As a film and video teacher, I’ve asked dozens of eager-to-learn videographers over the years what they strive for in a wedding video. The most common answer is a story. I’ve even been told, ”a story with a begining, a middle and an end.” Fancy that! I’ve also been told: "make it entertaining,” and "to capture the emotion,” like it’s a rodent on the run, bagged and tagged.
Let’s face it, every videographer loves it when the bride or groom cries, especially during personal vows. Camera is rolling and emotion gushes. Captured! But this isn’t story-telling. Fancy video editing and well timed music to the wedding video is not story-telling either. But to be candid, most couples don’t want more—the wedding is THEIR STORY. They just need it to be well shot, to show off the location, and to have good sound, as long as they can proudly show it to their family and friends back home, and recognize it as the perfect keepsake for future family, then that’s plenty good enough. BUT ... for the few who want more of a wedding video, who want real story-telling, know this: It all begins with pre-planning, collaberation, and it requires a blueprint. This is where I excel. As a filmmaker who has lived and breathed Hollywood for thirty years, on hundreds of TV shows and movies, I just love story-telling, and I’d like to craft your story as a Kauai wedding video.
, and want to know about pre-imagined and drafted and real digital cinematography for weddings, well, the first step is a shot list. It might look something like this:
It doesn’t come from a blueprint, it’s not pre-imagined and executed. Put a home camera in front of a wedding ceremony at the beach, you’ll have a wedding video. Set up 2 or 3 cameras, one on a Steadicam, another with a wireless lavalier recording clean audio, and then edit with titles, “Julia and Mark” over Hawaiian music or a song, you’ll have an elaborate wedding video.
1. A wave crashing ashore on a deserted beach
2. Man’s foot - close up, on that deserted beach—not deserted after all.
3. Sand ripples blowing across the beach - the sound of the breeze.
4. Palm tree fronds high up, with sun glints, almost blinding.
5. Man’s foot again - pacing.
6. A sand crab runs into the water.
7. Bride’s feet. She’s walking. She pauses, hesitates…after all, it’s a big decision.
8. Bride’s veil - close up, blowing in the breeze. We have yet to see her face.
9. Groom's hand. Nervous fingers.
10. Close up: his eyes, pan down his chest. We HEAR his heartbeat, thumping loudly.
11. Full shot of bride; she’s made up her mind; her eyes are bright, she resumes walking, her expression full of hope and excitement,
12. Groom looks up, sees her, and beams.
CONTINUED ….
Below are three wedding video samples. The first, traditional video, nicely shot and edited, I think you’ll agree; under a thousand dollars. The other two are “designer-crafted.” However in video #3 we used artificial lights, reflectors and modifiers. Technically, it is digital cinematography.