A wedding video shift for us takes the whole day - two camera set up and usually about 8-12 hours worth of filming waiting around for things to "happen".

We used to just please ourselves about food and drinks and grab a bite to eat somewhere when the wedding party were having thier meal. However we stopped this as it meant usually travelling to somewhere to get food as the wedding reception venues locally are highly expensive or there is not the option for food.

So as of last year we started stating that the cameramen require fed and watered as part of the deal. This seems to work however we are now treated by the wedding reception staff as a after though or 2nd class citezens - 99% of the time we have to remind the reception venue about our meals that the bride/groom should have organised as stated in our T&C's it is hit and miss.

I spoke to a competitor a few years back that has been doing wedding videos for 30+ years and he always asks for a seat at one of the guests tables and have the full 3 course wedding meal with the guests I was shocked! - however I'm now coming round to his way of thinking and considering this just wondering what you guys do?

Well I don't the guests but I do very often eat what the guests eat at my own mini table. Or if thats not available I eat a sandwhich that the venue provides. Its in my contract that the B&G must feed me if I'm there for longer than a certain amount of hours. Most brides take this to mean full guest meals even though I just mean a sandwhich.. I don't complain.

I expect to be fed but I prefer not to sit down with the guests. If you are seated with guests at your table you are obliged to socially interact with them. I prefer to eat privately so I can get the benefit of a mental break. I can also eat more quickly so I can be on with things without appearing to be rude.

Unless I'm doing a special like a ceremony shoot that's only a few hours, I do expect to be fed but like Jim I prefer not to eat with the guests. More often than not reception venues here will set up a special table away from the guests for the photog, videog and DJ ... yep, sitting away from the guests not only gives you a mental break but also allows you to see what's happening ... more than once I have spotted a "filmable event" but only because I was able to have an overview of the tables!!

My "tactful" approach to brides that seem to be put out by the fact that you need to eat is that I tell them we can either go out and find dinner elsewhere so we might be gone 2 hours OR they can feed us. They always choose the 2nd option for fear of losing footage of events that happen while we are gone!!

Chris

I have on my contract "a meal is appreciated but not expected". As my prices have increased over the years, I find less people less willing to feed me, knowing how much they are paying me. I used to get fed all the time, now probably only 25% of the time.

When I have been promised a meal, kitchen staff always forget and serve me last - and it's cold. Or vegetarian. It sucks - that will never change.

I hate being seated with the guests - (a) because I like to eat fast... and messy (b) Uncle Bob usually wants to quiz me about the gear I use - because he "dabbles a bit" with video.... ARRGGHHHHH.... kill me now!!!

packed lunch? (that might be just a uk term)

I take a flask of soup, sandwich, can of coke, packet of crisps.

Altough if i get offered food, i take it!

Depending on a venue we have our own table and a full meal, or we get it somewhere else on the side (kitchen, bar, hallway, etc). I don't specify anything in the contract about food, but I know that B&G have to pay the venue for us the same as other guests. Once I had a situation that Bride told us (me and the band) that we are supposed to get full dinner and sitting, because she was charged full price for us. The venue never provided anything for us - she did a big scene, bashing the manager for his "cheapness". It was nice to see that my customer does care for me :-) But after many many receptions done with empty stomach I learned to bring my own food - sometimes it tastes better then what they're serving at the reception.

Years ago I put into my service agreement that I get fed OR I have the option to leave for up to an hour to get food. I do not brown bag it never have never will. Weddings, commerical work whatever. It has nothing to do with how much I am getting paid.
I do not need to sit with the guests or have the same meal but I DO need to eat. By the time the meal is served at the reception I've been on the job at LEAST 7 hours many times so don't tell me you don't want to eat. Now I can't say for sure but I think in the US there are some labor laws that speak to how long one should work before getting a break but since we are not talking about a typical 9 to 5 job we'll put that aside. I have eaten far to many fast food meals in my car over the years and I don't need to do that or eat a sandwich I brought from home when I'm doing a job and the reception is $125 a plate. A vendor meal? Fine. An open seat at the reception? Fine, but if you want me to do a great job on your wedding then at least feed me dinner or I WILL leave for up to an hour and should I miss something while gone, too bad.
I've been working this way for the last 20 years of my career and only 1 that I can think of did I have to enforce the "law" and go out.

Been filming weddings for 10 years and have always partaken of the reception food.

