Wedding - color grade and shooting style

[Leon Bailey]

Originally Posted by Noa Put

The me this "style" looks very amateuristic, as if they gave the camera to someone in the family and said "just point and shoot", it might be that rough style that makes it so appealing to some people, reminds me a bit of the "blair witch project".

I agree. Just added a vignette and called it a day. lol.

[Steven Shea]

I quite like when clients send me samples they like. Takes a lot of the guesswork out, since so much of this stuff is subjective.

To me, that clip looks like it possibly uses film convert or some kinda LUT, though not guaranteed. Handheld, obviously, but to me a lot of the look comes from the snappy editing. It's cut pretty quickly but if you break it down shot by shot, it's nothing all that out of the ordinary. The editing and the music are largely what gives it it's "feel", in my opinion.

Originally Posted by Roger Gunkel

Call me old fashioned but this looks to me remarkably like a piece of the fun footage that my son took on holiday with his mobile phone. It was lots of shaky very short shots, with an effect that he chose from his phone that looked just like the 'colour grading' on this one. This may well have taken someone a lot of time to do and cost a lot of money, but if people feel it's time for the pros to copy drunk mobile phone footage to get 'The Look' then it may well be time to hang up my boots!!

Roger

I think part of being a pro is being able to replicate all kinds of styles. No different than music production, or being a DOP. Some songs sound clean and modern, others grungy. Some lighting styles are flat and clean, others are very harsh. It's up to us to be able to do what's called upon.

That said, I certainly have my opinions on different styles. Some I loath, despite their popularity. Others might make some roll their eyes, yet I'm quite fond of. At the end of the day, it's the client's video, not ours. I just try to do what they like, even if I personally hate the style.

[Roger Gunkel]

The problem that I have as a professional with that clip is that someone might have spent hours, perhaps days carefully crafting it from hours of meticulously taken footage that totally encapsulates the spirit and vitality of the couple and the magic and excitement of their day. They may have experimented with and painstaikingly tweaked the look to get something that makes a statement about them and their client. ........................ On the other hand ....................it could just as easily been a mate with various bits of random footage, unstable, frequently out of focus and nothing useable more than 2 seconds long, that was put through his phone app for a laugh and VOILA!

There's the rub though, you don't know and neither does anyone else, so it could be a work of art to some people and a big joke to others. Are their friends going to think ' Did they actually pay for that? we'd better tell them it's good but we won't be booking them for our wedding'.

Of course does it actually matter anyway as long as someone enjoyed it?

Roger

[Steve Burkett]

Originally Posted by Roger Gunkel

Are their friends going to think ' Did they actually pay for that? we'd better tell them it's good but we won't be booking them for our wedding'.

Put any video online and it'll reflect your style and be judged on it. Some will like it, some will not. You're looking at the video as a professional, comparing it to your style and considering how it was shot - how many people outside our industry will be thinking 'are the quick cuts the results of bad filming'. For the target clients, young people use to fast cutting music videos, their perspective is going to be somewhat different. Offering a Marryoke only service, I've spoken to many couples who flatly do not want a Wedding video and their reason for this, is that they've seen other peoples dull looking video and decided its not for them. So it swings both ways.

Also as an aside, I see the hit count for that video is over 25,000, has 78 likes vs 1 dislike. That dislike wasn't yours was it Roger? :)

[Noa Put]

Originally Posted by Steven Shea

I think part of being a pro is being able to replicate all kinds of styles.

Not so sure if that applies to wedding videographers, it's not as if we market ourselves on our website like "just tell us which videogrpaher's style you like and we"ll copy it for you!" :) Each weddingvideographer has developed their own style which takes years and it's a part of their branding or a part that makes people recognize their way of working. If you look at trailers from known videographers like Joe Simon or Ray Roman etc it all looks the same, each one of them has a very specific style, they might develop something new which becomes a trend but they won't just copy another videographers "style" just because the client wants that.

Only once and years ago I had a couple saying they liked still-motions work and if I was able to make something similar for them, they showed me one trailer in particular on their website and I said, "yes I can" and then I pointed at the "our films start at $$$$$dollar" and I said "at that price". :D

[Steve Burkett]

Originally Posted by Noa Put

Not so sure if that applies to wedding videographers, it's not as if we market ourselves on our website like "just tell us which videogrpaher's style you like and we"ll copy it for you!" :)

No, but many do say they will tailor the video to the couples needs. Each Wedding is unique and your video will reflect that and other such marketing jargon there to impress potential clients and make us seem accommodating to their needs. I don't think delivering a video to a similar style constitutes ripping other peoples work off. If you copied it shot for shot, yes, but if you just used it for inspiration. Even in TV and Film, certain styles become the in thing and copied across to other productions.

