Sample highlights video

Hi, I'm new to the video game and have just created this short highlights film of a friends wedding in dominican, let me have some feedback please !

MR & MRS YARDLEY - DOMREP2012 - FULL HD VERSION on Vimeo

[Noa Put]

Ok, I"ll give it a go.

You have been able to shoot at a location I can only dream off so if I was there I would die and gone to heaven. I never been there but all I can think about is all those dreamlike beaches and palmtrees so I would at least spend one extra day just filming the location :)

- It looks like you shot all handheld and some shots I can understand, like on the boat, that you had no other choice but pls get a decent tripod or at least a monopod because your footage is too shaky.
- I would also loose the blurred darker edges, that's not done anymore.
- Sound, I could not hear anyone say anything, sound is 50% of your film.
- Location, I mean, it is beautifull out there yet you show so little from the surrounding area, you could have taken the couple with you for a walk at the beach or just used a sunset as background.
- Camera used? it looks like your camera is not up to the task to shoot in darker environments, either you have to use extra lights or use a camera that can cope, but that could also have been caused by the extra blur filter you put on top of your footage.
- exposure, most was exposed right but some shots where really underexposed (like the shot at 03:17 which was totally underexposed due to the back window so you need to learn to controll the camera manually)
- 2nd camera, it's important that you use at least 2 camera's during the ceremony, even when you operate alone, it makes all the difference having a second viewing angle.

Pls don't take this personal but the feeling the film gives me is that you are a friend of the family (or a familymember) that could go along and toke exactly one camera along to shoot the event. This is ok if you are doing this as a favour and then I"m sure the couple will be thrilled but if you plan to make a name for yourself in de weddingbusiness you have a long way to go.

If you try to get the basics of filmmaking right, like good framing, stable footage (either handheld, monopod or tripod because shaky screams amateur) good sound, good exposure, in focus, correctly whitebalanced then you can start selling a product. Once you master that you can start adding fancy stuff like shallow dof creative shots, slider shots, shots on a steadicam etc.

A tip I can give you is to go out and shoot anything that interests you, just for fun, after 8 years in the wedding business I still every year go out (when the wedding season is over) and shoot my own projects with no timepressure, this gives me the time to experiment and I can make mistakes and I learn form that experience every year and apply it in my paid projects.

Weddings may look easy to start with but they are actually one of the hardest to get right if you do it solo, you can easily mess up important shots and your clients will not be that forgiving, this is why I stress that part so hard to get the basics right before you dive into wedding videography.

But don't be dissapointed if the comments you will get sound negative, I do mean all well and am sure if you stick to it you will get it right, learn from any advice you get and you will get there. Good luck!

[Dave Partington]

As Noa said, ditch the vignette throughout the video. It's horrible!

[Glen Frank]

hey guys no all those comments are cool, no problem...im setting up in business and prefer to do things more on the highlights side, rather than the vows etc (unless people want them), im very new to it all but you are correct in thinking that i used some holiday footage on this one (no way i could spent anymore time away from the family or took a tripod for this one!)...it was only using my cheapo 300quid handycam, ive got a z7 and decent tripod, mics, slider etc ready for some bookings later this year and will be using a 2nd cam without fail...with regards vignette maybe it is a little old hat, ive had some excellent response from this and some of the other videos, but yes, may look at relying on some better/stable footage and take it from there...thanks again for the comments, i cant look at them in a negative way as all feedback is good feedback ;-)

[Glen Frank]

nb here is another film i did a little while back, shot by someone else, i did the edit....and another that i shot and edited...

NIOMI CHALLIS WEDDING VIDEO - HIGHLIGHTS FOOTAGE on Vimeo

and

MR & MRS GILLS WEDDING - 25TH AUGUST 2012. HIGHLIGHTS MONTAGE on Vimeo

[Evan Bourcier]

Biggest things:

Lose the vignettes
Stop smashing the contrast, everything is clipping constantly
Stop slowing down 75% of the footage or whatever you're doing to make it choppy
Start stabilizing and thinking about composition.

Other than that, I've seen worse ;)

[Clive McLaughlin]

Also, I don't know if your client was happy or not, but a wedding video in black and white is simply ridiculous. Do you know how much effort and thought goes into colours of bridesmaids/flowers/decorations, and your decision to go black and white just took all those important attributes out of her day.

[Glen Frank]

thanks for the comments, seems there is very much a lot to be learnt. my one question is that the style of my videos is not wanting to be too much the same as "everuyone else" and people are actually liking the cine-style approach, no vows recorded etc...it seems interpretaiton is that no one likes my stuff as its not like everyone else is doing ? (i appreciate feedback on the framing, stablising etc, thats what i need to work on), but brides seem to like a 5-6 min video of there day in a differnet, watchable, and tear enducing way...maybe im wrong...im gonna keep practicising ,and trying new things ... so thanks to everyone on here for the comments/good or bad ! cheers.

[Glen Frank]

when i say like everone else, im talkign abouit most people using dslr, full hd, niceley coloured images, no slomo or film fx, sliders, jibs, bokeh etc...i was jsut trying something different - albeit maybe not new....

[Noa Put]

Originally Posted by Glen Frank

people are actually liking the cine-style approach, no vows recorded etc...

There is a videographer not so far from where I live that only does short style, lot's of steadicam, videoclip like wedding videos that are max 15 min long with only the highlights, he also doesn't spend much time assuring he got good sound by adding external mikes but just uses his dslr for sound. Yet he is full booked every year so there is a market for people that just want the visual eyecandy in a mtv like filming/editing style.

I"m not a fan of his style but as he books more weddings then I do then what I think doesn't really matter. This is how you should treat any advice you get, take with you what you think could work for your way of working and there always will be well meant comments that don't apply to your style of working. If it sells it means you are doing a good job.

That being said, sound is for me equally important as images, they give an extra dimension a photo can't give you, if you take that away you basically get a slideshow. Adding sound (like vows), even as some kind of voice over, will give your video more depth. I think you should at least try it once to see if it works for you or not, but I think you have a good attitude to not just copy but do your own thing. There are already too many lookalikes out there.

[Glen Frank]

kind words. thank you. i always record the vows with a sennheiser g3 wireless setup, just incase and then use these for the long form wedding dvds etc if required...just no one has the money for the more expensive long form these days !