Top Tips for Wedding Videography
Weddings are a huge sector of the professional photo and video industry and for good reason. They are fun, fast paced, and consistent, but they are also a little bit stressful at the same time. With lots of moving parts and variables they can be quite hectic. No one wants to miss those crucial moments that a couple wants to be able to relive. In today’s blog, we’ll cover some tips on how to make the most of the day and get the best coverage especially as a one or two man team.
Gear
There are so many variations of cameras and lenses that can fulfill the needs of a wedding videographer, but here are a couple good options to have:
Camera
With all the amazing camera options now, if you’ve bought one in the past few years it will probably work just fine! If you’re considering getting into the wedding space and want somewhere to start, here are a few things I'd consider.
Being able to shoot at least 4K 60 is a must as you’ll want the option to slow certain moments down, adding a dramatic feel to the scene. ISO is another major consideration of mine. Having a strong second base ISO is so incredibly helpful. While this is not completely necessary, it makes unpredictable lighting situations more easy to tackle. Generally, cameras have a base ISO, which is the most optimal setting for maximizing your camera's dynamic range. A second base is quite literally a second ISO that still offers optimal dynamic range without creating an unusable image as a result of noise (grain). For example, my Sony A7SIII has a base ISO of 640 and a second base of 12,800, meaning I can shoot in some very dark lighting scenarios when at 12,800.
Another consideration is autofocus vs manual focus. If you are a one man band having auto focus can be a tremendous help and having a camera with a reliable auto focus system can make your life much easier. That being said, you do not want this to be a crutch and there are certain moments where switching to manual focus is a must to ensure there are no accidental mishaps with your AF. You’ll want to know how to adjust your camera’s autofocus settings and how to quickly switch between AF to MF when you need to take control.
Fast Zoom Lenses
Yes, I said zoom lens. I know primes are often a beloved approach for many people in the wedding game, but the versatility of a zoom lens cannot be beat when trying to tell a story. There are no do-overs for those crucial moments, so being able to shoot wide then tight in a second can really come in clutch. I personally use a Tamron 28-75 G2 as my main lens. At f2.8 all the way through, you’ve got a solid aperture for lowlight situations with a versatile focal range. Having something like a 16-35 and a 70-200 in addition to this is great for total coverage.
If you have the budget to mix in some fast prime lenses or already own them, then that will be great for lowlight situations. Outside of this, I’d actually recommend zoom lenses purely for the functionality.
Audio
Audio is arguably the most stressful part of the day (in my opinion). I think a good general set of audio gear you can start with is a shotgun mic, set of lav mics, and a field recorder. If your camera has XLR inputs then I will always recommend using a shotgun mic with XLR capabilities for improved quality. If you’re running a camera on a gimbal and need a lightweight mic just to get good general audio, something like our Mini Directional SGM2 is a great choice. It’s very lightweight and will be far superior to your camera's built-in audio.
Lavaliers will be imperative for micing up anyone that is giving a speech. These are moments that you want to capture as the dialogue of an old story or an emotional moment can take your wedding video to the next level. I personally use a set of Rode Wireless Pro’s as they are easy to use and produce excellent sounding audio. You’ll want to make sure you have the proper clips to attach the mics to your speakers and if you plan on putting a mic on the bride, make sure to have some white lavs as well just for color matching.
Having a backup option is always a good idea and that’s where a field recorder comes into play. There are tons of options out there but I personally use a Zoom F3. What I like about this unit is how simple it is. Basically, you set it and forget it (kind of). Since the F3 records 32-bit float audio you don’t have to stress as much about your levels. In fact you can't even set your levels on this recorder but since it records in 32-bit float you are getting exceptional dynamic range from your audio. You pretty much don’t have to worry about clipping audio and can recover the low end without raising your noise levels to an extreme. Also plan on equipping yourself with a few cables such as an XLR male to XLR female, XLR male to ¼” TRS male, XLR Male to RCA male. These will be needed when getting audio out from a soundboard or speaker that the DJI will have set up. This backup audio can save the day in case of a failure on your other devices, providing additional peace of mind. Something to note is if your field recorder runs off of batteries, do yourself a favor and get lithium-ion batteries. They will last far longer than their alkaline counterparts. You definitely don’t want a recorder to die half way through a ceremony (speaking from experience).
Lighting
For the most part you will probably be relying on the available light, especially when shooting outdoors, but there are moments where having a little bit of additional light can help elevate a shot. In the case of weddings, having a small and nimble lighting solution will always be preferred. Occasionally using an on camera LED like a Chroma CL36RGB can be a great way to help illuminate a subject without the need for a bulky lighting kit. If you need just a little more light to help separate a subject or increase the ambient light one of our Ultrasoft 1014RGB’s could be a great choice. You can run these LEDs off of NPF or v-mount power making them very portable. With the barn doors you can help control the direction of the light and improve the looking of your scene. With any lights however, it’s important to note that they should not be overused in an effort to maintain a discreet and lowprofile presence…you don’t want to be shining lights into peoples eyes all over the dance floor. Keep the lighting simple but keep it on hand.