Our budget customers generally provide a buffet style meal, so at some point after the first few major reception events have happened, and after most of the guests have gone through (but well before it's only scraps left)... our crew will take a 15 minute break and chow.

For our higher end clients who go the multi-course deal, we've always been given a seat at the table with the photographer/dj/band to partake of the 3 course meal etc.

Same thing goes for the rehearsal dinner. We always get fed, because after all it is dinner time, and we are missing dinner time while filming.

Also, I prefer not to eat with the other guests as well, for all the reasons previously stated.

On a side note, I am in the South, and I guess it's Southern Hospitality, but it seems over 10 years I have never had one client who did not go out of their way to make me feel welcome at the event in terms of eating etc. It's as if they will take offence if you DON'T eat. lol

Kyle

Regions differ.

In my area, most brides & grooms expect to feed the hired help. The photographers often take a break to eat while working. Whether I eat or not depends on the specific gig and specific situation.

I live and work from a mountain resort town. The surrounding area is rural although we are about 60 miles from our state's largest city. I'm one of the few professional wedding videographers around and there are hardly any part-timers either. I take jobs in a 200 mile radius. Whether and what I eat depends on the job.

Some of the weddings I shoot in my town are quite small --- maybe ten to twenty guests who have traveled from a couple of states away to get married in the mountains. They'll have a dinner in a reserved room in one of the town restaurants after the ceremony. These are usually only three hours or so of work for me; shoot some preparation, shoot the ceremony, talk to the guests on camera, shoot a ritual or two and some toasts, and go home. There's really no way to feed me nor, to my thinking, any need for them to do so.

It's not that much different when I'm shooting the larger local weddings where the ceremony and reception are held at one of our nearby resort facilities. These can be three to five hour gigs. Virtually every couple I've ever worked for has expected me to be fed. Even if they did not, I know most of the resort staff -- maybe shot their weddings or their kids' weddings --- and would get fed if I wanted to eat. But there's always stuff going on with the larger events. I find it hard to keep track of things and my equipment and try to eat. So, maybe I'll grab a roll but usually I find it easier not to bother with eating. Anyway, celebratory food tends to be heavy and rich and I'd usually prefer to wait until I get home and can relax before I eat.

Same thing when I go down to the nearby city and shoot a wedding there. It's easier for me to just pay attention to the video stuff and wait to eat until I get home.

Then, there are other jobs. In some of these, the site may be three or four hours away. Maybe there's a a very long day with multiple events where there there are real breaks in the action. (I've done a couple of huge things where festivities were spread over several days.) So, I may pack some food for the trip, and the folks (particularly the ranchers) really want you to eat and would feel slighted if you do not. I've done a number of weddings for local restaurant families where the photographers, musicians, dj and I were as much guests as hired help. (This happens when you work in small towns), So, in these situations. I try to avoid eating with the guests for the reasons everybody has outlined above plus one other: if you get distracted talking to guests, it's too easy to spill food on myself or equipment. Trust me, you do not want barbecue sauce on a lens. It can be very difficult to get it all off.

Getting fed at the reception is a must. If you're working 8+ hours on the wedding day, there's no way the client can expect you not to eat. And bringing your own food is not an option when you're on the run.

Tell them you need to get fed along with the other vendors.

Sorry folks but the sort of treatment many expect, and get, is one of the things we're trying to change. The simple message is "get real".

Does the painter who comes to decorate your house expect you to serve him a meal at midday or does he stop to eat his sandwiches and drink his tea from a flask?

Does the gang who come to remove trees from your yard get sat down to a two-course meal at noon?

For 30 years we made bi-monthly programmes in a studio for a multinational blue-chip client. Far from covering the cost of my seven-man crew's meals they expected to be fed sandwiches and drinks by us, and anyone whose worked in a large studio will know that they invariably have catering facilities on site or nearby. The cost was, of course, built into our quotation.

I think that to expect the clients to fork out for another two or three guests at the wedding breakfast is unreasonable. It's tantamount to increasing your income by stealth.

Now I'm not suggesting that we're camels and can go all day without sustenance, nor do I expect to subsidise the job from profit. What I do suggest is that the business should stop treating itself as some sort of pampered speciality, build the cost of its food and drink into the product price and behave like the professionals we all claim to be.

Sorry to make waves but this is something about which I feel very strongly.

Does the painter who comes to decorate your house expect you to serve him a meal at midday....

