that's not to say that you can't use your camcorder to shoot a wedding but
the choice is yours whether you're doing it for pleasure or for profit.
Now everybody starts perhaps with their friends because friends will forgive you because everybody
makes mistakes and it also allows you the facility to do it and have the fun of doing
it.
But I can assure you when you're doing a wedding and you're actually doing it commercially
there's no fun involved it's a one stop shot.
You missed it, you've lost it.
If you haven't got the values on oh boy are you in trouble.
So you can see mistakes can happen.
So putting the professional side doing it for profit to one side for a moment.
Let's talk about you shooting it just for your own pleasure.
It's a member of the family, an occasion and you want to record it well.
You can start by taking in the whole day.
What you have to remember at the very beginning is that if you're going to make a production
of this even if it's for your own benefit or for the benefit of the family you're
a production of this it is a full day's work.
But if you're just popping along to shoot a few shots to include in your family video
then you can sit at the back at the reception and enjoy the drinks and sell it with everybody
else.
But if you're going to make a full production of it it actually starts very early.
So let's first look at equipment.
Yes you've got the camcorder.
Have you got enough batteries?
Have you got enough tape?
What about microphones?
Are you going to use the on board microphone all the time or are you going to attempt to
put a microphone on a tripod perhaps closer to the reception table for the speeches?
What about lighting?
Are you going to take a small hand held light that clips on the top?
What about colour balance?
Does the light need a filter?
Do you have the filter on the camera?
All these little things can make the difference between a pleasantly viewed production and
one which changes colour or the sound goes or whatever.
So taking a normal wedding day you could start early in the morning, 9 o'clock, 8 o'clock
when the bride is perhaps getting ready and getting dressed ready for church.
Which way do you want me to go this way?
Do you want to take a bouquet?
Do you want me to mum and dad please and win as well?
Now you'll notice a lot of this footage is hand held, not using a tripod as we discussed
earlier.
Now you're trying to capture the atmosphere here, you can't miss it, this is a one stop
shot and if possible and if they're nearby of course you try and get a bit of the bride
home, jump in the car, whip down the road and get some of the groom perhaps on the way
to the pub for a drink beforehand.
So now the situation is you've been up, you've done the bride's home, you've done the groom's
home or he's en route to the church, you've got to get to the church pretty quick because
their guests are already arriving.
Now guests tend to arrive up to an hour before the wedding so before they arrive you need
to start doing your establishing shots, your wide shots.
So where's the church, what's the location, what sort of day is it, what's the weather
like, what are the flowers like inside the church, who's inside the church, are the ushers
there, are the ushers talking, is the best man talking?
You've got to capture all this and you've got to be quick, you've got to be swift, you've
got to make sure everything's up and running, you haven't got time for tripods, you haven't
got time for battery changes, you haven't got time for tape changes, you've got to get
it.
Now
while all this is going on of course the guests are arriving so you've established the church,
you've established who's there already, get outside quick, start getting the people arriving
but be careful, don't put it on a tripod and leave it in the same place because if you
do you get jump cuts of all these people jumping down the same alley.
Now this is from another wedding.
So here we are, we've, you're capturing the last moment of the groom and the best man
talking before they get taken into the church, they get taken into the church, all the friends
have gone inside, you've got to get down to the gateway as soon as possible and start
to capture the bridesmaids arriving.
Now again you've got to give yourself time to allow for the car to arrive and for them
to get out.
So you have to, it's a mental calculation of are they arriving and if they are, somebody
gives you a shout from somewhere saying they're here and you've got to run for it and get
the shots.
Now of course you've run down to the gate, you've just caught the bridesmaids arriving,
they've gone back to fetch the bride, you're puffed, you're out of breath, you've got
to hold that camera steady so you've got to make sure that your hand held technique is
good, always trying to use the camera forming a triangle, always trying to give it the steadiest
way you can possibly.
Then the bride arrives and of course this is the most important time because everybody
when they're watching the video will want to see the brides, they'll want to see the
brides face, perhaps want to hear the last conversation between the bride and her father,
they'll want to see the dress, the flowers, the posy, they'll want to see the little bits
of running around that the mother does and the bridesmaids and the preparation before
the last walk to the church.
Now this is probably one of the most important parts and you must not miss this.
Let's look at this example.
Okay now just this way for me, turn a little more towards me.
That's it, that's nice, good, that's lovely.
Another one just there, just looking towards each other.
So you've got the close-ups from the faces, you've got the talk, you've got all the intimate
chit chat but now you've got to get to the church to see them walking towards you, don't
watch the back of them, you've got to watch the front.
So you've got to run again to the church.
Right, so now we're at the church doorway with the vicar as the vicar welcomes the bride
to the church, perhaps the last few words before she's taken down the aisle.
Now at this particular point you might be outside of the church looking at the back
of the bride and the bride's father and the vicar.
