Finally my first SDE (semi)!! .. Andrew + Inex // the Wedding Highlight SDE at DVinfo.net

Johannes Soetandi · September 26th, 2010, 09:08 PM

Hey guys!

This is our very first SDE (semi)!! I was pretty nervous going into last Sunday . I only started editing at 6pm, I thought I would finish close to 10pm earliest.. But thankfully, I was able to complete it at around 8pm.. then plenty of time to help with shooting the speeches etc and finally show it to the happy audiences around 9.30pm.. I made it semi-SDE because I want to play safe for my first try..

I realised I need to control my other shooters more, as we kept on shooting each other. I guess we need to use our tele more and start shooting from distance away... Also, outdoor wedding away from shades is proven to be hard for me, I can't see my viewfinder clearly.. I need to learn & practice more!!!!

The wedding was super windy.. my audio is just crappy, which is why I didn't include in the video.. This is another headache for me when doing the full DVD :( ..

But all in all, I am very proud to be able to finally do this.. something that I've always wanted to do. Hope to do more so that I can improve more and more.. I LOVE WEDDING VIDEO! :)

Any comments and inputs are appreciated! :)

Sean Seah · September 27th, 2010, 09:46 PM

That looked really tough with harsh light and wind. Would sugges to get a variable ND filter to handle the harsh light outdoors. That way you can use a faster aperature and get shallow DOF.

Good effort for a 1st time =)

Louis Maddalena · September 28th, 2010, 12:07 AM

did you use an MP3? The audio sounds really choppy. Next time convert to AIFF or the like before editing, a lot of NLE's don't play nice with MP3 and you get that choppy, jittery, effect that is unpleasant on the ear.

I also agree with pick up some ND filters, It will help with some of the out door exposures.

Johannes Soetandi · September 28th, 2010, 02:29 AM

Thanks guys, will definitely add ND filter in my list!! Any brand recommendation?

and thanks for the audio suggestion, will try .aiff next time.

Susanto Widjaja · September 28th, 2010, 05:35 AM

congrats on your first SDE my friend. I'm sure you've learned a lot from it. It can only get better from here on!

Johannes Soetandi · September 28th, 2010, 08:01 PM

Thanks Santo! My assistant turns out to be a talented videographer too, so I'm considering on going 3 cameras on next wedding.. less pressure.. heheh.. :P

We're also having a workshop just to get our minds together so that we all have same shooting style. At the moment it seems like we're still not that 'connected' yet! I'm confident the next one will be better :)

Noel Lising · September 29th, 2010, 07:04 AM

Congratulations Johannes. Not bad for a first. The audio for the vows must be a challenge considering how windy it is.

I am just curious, how do you guys present the SDE, the format is 16:9 and most of the screens out there are 4:3? Do you crop what is shown?

Johannes Soetandi · September 29th, 2010, 09:34 AM

Noel.. come to think of it, I'm not even sure! I only did a direct VGA connection from my MBP port to the LCD projector.. but I honestly can't remember whether there's any cropping.. from memory I think it looked fine... I think..

Kren Barnes · September 29th, 2010, 12:56 PM

Good job Johanne.... i can only see you get better and better...but holy mackerel that wind is nasty, good luck with the audio..same thing happened at my own wedding where the video guy we hired only used his on camera mic when the wind was howling about 50 miles/hr so the whole ceremony audio sounded like an oncoming typhoon :(

kREN
Vertical Video Works | www.verticalvideoworks.com

Johannes Soetandi · September 29th, 2010, 07:09 PM

Thanks Kren :)
Yeah, I even had a hard time trying to get my Merlin steady and even my camera on the tripod is about to set off! I'll make sure my own wedding is far from the beach line! :)

September 27th, 2010, 09:46 PM	#2
Sean Seah Trustee Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Singapore Posts: 1,498	That looked really tough with harsh light and wind. Would sugges to get a variable ND filter to handle the harsh light outdoors. That way you can use a faster aperature and get shallow DOF. Good effort for a 1st time =) __________________ Firewerkz Films SGP

September 28th, 2010, 12:07 AM	#3
Louis Maddalena Major Player Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: NYC Area. Posts: 550	did you use an MP3? The audio sounds really choppy. Next time convert to AIFF or the like before editing, a lot of NLE's don't play nice with MP3 and you get that choppy, jittery, effect that is unpleasant on the ear. I also agree with pick up some ND filters, It will help with some of the out door exposures. __________________ Red Epic available for rent, starting at $500 per day, Scarlets, and Lenses available too. rentals.maddalenamedia.com

September 28th, 2010, 05:35 AM	#5
Susanto Widjaja Major Player Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 622	congrats on your first SDE my friend. I'm sure you've learned a lot from it. It can only get better from here on! __________________ If a picture is worth a thousand words, what about motion picture? website: www.papercranes.com.au \| blog: www.weddingvideosydney.net

September 29th, 2010, 07:04 AM	#7
Noel Lising Major Player Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 789	Congratulations Johannes. Not bad for a first. The audio for the vows must be a challenge considering how windy it is. I am just curious, how do you guys present the SDE, the format is 16:9 and most of the screens out there are 4:3? Do you crop what is shown? __________________ Noel Lising

September 28th, 2010, 02:29 AM	#4
Johannes Soetandi Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 387	Thanks guys, will definitely add ND filter in my list!! Any brand recommendation? and thanks for the audio suggestion, will try .aiff next time.

September 28th, 2010, 08:01 PM	#6
Johannes Soetandi Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 387	Thanks Santo! My assistant turns out to be a talented videographer too, so I'm considering on going 3 cameras on next wedding.. less pressure.. heheh.. :P We're also having a workshop just to get our minds together so that we all have same shooting style. At the moment it seems like we're still not that 'connected' yet! I'm confident the next one will be better :)

September 29th, 2010, 09:34 AM	#8
Johannes Soetandi Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 387	Noel.. come to think of it, I'm not even sure! I only did a direct VGA connection from my MBP port to the LCD projector.. but I honestly can't remember whether there's any cropping.. from memory I think it looked fine... I think..

September 29th, 2010, 12:56 PM	#9
Kren Barnes Major Player Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Winnipeg Manitoba Canada Posts: 415	Good job Johanne.... i can only see you get better and better...but holy mackerel that wind is nasty, good luck with the audio..same thing happened at my own wedding where the video guy we hired only used his on camera mic when the wind was howling about 50 miles/hr so the whole ceremony audio sounded like an oncoming typhoon :( kREN Vertical Video Works \| www.verticalvideoworks.com

September 29th, 2010, 07:09 PM	#10
Johannes Soetandi Major Player Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 387	Thanks Kren :) Yeah, I even had a hard time trying to get my Merlin steady and even my camera on the tripod is about to set off! I'll make sure my own wedding is far from the beach line! :)