Interesting point. We are renovating our house at the moment and my wife serves up the contractors an endless supply of baked scones, muffins, sandwiches - keeps the coffee and tea flowing all day.

She doesn't have to, but guess who benefits? Guess the quality of workmanship we receive?

Hence my contract wording... appreciated but not expected. Let brides decide the ettiquette - so I can decide what time/effort to devote to editing and special touches. Ha ha.

(Actually that could be a good motto.... "If you want a good video - pay me, If you want an AWESOME video - pay me and feed me!")

Does the painter who comes to decorate your house expect you to serve him a meal at midday or does he stop to eat his sandwiches and drink his tea from a flask?

I disagree, Philip. Your painter is not expected to work without pause, break, or food for 12-16 hours, doing his best to make sure he doesn't miss any important moment of the day. When he takes his hour to go chow, you don't get upset.

If a client doesn't want to feed me, then they have to expect that something might be missed while I take my hour off to go eat somewhere. Whenever this is explained to them, guess what? They prefer to supply the meal and have you stay on the scene.

I'm perfectly happy to feed myself, but am very grateful when the clients decide to feed us and let us sit in the hall at the dj/band table. Here in Montreal, that's almost always what happens. It's a win win situation. We get to sit down and take a break, enjoy a bit of dinner, and they have their photographer/videographer with them in the room at all times, ready to react to whatever happens. It just makes sense.

Even at events where they sit us in a separate room to eat, I spend the whole time stressed out that I'm missing something.

I have added a clause to my contract that I make brides aware of and it states: That if a meal is not provided, then I may have to go off location in order to get a meal, which may result in some footage being missed." Of course I leave a camera man behind in case something does happen, but this usually catches their attention that providing a meal is important for their video.

Fortunately I have a second cameraman who believes it's bad luck to eat while filming. So he doesn't touch a cracker when we are working. Funny guy.

Given how important we all think the small print is in our contracts I'm surprised at the responses so far.

John, the operative word was "expect". If your good lady chooses to serve the delicious things you describe that's her business and very generous of her, but if you think you're getting a better job because of it I'd reconsider who I employ. Since I recognise the sarcasm in the rest of your message I also know that you don't do a better job if you're fed.

Vito, I specifically said we're not camels and said nothing about working for 12-14 hours without a break - to do so would be to invite disaster. The obvious time to take a break is when the clients are eating their wedding breakfasts. Non-one eats nicely so it's a good time to take your break too. Experience tells you that but if you have any doubt whether you're going to be surprised (and we always include this in our pre-wedding meetings) then ask. Explain that you're going to take a break unless there's something going to happen. I can't see why that should present any difficulty.

Nothing anyone has written so far addresses the point that it's unprofessional to expect to be fed, out of step with the real world of the self-employed and merely increases the clients' costs. A couple of packs of sandwiches, biscuits or a slice or cake and some fruit along with a bottled drink bought at your local supermarket or garage shouldn't cost you more than £40/$60 for a three man crew - whilst a typical wedding breakfast will be £60/$90-£100/$150 per head.

Things are different on this side of the pond, Philip. There is no official wedding breakfast. We often start early, say 9am, and go without pause (other than driving madly to the next spot) until we reach the reception at 6pm. Believe me, we are ready to sit down and take a break by then.

At events where we are not supplied a table, this is doubly difficult because we have to then forego a break in order to continue to cover what's happening, but with nowhere to sit. So yes, I think it is fair to expect that the client arrange a table for us.

I don't expect they have to feed us, but to repeat my point, here they usually do, knowing that it will keep us in the hall and get them a better video in the end.

Perhaps the scheduling where you are is more relaxed, and it makes sense that you feed yourself, etc. I don't know. I just know how it works here.

...What I do suggest is that the business should stop treating itself as some sort of pampered speciality, build the cost of its food and drink into the product price and behave like the professionals we all claim to be...

Wholeheartedly agree with this Philip.

Some clients email me to ask what would I like to eat, others don't bother, but to make this a stipulation in contract is real bad. To the ones who offer a meal, I graciously decline and tell them I bring water and sandwiches and often too focussed on the job in hand to worry about eating a three-course meal.

In documentary projects, do you sit down and get pally and break the frame with your subjects? Then don't do it at Wedding either.

It's a no no!