There is this entourage, it's a very small gateway, you have to get past them to get
inside the church to have them walking down towards the altar where you can capture the
expression of the groom as he sees his wife for the first time.
Now this is a lovely shot if you can do it but you've got to get past an awful lot of
people and again don't forget you're carrying all this equipment so you've got to try and
do the best you can and establish yourself in a very steady position for the first two
minutes or so of the service.
Now this is from a different wedding which illustrates this nicely.
Now there are two points of view as to how to shoot a wedding.
Once you're inside the church you can either shoot it and shoot everything that moves,
all the verses of the hymns, all the sermons, all the prayers etc etc etc or you can cut
it down to an acceptable part.
My particular view, my personal view is to shoot the first verse of each hymn, just the
actual wedding ceremony itself from the part where they say is there anybody here who knows
any reason why these two people can't get together to the part where they start to be
blessed.
But it's a personal thing, it's up to you and obviously if there are special guests
there perhaps doing a reading or singing a song or whatever it's nice to capture everything
they're doing.
So here we are inside the church, we've got the first part of the verses, as I say probably
the most important part is the actual vows and the actual wedding ceremony itself but
we've already seen what can go wrong and then of course there's the signing of the register
and you can get the part where everybody breathes a sigh of relief, they all congratulate each
other and start signing the register.
So once they've signed the register you now have got some more sprinting to do, you have
to get down to the end of the aisle to make sure that you see the husband and wife take
their first walk towards you and then you have to decide whether you stay there and
watch them go out of the door from behind or you walk out backwards before them.
Now of course if you're out in front of them then you can get them coming out of the church
and all the guests coming out of the church, the relief, the animation but if you stay
inside the church although you'll get people filing out you'll be stuck behind them and
you'll miss all these first time opportunities which are happening outside the church, the
choice is yours where you go but if you're outside you'll start to see people become
more animated, more comfortable with their surroundings, relief that it's over and the
family will start talking to each other.
Now at this point you'll notice the tripod starts to become useful because then you can
start using the telephoto lens to get in close to people's expressions and really capture
some of the conversations and find out what's going on.
Let's stop the action here and take a longer look now at the background towards making
a polished wedding video and some problems you might come across.
Steve Jenkins.
The production of a good wedding video is in my opinion very demanding but it's also
an excellent way for the amateur to learn very good things about the family and the
family is very important.
And I think that's the key to the family and the family is very important.
The production of a good wedding video is very important.
It's also an excellent way for the amateur to learn very good basic principles.
I think the key to it of all of course is to remember that it's one off, you don't
have a second opportunity to enable you to do the shots again.
So it's very demanding, a lot of pressure.
I've actually produced in the past very many wedding videos, I think it's a very good way
of learning basic techniques.
Making a wedding video using a single camera is very important basically to plan out exactly
what you're going to do in advance, to recce your locations, to do a basic script or storyboard,
to plan out what kinds of shots.
Don't be over ambitious, certainly you have to check the basic things about are you allowed
to video in the church of course and things like that.
Just think very carefully about your locations.
The service has been your storyboard of course, but what if the ceremony is not a traditional
one?
Malwyn Ransom from Take Two Video Productions.
Well Malwyn we've actually come across you hard at work here and it's obvious to see
that you're editing a wedding but it doesn't strike me as a traditional one.
No this is a Jewish wedding.
And did the fact that it was a Jewish wedding pose any problems for you?
The main problem was the language.
The service here was in Hebrew.
And how does that, you mentioned it was the problem, the language in Hebrew, how can that
be a problem when you're filming?
Well we use the dialogue as a storyboard to frame your shots.
So you're actually working around what's happening around you on the day then?
Yes.
Is it important actually to plan and look at a wedding to see what to film?
Yes.
The positioning at the service is quite important.
So the planning is an important aspect then?
Yes.
So if someone say we're going to buy a camcorder now and the first thing you want to do is
film a wedding in the family, could you give them any hints and tips towards a better production
with their camcorder?
Well regarding the service, it's always wise to get permission from the church and your
positioning so that you're not upsetting anyone in the church.
A word upon situation now.
You can't set up where you feel like it.
This is a religious ceremony after all, not a film set.
And when you spoke to the minister, prior to all his frantic activity, perhaps at the
rehearsal or upon first arriving at the church, he will have given you a fixed point from
which to shoot or maybe offered you a couple of spots.
Whatever you do, don't assume when you come to actually film the service that a much better
place perhaps would be in the aisle or next to the altar.
Respect the minister's good judgment.
Otherwise he's quite entitled to tell you in front of everyone your misjudged assumption.
In fact, it is quite surprising how switched on most ministers are towards good vantage
points regarding video in church.
Very often a camera person will have to weigh up the advantages and disadvantages of their
position quickly.
