My first wedding at DVinfo.net

My first wedding · November 19th, 2014, 04:49 PM

Password: 2013-09-07

Hi

I shot my brother-in-law's wedding last year. I was not being paid to do it so I was not under a lot of pressure, but I really wanted it to look good. From the beginning I wanted to do a same day edit and show it at the reception which I did and the guests really loved it.

I shot this video with a 5d mark III on a Manfrotto monopod. I also had a cheaper Canon EOS on a tripod on the balcony at the church, but for this same day edit I did not have time to use any footage from that camera and in fact I don't think I really needed it.

I really wanted to try to have as good sound as I could in this video. I placed one Sennheiser G3 wireless lav mic on the priest and I also got to plug my Zoom H4N device to the sound system that the musicians had with them. The song in this video was actually recorded at the ceremony, but unfortunately I did not have any footage of the singer singing this song, so it does look a little bit like I just used some random song for this video.

It would be nice to get some comments on what you like and dislike about this video.

Roger Gunkel · November 20th, 2014, 06:54 AM

Hi Kjartan,

I've noticed 80 viewings with no comments, so I thought I would start the ball rolling.

Firstly, I don't like highlight wedding videos, but that is just me. Within that limitation and the fact that it is your first wedding, there are few things to comment on. Some of the shots seem somewhat disjointed, as in going from what I assume is a trip to look for room decorations to suddenly jumping to putting a ribbon bow on the car, it doesn't flow. There are a couple of very jerky zooms, the ring shot being one, where a cut to a close up would have looked much better. Being handheld also gives some wobbly footage and focus is sometimes variable, one of the disadvantages of a DSLR. for weddings.

The main problem for me though, is that the whole flow of the video is spoilt by you not really understanding where to use a dissolve or cutaway rather than a jump cut. There are many instances in your video, but a dissolve will help to cover the passage of time, whereas a jump cut would be more appropriate in a continuous action. As an example, in one part the couple are standing in front of the officiant, then in an instant jump cut they are sitting together on the left. That is very disconcerting and could have been smoothed with a gentle crossfade or a cutaway in between to a shot that didn't include them. Both would give a more natural passing of time to the viewer.

Others may chime in with more comments and I will end by saying that as a first attempt there are lots of nicely framed shots and good focus, but the devil is in the detail and those are the things to work on.

Roger

Kjartan Juliusson · November 20th, 2014, 01:51 PM

Thanks Roger for your comments. I agree with you on the cuts between shots, some of those should be dissolve rather than straight cut. This is something I will probably look more into when I am editing videos.

The first few shots were all taken on the morning of the wedding day, the bride is getting her hair and makeup done, the groom is picking up the flowers for the ceremony and then the bows are put on the car and the bride puts on her dress. These shots were all to show the things you have to before the wedding. Maybe with dissolves at the right places that segment of the video would have gotten a better flow.

I know that my focusing could have been a bit better and that I should have cut from the beginning of the "zoom" shot with the rings so it would not show zooming. But this was edited literally in minutes on the wedding day.

Thanks again for your valuable comments, I cannot improve my shooting and editing without knowing what I am doing wrong.

Robert Benda · November 20th, 2014, 05:10 PM

A nice first effort, and it depends on what kind of wedding videos you want to make, what changes and improvements you'll have to work on.

More audio from throughout the day is a big one for me.
Here, the edit really doesn't build to a climax, or a point of excitement. If you're going to offer highlights, that seems important to me, telling a story and building a narrative.

Were there no wedding vows? I see them answering the pastor's questions, then the rings go on. For me, the vows are the absolute must during a ceremony.

Kjartan Juliusson · November 21st, 2014, 03:02 AM

Thanks for the comments Robert. Here in Iceland there are no wedding vows, the only thing the bride and the groom have to say in the ceremony is yes two times. And since I made this video right after the ceremony I don't have lot more audio to play with.

Adrian Tan · November 29th, 2014, 10:39 PM

Hey Kjartan, I really liked your choice of music, and I thought it felt like a charming wedding.