:)

Our agreement states that a courtesy meal be provided for the Videographer/Photographer (s) at the reception. We usually pack a sandwich for lunch and eat on the way to the park shoot. To me that is the most important meal of the day ( around 3pm for a 1:30 pm wedding). Some Brides would be kind enough to hand us a fastfood take-out at the park. This should last us until dinner is served at 7:30 pm or 8 pm

Vito, I'm sure you're right, that there are local differences but not a great as you might think. A typical start will be about the same time as yours, with either the groom or the bride. It is true that most wedding breakfasts are formal affairs and in truth most start earlier than 6pm unless the wedding is late in the afternoon - I believe church weddings still can't be later than 4.30pm by law.

We'd certainly expect to be able to sit down to eat our sandwiches but frankly I've never covered a wedding reception that wasn't in a hotel, civic hall, private premises that didn't have a spare table we could sit down at so that may well be different.

So yes, there may, of course, be differences but most video producers have taken their cues from photographers most of whom demand a meal. I've even had a toastmaster who insists on eating the same meal as the clients a table set alongside but at facing right angles to the top table. On the other hand, most toastmasters in the North bring their own sandwiches, not for professional reasons so much as because they couldn't stand another hotel meal if they were paid!

Philip, I may sound I like disagreeing with you, but I'm not. I also don't think it's right to demand to be fed. But much of how it works here also depends on the particular hall. Many of them are "Italian" halls, and the custom is to provide a table in the hall for the video/photo/dj team. We are fed the exact same 45 course meal as the guests. The amount of food is bizarre, and I'm always grateful for it. And when the guests start banging plates trying to get the bride and groom to kiss, I'm able to jump up and grab it on video because I'm not somewhere else.

Other halls provide a table in a separate room and we are fed either the same meal, or a different vendor meal. I'm again grateful, but nervous that I'm missing something going on in the other room, but that's life. It's also harder in these halls, because the meal break for us is timed with the band, but that's also when they tend to make speeches or do games. So there are times that I can't leave to eat cause I'm filming. But again, that's life and you deal with it.

Not once, in the hundreds of weddings I've shot in Montreal, have I been expected to leave the venue to buy myself supper, or have I been expected to bring my own food. That's just not the way it works here. It's not stipulated in our contract that they have to feed us, cause it's not necessary. I don't know why that's the custom here, but I'm sure happy about it.

Vito, I think you've put your finger right on the button - it's not part of your contract - and yes, you're also right that in a conventional UK reception there's not the variable events you describe - although I imagine in some traditional Italian communities they may well do the same as you.

I have never requested a meal but like many others here there have been numerous times when I have been offered and I use to accept but I could probably count on my fingers the number of times I've received the complete meal. On most occasions it would be a "bare bones - main course only" version though my clients had paid the full amount, or I am offered it just as the speeches are about to start and many times it would never appear at all. I don't like to chase round after hotel staff begging for my food.

It seems that like most of the UK members I'm happy with a packed lunch away from the main room. It gives me both a physical and mental break, time to take my shoes off for a while. I don't feel annoyed that the bride and groom have paid out £50, maybe more, for something I didn't get.

I prefer to have a business like professional relationship as a service provider not be treated like a surrogate guest, or someone they should feel honoured to have at their wedding.

When we meet with the bride and groom we ask if there's a public bar available for us to get some lunch. If, at that point, they suggest they will pay for it then fair enough - a nice bonus but we absolutely do not expect it. Once they've sat down for their meal we're glad to get away for a couple of hours. As for the idea of sitting down with the guests and having the same meal as they - I can't think of anything worse.

Ian

Well, things aren´t any different here in Mexico, at least on the cities I´ve lived. 15 years ago I lost faith in people´s willingnes to feed the videographer and its crew. (that mean us). So, nowadays I don´t expect any kind of special treatment but when everyone is eating, I aproach the couple and say them both the same Chris, Vitto and others state on their contracts. Sometimes they ask the caterer to take care of us and sometimes they are ok with us leaving for an hour. So no big deal.

But when we are working at a venue too far from a food joint, I discreetly slip a $100 pesos bill (like 7.5 USdlls) to one of the waiters and they more than happily accomodate us better than the other guests.

Regards

John, the operative word was "expect". If your good lady chooses to serve the delicious things you describe that's her business and very generous of her, but if you think you're getting a better job because of it I'd reconsider who I employ. Since I recognise the sarcasm in the rest of your message I also know that you don't do a better job if you're fed.

