We as videographers like to be prepared as much as possible for your special day. Being a videographer, you have to plan ahead what you need to take with you for a wedding, more than a stills photographer. As a stills photographer, when it comes to what gear you need, it is relatively easy to handle. You need to think about the camera(s) you take, the lenses and lighting equipment. That’s it. As a videographer, it’s not that simple. Producing a good video needs more than just a camera, lenses and lighting. You might need microphones, tripods, stabilisers, drones, the list goes on. Since most weddings last for a whole day, it can be quite exhausting carrying all the gear, so it is important to only take the necessary equipment. Which is why planning is key!
Do you want your vows recorded with sound?
I guess you have already watched a couple wedding videos to get inspired or to decide if you want one or not. It’s quite common to have your vows recorded with sound and overlaid on top of the wedding video. If that is the case, a videographer has to bring microphones to record them. Sometimes they use a clip on mic or lavalier on the couple and sometimes they can capture the sound provided by the DJ, if you are planning on using handheld microphones. Most of our couples have chosen not to get their vows recorded because it is a very intimate moment and they are just not comfortable with it being recorded. In fact, it is more common to do this in the US than in Europe.
You are at an awesome location with nice landscaping and want to get a drone shot?
Some locations are at such nice places, that it’s worth it getting a drone shot. We don’t like the over use of drones just for the sake of having a drone shot, only if it really makes sense. Maybe you are planning on releasing balloons or lanterns (please think about the environment if you do this!), or your wedding is outside and you want a shot with all your guests? Then we would definitely recommend getting some drone shots.
Some Locations are worth having a drone, others not.
You want your whole ceremony recorded?
Some couples like to get their complete ceremony recorded to have it as a separate video apart from the highlight wedding video. In that case, we have to bring a tripod and an extra camera to film it while the videographer is walking around getting close ups and catching the right moments in different angles with another camera.
How big is the wedding?
A good and experienced wedding videographer can capture a whole wedding without needing a second videographer. However, getting a second videographer gives you, when done right, always a nicer wedding video for two main reasons. 1: Four eyes see more than two. Yes, one videographer can capture all the important moments, but will always focus first on the couple and when they have the right shots, there will be time to capture some moments of the crowd which often adds more emotions to the video. So while one of the videographers capture the moments of the couple, the other one can focus on family and friends. They will likely swap in between which leads to the second reason.
2: Different angles and focal length.
As you know from movies, emotions are way better transported in a close up than in a wide angle shot. Normally, that’s how we do it at least, one videographer is responsible for the wide angle shots to establish the scene and give the viewer a feeling for the location etc. The camera is fixed on a gimbal (stabilizer) to get smooth moving shots of the crowd and of the location. The other videographer is shooting on a tele lens, meaning, they can get the nice close-ups of the faces to capture the emotions. This camera is mostly handheld or on a tripod depending on the distance from the couple/family.
So having one or two videographers depends on how big the wedding is and how long and deep you want the wedding video to be. For a small wedding with under 60 people it is not necessary to pay for a second videographer in our opinion. The videographer should be able to capture all the moments of the couple and still has time to have a lot of friends and family included in the video. If you want your getting ready part to be in the video and you two get dressed at two different locations, there is obviously no way around getting two videographers.
What style of wedding video do you want?
There are different styles of wedding videos. Some are more cinematic and feel like a movie, some have a strong storyline to it, some are just documentary style and show as naturally as possible the whole wedding day. There are a lot of different videos out there in all kinds of styles. Have a look so you are able to tell your videographer what style you prefer so they can adapt their filming style to it. Some styles need more directing and involvement of the videographer, some are more passive. We prefer a more passive and documentary style, because we don’t want to infer too much with the couple and keep the mood and atmosphere of the moment as authentic as possible.
Apart from common sense questions that you already know the videographer needs to know, like time schedule and location address etc. These are more technical questions that are important for the videographer to know so they can come well prepared, with the right gear to create the wedding video you want.