I suppose you're more than in your right to say no, that the style isn't your own, but equally there's hardly anything wrong in adapting your style or even trying to do something different. Its very easy with such a fast turn around and pace to get locked into a certain way of doing things. Sometimes its beneficial to be forced to film outside your own comfort level, to look at a Wedding with a different perspective. I've taken on work where I've been forced to film different to my usual style. Its a difficult frustrating experience at times, but looking back, it did change how I approached my own work.,

[Noa Put]

Beside that one couple long ago that wanted a still-motion alike video I have not had one couple asking for a specific style, they all pick me because of the work they see on my website and it's a very consistent style, that style does change over the years and I might try out something new now and then but if someone wants me to shoot blair witch style for their wedding I wouldn't accept it, I am not that desperate for work that I need to lower my standards to please one client. What would worry me is when other people see it they might think that's my "style" and before you know it you are known as the uncle bob of wedding video, no thanks. :)

[Andrew Smith]

Hi Oleg,

This might help.

Workflow Screencast | Setting the Mood with Adobe Hue CC - YouTube

Andrew

[Roger Gunkel]

Originally Posted by Steve Burkett

Also as an aside, I see the hit count for that video is over 25,000, has 78 likes vs 1 dislike. That dislike wasn't yours was it Roger? :)

Plane crash videos get many times more hits than that, but doesn't mean that plane crashes are popular or fashionable. There is also no way of knowing whether people actually enjoyed watching the video or stopped watching after a few seconds.

It's not that I like it or dislike it, more the fact that it doesn't require any skill to produce or demonstrate any particular ability. You could use great skill to produce it, but it doesn't show that. Whether it is a style that is of interest to people is a different matter entirely and I'm quite sure that it could be demonstrated that there is a market for it, but not one that I personally would get any satisfaction from, or want to copy.

I suppose I see it in a similar light to some modern art that is supposed to reflect the world around us----
Man A goes out, gets drunk, eats a pizza and throws up in the street. Man B walks along, sees the vomit and thinks 'What a wonderful statement on modern street life'. He takes a few pictures and spends the next few weeks carefully recreating the vomit as an art form, complete with bits of simulated diced carrot and.peperoni and all lovingly floating in simulated regurgitated beer. his work is shown at a big art gallery and is acclaimed by critics. On day 3 of the exhibition, Man A staggers in drunk again when the exhibition is empty, and promptly throws up alongside the artwork. Critics and exhibitions goers immediately assume it is by man B and acclaim it as another great work of art, all except me, who just see them both as a pile of vomit.

Sorry I digress:-)

Roger

[Steve Burkett]

Originally Posted by Roger Gunkel

There is also no way of knowing whether people actually enjoyed watching the video or stopped watching after a few seconds.

I've heard that line before. Actually Youtube does give statistics to the owner of the video that shows average view length of video. For my videos, average view is 3 minutes for a 4 minute video for the first month, then approx 2 minutes after that. Plus you could see the ratio of likes to dislikes to get an idea of common perception on the video.

We've all quoted the puke art gag in reference to modern art. Does it relate to this video - not really. We're talking a 1 minute 20 second highlight of the day video, not the Videographers expression of modern Weddings. I saw enough shots to consider that some thought was given in producing it. It does mimic the appearance of iphone shot video - whether it was shot with it, I don't know, but whilst not to everyones tastes, it's hardly a threat to Professional Videography.

Plus I have to say for such a short video, it does cram a lot in and you do get a feel for the Bride's personality, the fun, energy and location of the Wedding and some of the guests. It's energetic, cheerful and doesn't take itself too seriously. My online videos currently sit at 4 minutes, but watching this makes me wonder if perhaps they're too long. I also wonder if more natural audio, something I shy from apart from the vows, could be better used. So all in all I'd say an inspirational video for me.

[Roger Gunkel]

Inspired or insipid! Steve it would be a boring old world if we all liked and produced the same old thing and of course disagreement keeps good discussion alive :-)

Roger

[Noa Put]

I think there is a limit in the time you use to show each shot for the viewer to process it, in the capri video I found the transition often too fast and that barely gave me the time to see what was going on.

[Steve Burkett]

It's the sort of video my parents would hate. Probably more popular with younger people than the older generation, with exceptions of course. :)

[Robert Benda]

Originally Posted by Steve Burkett

It's the sort of video my parents would hate. Probably more popular with younger people than the older generation, with exceptions of course. :)

Don't forget, different videos for different purposes (or people).

For instance, I can easily see that this would target their friends relations who really just aren't going to watch a 15 or 45 minute video. Or maybe the bride and her close family (parents) would like this, too, as long as they knew they ALSO got a 15, 45, or 90 minute video that shows more.

That's how we sell our videos... 3 different edits for 3 different purposes. Cover the bases.