Nope - you've got that all wrong. If I come away from a wedding feeling valued and appreciated, I put much more effort into the edit and final product compared to a wedding where I am ignored, unfed and made to feel like hired help. I go the extra mile when I'm buzzed with generous & kind clients. We find the tradesmen we employ are the same - offering extra advice, throwing in extras for free, not cutting corners.

It's not in the rulebook. But it is reality. It pays to think of others.

Wow.I don't think I'd like to deal with anyone who based the quality /outcome of the work they did for me on whether or not I fed them. Very strange business model.

It's not a business model - it's human nature. We are not robots. We deal with people and emotions.

If you come home from a wedding after being treated like dirt, are you saying you would put just as much time and effort into the edit, as compared to a wedding where you were treated like royalty? Be honest.

Our contract states that we will be provided with a meal at the reception. We've had this in our contract for years and never had an issue. In fact, after seeing that in our contract, most couples now make it a point to encourage us to eat when they see us at the reception. Putting that clause in our contract has been one of the best things we've ever added.

Sure, we could just take off for an hour to go get food, but we feel it's important to be AT the reception. We also suggest that we are seated in the same room as the event, although we don't require it. The reason again is that we want to be there to keep an eye on things, and trust me it has helped us quite a few times.

The bottom line for us is that the clause is worded very plainly in our contract. If that doesn't sit well with a couple then they can find someone else to film and photograph their wedding. But after 5 or 6 years of having this in our contract we've NEVER had a single person voice the slightest complaint about it.

Phillip, I get what you're saying, but it's really a non-issue as far as I can see.

wow ..didn't know that this is a complex matter.....never had a problem with the B&G agreeing to provide meals for us eventhough its in the contract..could it be a cultural difference from across the pond? I doubt couples even really care about this matter, if they do then it is a red flag for me.

Kren
www.verticalvideoworks.ca

As I often communicate with Philip outside this forum I happen to know his very strong feelings about this and respect them. I guess it's also what area you are working in too. I have actually had 3 weddings where I was NOT fed or even offered anything. With two of them I just shot to the end and went and got take-out. The other one of the kitchen staff actually approached us and fixed us up without asking. In fact I was working with a photog who brought his own "dinner" and the bride spend a long time convincing him that having to eat sandwitches alone just wasn't right..she was only happy once he agreed to partake of the buffet. Sometimes we do get what they call a "service meal" which is a cut down main course only but then again some brides go the whole nine yards and even provide a special table...we had one Italian wedding where we basically ate from 7pm to 10pm ...there was no shooting to do as the guests were eating too and I never like to film someone with their mouth full!!!

Nope, it's not part of my terms and conditions but apart from the 3 instances, I have always been approached by the bride prior to having to say we will have to go out for a meal so I in fact have never had to use strong-arm tactics.

If you make a point to the bride that you don't want to be fed, does it give you an edge over your competitors?????

Chris

It's not a business model - it's human nature. We are not robots. We deal with people and emotions.

If you come home from a wedding after being treated like dirt, are you saying you would put just as much time and effort into the edit, as compared to a wedding where you were treated like royalty? Be honest.

Firstly I wouldn't think that the fact that clients had not provided food for me (unless it is a part of the agreed contact) was being treated like dirt.
But no matter what I though of the day it wouldn't cause me to do a lesser job. I both pride myself and rely on doing the best I can for all my clients as that is what brings new clients to me. Okay so I might enjoy doing some better than others for all sorts of reasons but I wouldn't go out to do some thing more or less for them depending on whether or not they'd paid for my food.

As I said before my relationship is as a professional service provider not a semi guest.

One thing that this forum does reveal is that there is no definitive approach to providing wedding services, what works for some doesn't for others. Vive la différence.

My contract stated that we would leave the event for an hour to eat. But living here in the midst of "Minnesota Nice", we were always asked to share the meal with the wedding guests. Only once did we ever actually leave, and that was at a fancy reception which was probably a $25 per plate meal. We were glad to leave and go to Burger King.

My contract stated that we would leave the event for an hour to eat. But living here in the midst of "Minnesota Nice", we were always asked to share the meal with the wedding guests. Only once did we ever actually leave, and that was at a fancy reception which was probably a $25 per plate meal. We were glad to leave and go to Burger King.

OK this is a perfect example of the differences in weddings that take place in the different areas of the country and world.