If you find yourself behind a screen, make sure that it doesn't become too obvious an
intrusion in your shot.
You might even be offered to shoot from the pulpit.
Possibly beware this invitation, as at first it might seem the ideal spot, especially if
it offers a grandstand view of the church.
But you might end up looking at the back of the bride and groom from about 15 foot high,
as well as again feeling like the focus of everyone's attention.
I remember clearly on one occasion I was restricted to the pulpit and the vicar instructed me
that I was not allowed to be seen so therefore I was crouched down in a pulpit for the entire
duration of the service and that was quite demanding just to get a decent vantage on
the couple.
So you've got into position just before the bride enters the church.
At this time and just before the organ strikes up, try to get a shot of the groom and the
best man.
Just like you, they'll have a lot on their mind and invariably they'll probably react
when they see the camera pointing at them.
Be aware of how you intend to film the service, if you are going to film it at all.
Have you enough tape?
If the tape end light starts flashing now, you're in real trouble.
Although as Bob mentioned, many people prefer a condensed version of the service on video
nowadays, so possibly keep to the format he suggested when he began to film this.
So you're now well into the service, before you know it, you're at the marriage vows.
This is a crucial time for many obvious reasons, not least of which is the possibility that
the minister with his back to you might unconsciously move into your shot and effectively ruin your
framing.
This is going to make you work much harder and you might have a picture of just the bride
or just the groom depending on where you're shooting from.
You must try to save this shot if this should happen.
If you have room to manoeuvre, try to change your position slightly.
Do this gradually if possible, just in case you need to use the footage as you're doing
this.
Or frame the shot wider.
Or perhaps frame the bride or groom or whoever you can see more clearly.
We'll run a few marriage vows now.
To have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer,
in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, as long as we both shall live, according
to the will and purpose of God.
Getting good sound is important as you can see.
It helps to have another mic on a camcorder, perhaps a directional one.
I found that a directional mic is a very useful thing at weddings, especially at the time
of the marriage vows, as the bride and groom can tend to be very quiet compared to the
minister's voice.
If you have the time and the means, a radio mic placed on the groom beforehand might help
in situations where you seem to be a long way off from a couple.
But they can just be another item to worry about if you're operating on your own.
What is essential though is a pair of headphones or an earpiece just to confirm that you're
getting good, clear sound.
Once you have mastered good camera technique, you can really concentrate on editing in camera,
choosing your shots as you go, which can make a wedding video much more enjoyable to watch
later on.
A good point to remember is to edit as much as you can in camera, because if you don't
have any access to editing facilities, it's much better.
If you do have a basic editing setup as featured in the editing programme, so much the better.
It's probably more important to edit in camera and get it right, because it's a one-shot
deal.
It's much harder than the corporate in some respects, because it is only one day.
You can't ask everybody to turn it up the next day if you get it wrong.
If you don't have editing equipment, remember that with sufficient battery power, you can
use the standby facility throughout the duration of the day, and you can do successful in-camera
editing, and then just give the video to the people involved at the end of the day.
Again, just obey the basic rules of programme production.
Establishing shots, cutaways, etc.
A little planning can make a very watchable finished programme.
I've worked on weddings that have been shot on two cameras, and subsequently edited to
give a far more polished look.
With two cameras, of course, the pressure of trying to be in two places at once is immediately
reduced.
You can set one camera at the back of the church, for example, with the other in the
usual spot as just described.
Then, as the bride enters the church, for example, you can cut between the best shots
from either camera.
If you haven't got a second camera operator, and you've still got the time, you could leave
a second camera locked off at the back of the church, as we've done here.
Be careful though where you leave it.
Now I thought this was a safe place, but even here, it was knocked slightly out of place
just as the service started.
Of course, when churches were built, I suppose that the architects at that time had scant
regard towards the future invention of the camcorder.
And this is highlighted, no pun intended, by the mixed and varied lighting which all
churches seem to provide.
Not immediately obvious, but nonetheless a relevant point is stained glass windows.
Now these can produce colour casts, perhaps resulting in a green bride, for example.
Or the minister might give his address to the congregation with a strong light source
from the window doing its best to spoil your shot.
However the backlight compensator can help in this event, as we looked at in volume 1.
I found that almost without exception, all the people in the industry that I've talked
to have discounted the use of a video light in these situations.
They can be an enormous distraction for everyone, and many churches frown upon their use.
Again, as we've looked at in volume 1, current camcorders can pull out very good detailed
and colour pictures in almost all conditions, including churches.
Right, let's fast forward now to the bride and groom coming down the aisle.
This is another opportunity to get a key shot of the day.
Look out for the photographer though, at this point he may well take up position just in
front of you, which might spoil his shot, but he won't be there for long, so just appreciate
that he's doing his job just as much as you are.
