Shot my first wedding in almost 15 years

[David Mathew Bonner]

Hi
I used to do a lot of weddings in the late '90s and left the wedding industry for good in the mid-2000s due to a growing family and a change of priority. I managed to transition into marketing and corporate video work. A lot of talking head stuff and simple projects but I continued to make some what of a living off of video.

Recently, on May the fourth to be exact, a pastor at my church married a friend's daughter and as a gift, I came out of 'wedding retirement' to shoot and edit their wedding.

I was a little rusty, also worked it alone which was challenging to do in my prime but even more so now.
Knowing video is only half the battle and being unsure what kind of shots I would be able to capture, I decided to focus on audio and recorded the B&G reading letters to each other and I recorded them the night before the wedding. It played as the main narrative throughout the day.

I was pretty happy with my results overall, could always have used more b-roll, a second shooter would have made a difference, but for a rusty old-timer lone wolf shooter, I did ok.
The biggest hurdle I had to deal with was that they had a team of photographers (3) shooting as well, and I tried to be conscientious of them and their shots as best as I could, while still getting what I needed.

As mentioned, I used to do a lot of weddings years ago, and was popular in my region (Edmonton, Alberta) I was booked two years in advance in some cases. But it was, and I was, different then,
I doubt anyone left here remembers me but I was known as dMb. It was a good time to be in the industry and truth be told, I missed the circle and regret leaving the industry, I should have kept one foot in at least.

Anyways, here is the wedding- it's short form, I have not watched wedding videos since I left the scene other than an occasional clip from someone's wedding I knew. So I didn't follow any "format" I just did my thing.
I am open to any feedback you may have as things have changed since I left and I might have a small itch to take a small run at the wedding industry again - maybe, it's a young man's game. but maybe a selective wedding. here and there.


https://dmbvideo.com/the-wedding-day...les-of-narnia/

Cheers dMb

[Allan Black]

Very professional David, you haven’t lost your touch, memories for generations to come.

Cheers.

[Roger Van Duyn]

Good job David!

[David Mathew Bonner]

Thank you Allan & Roger, I appreciate it.

[Oren Arieli]

Impressively shot and assembled, especially for a solo shooter. Rusty or not, you still weave a good story with clean audio and solid shots. I went down the same route as you did, preferring the corporate work on weekdays than the weekend wedding scene. But something about live events kept drawing me back, so I'm probably doing as many events as when I focused on my wedding business). What I found more satisfying is working as a 2 or 3 person team, which is loads less stressful as a solo operator.Those are usually bigger-budget events, and often I just hand over the footage and they have an edit team tackle the time-consuming part.
If you decide to get back into that scene, I'm sure you'll find eager partners. There's much to be said for experience, responsibility, and a solid track record.

[David Mathew Bonner]

thank you, Oren, I appreciate the kind words and insight, I am not sure what the future holds for me but thank you for the encouragement.
It's another crossroad in life that I am at.
David

[Noa Put]

Too bad this section of the forum hardly has any interaction anymore as all have moved on to facebook groups, I"ve been a member of such a group with thousands of registered wedding videographers but eventually left the group as there was often too much ego involved, something that was way less present on this forum.

Anyways, think you did a great job, you recognize a good videographer when the sound is good, something that can be difficult to get right at weddings. I also shoot solo so I know how much pressure you can be under making sure you get all the basics right, especially if you have to deal with a team of photographers which at times can be a real pain.

I only have 2 remarks, one is with slowed down footage, if you are not shooting at 50 or 60p slowmotion can become a bit too choppy, software like topaz video ai can do wonders on 25/30p footage but it's very slow performing, shooting at 50/60p makes it a lot easier to get good looking slowmotion.

Second is more personal preference as I did not like some of the transitions you used, in "cinema" it's also mainly straight cuts or dissolves but like I said it's personal, if your client likes it that is all that matters.

I have been shooting weddings for almost 20 years but moved more to shooting for non profit organizations, I still do weddings but not so much anymore as it physically has become to difficult for me with my bad back, requests for wedding video has also been very slow ever since the war in Ukraine and increasing gas and electricity prices as a result, it has become clear that couples prioritize photo and treating video as a luxury product again. :)

[David Mathew Bonner]

Thank you for the response. I appreciate it. The Video market has changed here as well (Canada) and most of it feels like a disposable camera now. I'm not sure where this path is leading me anymore to be honest. And odd enough, it's all non-profits who are asking me for help.
I simple Press on and do what's laid before me with my all my heart.

Thanks again
David