$25 per plate in the greater Chicagoland area won't get you anything except maybe a Monday thru Thursday luncheon. Even Fridays in most NICE venues around here start at $45.00 and go up from there. When my daughter got married 14 years ago we did a Sunday night reception and even then it was $48.00 per plate and I made a deal with the owner since I knew him from shooting there quite often.
There are venues I've worked in where it's well in excess of $100 per plate and I've done some that were around $200. Of course I didn't get the filet and lobster (darn it) but the vendors were well taken care of by the staff.

Of course they spend so much on the dinner they don't have enough left to hire the videographer or they go for the smallest package. Oh well, one does have to eat and regardless of what you do to satisfy your hunger, if it works for you, then keep on doing it. No reason to change.

Never any problems here, I also don't have it in my contract and when I meet up with th ecouple it's not discussed and I always get fed. Eventhough I don't expect to get a meal I bring my own food to eat the first part of the day. The second part in the evening if it's a buffet I wait a bit and sit on a chair were the couple can see me, 70% of the time they come up to me and tell me I am more then welcome to eat too, if they don't come up I just mingle with the guests and take one plate of food (I never go a second or third time to a buffet) and sit separately from the guests. If the dinner is served at the table and if the couple doesn't ask I first ask the maitre if there has been provided food for me to, if not and if the couple doesn't ask me anything I go up to them and ask if it's ok if I ask for food, never had any problems with that, I even ask kitchen personal to just trow some leftovers on a plate.

I have seen the comparison made here with workmen at your house and that you don't feed them either, think there is a major difference, at a wedding there is already food provided for at least 100 people, why would they not provide one extra plate for the only person that works 14+ hours that day?

If I ever would come in a situation were I don't get any food I will just tell the couple that I will leave for about an hour during their meal to eat out. If something important would happen during that time which was not planned, bad luck...If you have a regular 8 hour job you have to bring your own food as well but if your boss expects you to work 14 to 16 hours its common here your boss must give you the possibility to get some extra food, I don't see any difference when it comes to weddings.

Nope never had a problem here, clients always ask if i want to eat, if its a 3 course, yummy. Ill eat on my own or with the photogs and chill out. If not ill get a burger at the bar and a juice. Usually though they say stick it on the tab, if they didnt no big deal.

luke

It's difficult to compare a videographer to most jobs. We don't start at 8am, take a coffee break at 10am, lunch for an hour at 12 then finish at 5pm. We may work 10 straight hours before finally getting a break, then work another 3 straight hours after that. So please don't compare a videographer to someone doing work on your house.

Just goes to show what different worlds we live in. I was just closing a booking with a bride and her mother one time when the bride's father arrived and started to try to re-negotiate the price. When I told him I had already agreed the price with his daughter he said "we will provide food on the day so you can deduct the cost of that from your price". I left without taking the job.

Just goes to show what different worlds we live in. I was just closing a booking with a bride and her mother one time when the bride's father arrived and started to try to re-negotiate the price. When I told him I had already agreed the price with his daughter he said "we will provide food on the day so you can deduct the cost of that from your price". I left without taking the job.

I know a photographer that if he doesn't get fed, he charges the bride $150 and another 150 for his assistant.

It's difficult to compare a videographer to most jobs. We don't start at 8am, take a coffee break at 10am, lunch for an hour at 12 then finish at 5pm. We may work 10 straight hours before finally getting a break, then work another 3 straight hours after that. So please don't compare a videographer to someone doing work on your house.

The comparison was only made to illustrate a simple fact. Treat others kindly and with respect - it will not go un-noticed.

BTW if the average videographer had to work as hard as a tradesman or builder does in a day, they would be admitted to hospital. Videography is a dream job - some of you with all this "10 hours without a break" sob stories make me laugh... :)

John while I understand what you're saying I'm afraid I have to take umbrage with what you are saying. I've been in this business for 27+ years and beside weddings I've done TV, news, seminars training vids and just about every other kind of work there is in the business and frankly I have worked just as hard as any trademan around. I have many many friends in the trades and they constantly ask me how I do what I do, it seems so much harder than what they do. So it's all relative. BTW I've worked 20 hour days without eating and it's not only not healthy but frankly you also lose concentration so that's not good either. Also I don't know any trademan that doesn't at least get a lunch break after about 4 to 5 hours. There have been time in the past when I'd go 10 before getting a break then suck a sandwich and do another 10.
Point is it's all relative and I don't anyone is telling a sob story, at least I know I'm not. It just a human consideration. After I've worked for you for about 6 to 8 hours how about feeding me it the least you can do.