Main comment: I have to say that, as a casual viewer, I lost interest after about 1:15 when they arrive at the church, simply because that's more or less when the action stops moving forward and the story pace slows down a lot. No doubt it would still be very interesting if I was one of the people involved in wedding, or knew the people there.

November 20th, 2014, 06:54 AM	#2
Roger Gunkel Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: LIncolnshire, UK Posts: 2,213	Re: My first wedding Hi Kjartan, I've noticed 80 viewings with no comments, so I thought I would start the ball rolling. Firstly, I don't like highlight wedding videos, but that is just me. Within that limitation and the fact that it is your first wedding, there are few things to comment on. Some of the shots seem somewhat disjointed, as in going from what I assume is a trip to look for room decorations to suddenly jumping to putting a ribbon bow on the car, it doesn't flow. There are a couple of very jerky zooms, the ring shot being one, where a cut to a close up would have looked much better. Being handheld also gives some wobbly footage and focus is sometimes variable, one of the disadvantages of a DSLR. for weddings. The main problem for me though, is that the whole flow of the video is spoilt by you not really understanding where to use a dissolve or cutaway rather than a jump cut. There are many instances in your video, but a dissolve will help to cover the passage of time, whereas a jump cut would be more appropriate in a continuous action. As an example, in one part the couple are standing in front of the officiant, then in an instant jump cut they are sitting together on the left. That is very disconcerting and could have been smoothed with a gentle crossfade or a cutaway in between to a shot that didn't include them. Both would give a more natural passing of time to the viewer. Others may chime in with more comments and I will end by saying that as a first attempt there are lots of nicely framed shots and good focus, but the devil is in the detail and those are the things to work on. Roger

November 20th, 2014, 01:51 PM	#3
Kjartan Juliusson Tourist Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Reykjavik, Iceland Posts: 3	Re: My first wedding Thanks Roger for your comments. I agree with you on the cuts between shots, some of those should be dissolve rather than straight cut. This is something I will probably look more into when I am editing videos. The first few shots were all taken on the morning of the wedding day, the bride is getting her hair and makeup done, the groom is picking up the flowers for the ceremony and then the bows are put on the car and the bride puts on her dress. These shots were all to show the things you have to before the wedding. Maybe with dissolves at the right places that segment of the video would have gotten a better flow. I know that my focusing could have been a bit better and that I should have cut from the beginning of the "zoom" shot with the rings so it would not show zooming. But this was edited literally in minutes on the wedding day. Thanks again for your valuable comments, I cannot improve my shooting and editing without knowing what I am doing wrong.

November 20th, 2014, 05:10 PM	#4
Robert Benda Trustee Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Crookston, MN Posts: 1,353	Re: My first wedding A nice first effort, and it depends on what kind of wedding videos you want to make, what changes and improvements you'll have to work on. More audio from throughout the day is a big one for me. Here, the edit really doesn't build to a climax, or a point of excitement. If you're going to offer highlights, that seems important to me, telling a story and building a narrative. Were there no wedding vows? I see them answering the pastor's questions, then the rings go on. For me, the vows are the absolute must during a ceremony.

November 21st, 2014, 03:02 AM	#5
Kjartan Juliusson Tourist Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Reykjavik, Iceland Posts: 3	Re: My first wedding Thanks for the comments Robert. Here in Iceland there are no wedding vows, the only thing the bride and the groom have to say in the ceremony is yes two times. And since I made this video right after the ceremony I don't have lot more audio to play with.

November 29th, 2014, 10:39 PM	#6
Adrian Tan Trustee Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 1,149	Re: My first wedding Hey Kjartan, I really liked your choice of music, and I thought it felt like a charming wedding. Main comment: I have to say that, as a casual viewer, I lost interest after about 1:15 when they arrive at the church, simply because that's more or less when the action stops moving forward and the story pace slows down a lot. No doubt it would still be very interesting if I was one of the people involved in wedding, or knew the people there.