Other Accessories
Like almost any shoot, a tripod will always come in handy for moments you need to lock things off. Being nimble and fast are helpful on the wedding day so I’d recommend something that is easy to work with. The Chronicle tripod is an excellent choice for this as it is easy to deploy and when you need to get a unique angle you can take the center column out and get ground level or go handheld.
In addition to a tripod, you will need a set of filters. Having VNDs is non-negotiable as you will need to control your exposure while shooting outdoors. A Variable ND filter allows you to properly do so while maintaining the correct in camera settings. When you’re shooting indoors but want the added protection of a filter without reducing incoming light then one of our protection filters will fit the bill (yes, it’s literally called a protection filter). These filters are made with ultrahardened glass and will save your investment in case your trip on the bride’s dress…don’t do this.
Obviously you can’t start shooting without SD cards and in the case of weddings having more capacity the better as you don’t have to worry about filling a card in the middle of a key moment. I’d recommend checking out our Rugged V60/ V90 cards and our Advanced V60 cards. Both lines offer cards up to 512GB capacities with the advanced line offering up to a 1TB card, which are excellent choices if you’re worried about storage.
Prep
Like any shoot, you want to do some prep and make sure you have as much information about the schedule of the day and the wants and needs of the couple. Knowing where you need to be at what time and what their expectations are is very important. If it's possible to get an idea of what indoor and outdoor settings will be at your venue that will aid in coming up with potential shot ideas and help you better determine lighting, especially indoors.
Gear prep will also be a huge part of your pre-wedding activities. Making sure to have enough batteries and that everyone of them is charged is arguably the most crucial step. You’ll want to have multiple batteries to make sure you make it through the day without any hiccups. For video shooters this means having a ton of batteries. You’ll need camera batteries for both cameras (if you’re rocking a two cam setup), monitor batteries, drone batteries, batteries for any microphones/recorders as well, and batteries for lighting equipment.
The key here is to make sure you have as much information about the couple, the venue, their needs and then double check all of your gear making sure everything is rigged, charged, and ready to go.
The Big Day
The day has come and it's time to make it happen! Make sure to show up a little early to give yourself ample time to do a walkaround of the location. The wedding day schedule may be different depending on the venue and the couple’s timing, but you can often begin by getting location footage. One way to establish the scene is by incorporating some drone footage to help elevate the feel and production value. Following this, you can capture various shots of the venue itself making sure to get both wide and tighter, detailed shots. These shots will pair well with some impactful dialogue to help get your piece started when in the post production process. Having a healthy amount of variety will also help make the editing process easier and give you more to choose from.
Depending on the wedding, the bride and groom will be getting ready on or off-site. I would make sure you know where each of their wedding parties will be getting ready as you can begin to capture candid moments of both them and their wedding parties getting ready for the main event. This can include light dialogue between the bridal party and shots of their wedding attire. You may also be able to knock out some additional detail shots in this timeframe of things like the rings and some interior venue details.
The time leading up to the ceremony is a great opportunity to find who you will need to get a lav mic on…aka find the key guests (maid of honor, best man, etc.) If you have the mics ready you can mic them up ahead of time and make sure they are good to go. This will help alleviate the stress of last minute micing and the potential of missing a key person. At this time, I would also speak with the DJ or anyone who is responsible for the sound system. You’ll want to make sure that you have a good output that you can connect to with your field recorded. Make sure everything is set and ready with this so you can turn it on and hit record.
I would make sure to do a walk around of the ceremony space to get a feel for how it will look on camera. This will also be an opportunity to frame up a shot if you plan on using your tripod to get a locked off shot to capture the whole event. This also may be helpful in the case you are a solo shooter and need a reliable second angle. There are few things more reliable than a good tripod!
As the ceremony approaches you’ll want to capture the arrival of guests and their mingling as well as some footage of them entering the venue space. The big moment is about to happen as the bride and groom make their way into the ceremony (separately of course). Make sure you are able to quickly move into different positions to maximize the storytelling potential of your frames but when in doubt stay put and capture the action as it unfolds. Getting the shot here is more important than wanting to get all the right angles. After the big moment you can take a breath and relax for a second. Now that that’s out of the way you can focus on capturing the speeches at dinner and all of the emotional moments that go with them.
Lastly, the reception will have some incredible moments. Make sure to capture first dances and don’t be afraid to have a little fun with it. Grab a few shots on the gimbal then ditch it and go handheld for a more immersive experience. These will generate some great laughs in the final product!
Conclusion
Weddings are a ton of work and definitely can be stressful but they are a blast at the same time! The main things to remember are to knock down your detail shots, establishing shots, moments with the bridal parties, make sure you mic up the key guests, capture the ceremony and speeches, and get as much footage of the moments that the bride and groom can’t experience. This day is going to be a blur for them so they'll want to look back and see moments not only of themselves but everyone that attended. Have fun and prep your gear!