Imagine you're watching everyone getting fed at a reception, and you're deciding what to do. Should you run off to grab something? Suddenly the wedding coordinator taps you on the shoulder and says "hey, help yourself to the buffet, there's a vendor's table for you guys there in that corner. Rollup napkins and forks are coming out now. What do you want to drink?"

How would you feel? Well, this is how we get treated for 95% of the weddings we do here in Hawaii. For the other 5% where we don't get fed, the brides are usually not from here. It's all about aloha!

John while I understand what you're saying I'm afraid I have to take umbrage with what you are saying. (snipped) Don, I admit my hackles rose a little when I read John's comment though I'm not sure it went as far as umbrage.

Like Don I've done over 30 non-unionised years in this game and loved every minute - it was much better than working and certainly better than painting houses.

And it included tours of just post-Soviet Russia, a BVW507 over my shoulder and a Vinten 10 under the other arm, sitting in the aisle on a box of batteries each of which weighed the same as a fully kitted Z1 for a three hour flight in an old Aeroflot plane, with just a sound man carrying the SQN mixer and mics in one hand and and my colour monitor in the other.

But that's not a complaint John, just a description of the job I was, and am, privileged to do. I've seen the world including some pretty grim bits, and was paid for doing it. If people at a wedding I'm covering offer food or a drink, great; but expecting it or building it into the retail contract is where I draw the line.

It's not a business model - it's human nature. We are not robots. We deal with people and emotions.



I have to agree with John on this. I also think that we are taking the painter comparison too literally. John's main point is " people tend to feel better doing his/her job when treated properly". I guess this encompasses all people wheter as Videographer, Painter, Waiter, etc. See what a tip to a waiter did to one of our videographers here, they were taken care off better than the guest.

We all have different business models, some thinks asking a courtesy meal is a big no. no. Some videographers like myself feel it is okay. At the end of the day, whatever works and whatever makes us happy.

My 2 cents.

The comparison was only made to illustrate a simple fact. Treat others kindly and with respect - it will not go un-noticed.

BTW if the average videographer had to work as hard as a tradesman or builder does in a day, they would be admitted to hospital. Videography is a dream job - some of you with all this "10 hours without a break" sob stories make me laugh... :)

As a videographer, I work much harder than a builder does in a day. Not even close. I'm actually having a 1,000 sq ft studio built on my property as we speak, the builder didn't show up today. Imagine if I didn't show up for work?

I have to agree with John on this. I also think that we are taking the painter comparison too literally. John's main point is " people tend to feel better doing his/her job when treated properly". I guess this encompasses all people wheter as Videographer, Painter, Waiter, etc. See what a tip to a waiter did to one of our videographers here, they were taken care off better than the guest.

We all have different business models, some thinks asking a courtesy meal is a big no. no. Some videographers like myself feel it is okay. At the end of the day, whatever works and whatever makes us happy.

My 2 cents.


Hi Noel, John's response was to my comment about a business model.

It wasn't the asking for a meal that I thought to be bad business practice, as you say some do ask some don't, no big deal, it was the implication in a prior post that he would do a lesser job of editing for someone who didn't feed him,- and I'll quote from the post:

"If I come away from a wedding feeling valued and appreciated, I put much more effort into the edit and final product compared to a wedding where I am ignored, unfed and made to feel like hired help."

That is what I consider to be a poor business model.

Surely a professional should be able to rise above such things. If it's so important that you won't do as good a job as you could if not fed then perhaps it should be a condition of the contract and then he'd know he was going to be fed and not feel aggrieved by being made to feel like hired help. Which, after all no matter what we think of ourselves, is what we are, talent for hire.

How does it work in the editing room some days later, still brooding over not being fed.

I bring a protein bar and apple in the car. Usually have something to eat at cocktail hour. I'm kind of sick of Filet Mignon so sometimes I don't eat the dinner even when it is supplied. ha.

So true. I don't know if I can face another lobster.

OK this is a perfect example of the differences in weddings that take place in the different areas of the country and world.

This probably has more to do with my disconnect from the world of catering! :) I've had two kids get married so far, and the meals at their weddings were between $6-$10 per plate.

But hey, the fanciest venue we have in town in the Holiday Inn...

So true. I don't know if I can face another lobster.

Before I was wedding videographer, I was a commercial lobster fisherman!