What do professional wedding videography prices include?

It is hard to standardise the services of professional wedding videographers. They vary from firm to firm and between individuals. It is common to find these services available to you as packages, typically called bronze, silver and gold. You will need to look at the fine print to find the details of what you are actually paying for though, if you want to compare prices. You are usually able to pay for ‘extras’ if you want something out of the ordinary, say perhaps interviews with your guests, so watch out for these if you are attracted by a cheap wedding videography price. It can be overwhelming when comparing different wedding videography packages, so here are the basics of what you should be looking for:

• Two smartly dressed cameramen
• Professional wedding videography equipment comprising three HD cameras and wireless microphones
• A meeting to discuss your exact requirements with the actual videographer who will be attending your wedding and editing the final film
• Copyright licenses for the wedding video music
• Edited 60-90 minute versions on one Blu Ray disc and three DVDs
• Your choice of wedding photo printed onto the DVDs
• DVDs presented in formal cases

If you can afford it, you are well advised to capture your complete wedding day. This will involve your wedding videographers being needed for about 10-12 hours when they will film the following important events:

• The bride getting reading before the ceremony
• The arrival of the guests and bridegroom at the ceremony
• The bride’s arrival
• The ceremony and the signing of the register
• The session with the still photographer
• The wedding breakfast, speeches and cutting of the cake
• The happy couple’s first dance during the evening party
• The guests partying and dancing
• Guests leaving video messages
• The bouquet toss.

Photo by kennymatic.

The price of wedding videography services is as changeable as the packages on offer. It depends on where you live and what deal you are able to negotiate. Typically you should expect a bill in the region of $2,000 and above. You will probably have to pay a deposit to ensure the videographer keeps the day clear in his diary. The final payment is either due before the actual day or sometimes when you receive the final wedding video. You are likely to receive the final product within 3-5 weeks of the wedding but you can expect this to be longer in the summer months.

Styles of videography for weddings

When you meet the wedding videographer it is a good idea to discuss his or her videography style. Individuals will tend towards a style that they prefer but a professional will no doubt be able to accomodate your wishes. The different types of wedding video theme are as follows:

• Journalistic – a bit like a documentary, the segments of this style follow the time line of the day
• Cinematic – the videographer will try and convey a more dramatic representation of the day. There should a feeling of ‘wow’ whilst watching it.
• Storytelling – the bride and groom are more involved in this style. They are not just left to go about the business of the wedding, but are also asked to provide sound clips effectivley narating parts of the day. These clips can be recorded during or even before and after the day.

Most videographers do not stick to a single theme, but prefer to mix and match elements of them all. This usually ends up with the best result for the bride and groom.

Once the filming has finished for the day, the editing can start. This will involve joining relevant parts together and cutting parts where not much happens but it can also include creating various special mementos from the footage shot. These may include:

• Highlights – this is a very short version of the day. It will be about 10 minutes long and will cover the key points.
• Short form – this is another short verion covering between 15-50 minutes of the most interesting segments.
• Traditional – this is the long form video and is typically what you would get if a friend took the video for you. There is not much editing so the result will probably last 2-3 hours.
• Photo montage – this is not exactly a video but more a collection of still pictures. They are organised into an interesting order and are often accompanied by sound clips or music.
• Love story – this is the story of the happy couple. It will cover how they met, what they are like as a couple and what they have planned for the future. The bride and groom will be prominently featured talking about their story and the narrative will be cut with shots of what they are talking about.

As well as wedding day videos you can also arrange for pre wedding videos to be shot. These may include:

• Engagement video – the groom will need to be on the ball to organise this to capture the moment he proposes!
• Invitation DVD – rather than printed invitations you can now send videos to your guests asking them to come and join you for your big day.

So make sure you give some serious thought to your wedding videography requirements. It will be too late when it is all over. Plan ahead and make sure you have the perfect memento of your perfect day.