We're nearly out of the church, and by now you will be thinking ahead again, changing
colour balance perhaps for outside, and audio levels if you have them, to allow for the
church bells perhaps.
Oh no, sorry.
Right, so you've captured them outside of the church, and the length of time that you
have to wait for them to be there, usually depends on two things, the weather and the
photographer.
Now the photographer can be a main part of your video, and he can be the reason that
people are standing around in lines.
If you don't show the photographer, it seems strange that these people are lining up, so
it's a good excuse to show him and show what's going on.
Probably the best shots of the day now.
Set yourself in a good position, preferably as close to the photographer as possible,
as he's actually going to set the shot up, and be prepared for some pushing at this point.
People will not appreciate that you need to get a steady shot, they'll be much more interested
in showering the bride and groom with rice and confetti.
Let's look at these examples.
Again a cut away or two, just before they lead to the car.
If you place yourself against the back window, and it's open, you are most likely to get
some good comments from them now.
You will actually see them start to physically relax, as they will for the first time of
the day be together, well almost on their own, with the prospect of a breather as they
are driven to the reception.
Now if you can, to make the continuity nice, you've got to try and get to the reception
before they do, allowing for traffic and weather and the usual problems, and capture them arriving
at the reception and again going into the reception.
Just like the service, no two wedding receptions are the same.
You'll just need to have your wits about you and keep your eyes open for the unusual.
To get shots like these, you have to work fast, but they are definitely worth the effort.
Again use the tripod if possible, and use the telephoto end of the lens to give the
shot more interest.
Just like for the church shots, introduce establishing shots and various angles of interest.
Everyone is much more animated, and you can see how you can usefully capitalise on those
unguarded moments that are bound to arise.
Again use the photographer occasionally if photographs are taken here, and very often
there is a tendency nowadays for more photographs to be taken in the hotel grounds, which can
offer more space and better backdrops than those of the churchyard.
You will probably find that for the first time since you started out with your camcorder
some 5 to 7 hours or so, as if you began at the bride's home, that you will have some
breathing space now.
You could usefully have a quick look at the reception room, and plan where you are going
to set up the camera.
Before the reception meal you might have a line up of guests to film as well.
Again don't film all this, it can go on for ages if there are a couple of hundred guests.
Test various shots and get a flavour of this for the film.
It's a good idea to set your camcorder up on a tripod, if you intend to cover all the
speeches.
A useful tip here is to go for height.
You'll need it, for as soon as the bride and groom are welcomed into the room, you'll lose
them among the guests.
Also it may be a good idea to frame the top table like this.
You can frame the bride, the groom, their family, the best man and bridesmaids more
tightly as well as seeing all their reactions to the speeches later on.
It's not a good idea to film the guests eating.
If you are doing this as a commission I'd suggest you leave them to eat their meal for
now and come back for the cutting of the cake.
Again when this happens make sure you are close enough to get the shots.
We've mentioned microphones many times in this series and we'll do it one last time
now.
For speeches, which might well last for anything up to an hour in extreme cases, an additional
mic is essential.
Use a directional one on the camera or here as we've done with a mic on a table itself.
We'll switch between the camera mic and the table mic just to illustrate the difference.
Firstly the camera mic.
Another table mic.
With the speeches over all that's left to film now is the evening party.
You'll need stamina now if you've been on the go all day.
Often these take a while to get going and if there's a disco the lack of light may mean
grainy pictures.
If you can edit your footage with an effects mixer later on you could really give this
go.
If you're covering a do where the bride and groom leave after the reception then this
makes a very nice end to the video also.
If you intend to edit weddings then quality must be paramount and it's surprising how
much video has moved on in technology since that wedding of 10 years ago with that youthful
looking groom.
Today the demands of clients has grown along with the technology.
Charles Monalescu.
You may be interested to know that in Italy the norm is to shoot and edit a wedding video
in Betacam.
This seems to have become the traditional thing in Italy and that idea is spreading
to other countries.
People are expecting a better quality result.
They are looking for higher resolution.
They are looking for brighter colours, perhaps titles, perhaps nice music.
It's all, at the end of the day it's what people are beginning to expect so therefore
the wedding videographer, if I can use that term, is having to keep up with the latest
technology that his business can allow him to use.
Obviously it takes a lot of time and patience to make a good wedding video.
If you can't film the service, perhaps because the vicar won't allow you into the church
or possibly for some other reason, then you could consider going along to the church the
night before and filming the flowers and setting this to music in your finished film.
At the end of the film, again with an effects mixer, you could set to music the highlights
of the day.
There are so many possibilities with wedding videos.
It can be so creative.
Even if you just edit in camera, you can get so much more from your hobby.
Some final words.
But at the end of the day, shoot the speeches, capture the atmosphere, perhaps a bit of the
party but whatever you do when the party starts, put the camera down and enjoy it.
Thank you.