I would want a mix of home video style and professional.. but since you're the professional end...

I would want.. the entire ceremony.. stationary camera angle unless you can get into different positions without losing footage.. get the full procession/ceremony. Make sure audio is clear as possible. Zoom more on the kiss?

After that, i guess I wouldn't mind some footage of family giving their best wishes/toasts specifically to the camera... try to get every attendee on camera at least once but no need to interview them all. Capture shots of the beginning of the after party, cutting the cake, the games. The bridge/groom leaving for the honeymoon, the just married signs and cans and all that...

The main thing would be the thoughts and shots of freinds and family, because you wouldnt have time on your special day to really meet and greet everyone to the extent you wanted. So that would be espeically a fond memory to cherish, and have on film.

Sorry thats all that comes to mind!

"Wedding" videos, 'eh? Nudge-nudge.

Comment hidden because you are ignoring dag. (show it anyway)

Complete coverage - including the honeymoon. Break out your wide-angle lens.


No, I suppose I would want it all webified, nicely accessible online albums and the ability to easily share with other people.

I was looking into doing the same thing years back, but programming became the thing that paid my bills, homeslice. I think you're a talented filmmaker, so I wish you the best, brother.

I'm not married, but I can speak from vicarious experience that most people want coverage (two cam coverage is typically enough, though if you can go up to three, you're doing better than most.).

And, don't listen to Dag, wide angle lenses are easy to shoot with (typically no focus issues), but they make people look like aliens (great for cinema, terrible for weddings). What bride wants to look like an alien, I ask you? You want to keep the viewpoint close to something the human eye understands or something longer... for 35mm that means a 50mm lens. What does that mean for a video zoom lens? I have no fucking clue, but you can easily just zoom in a bit tighter than the broad wide setting and do well, I'm sure.

Speed and cost. I actually know a thing or two about this, believe it or not. Let me just say that most professional wedding-ographers do well to create a streamlined process. Those that make decent money understand what they need to get (footage) and how to cut it quickly. They also offer packages where they charge more for various mediums of delivery (e.g, DVD, VCD, Web, photos, VHS, etc.). The more options, the higher the cost.

Also, a big thing they want is for you to disappear in the background and NOT be a part of their wedding, but when they see the final video they want to see that you were there amidst the crowds. Hence the longer lens comment above.

Make sure every frame of the video oozes professionalism. Don't use recognizable fonts, especially Papyrus or Comic Sans, for anything.

We decided not to do video, but when picking our still photog, his presentation and professionalism really stood out. He had us come to a rented studio, wrote up an org chart of the family relations on our first interview - showing he was organized and was aligning his priories with ours. He projected samples of his work and we quizzed him about his most challenging assignments. He had a film background, understood the processes, not just point and click.
Other photogs we talked to met us in coffee shops and were half assed. So that first impression, and attention to detail, was huge. On the day of the wedding he got good shots while blending in, easy going and organized, and had a backup photog.
From what I've heard, a lot of photogs learn the biz 'backing up' an established person.
On the other hand, I read a Yelp review of a photog who lost a couple's weddings pics in a HD crash. This is a *huge* responsibility...trust me, that bride will bad mouth him till the day she dies
Previous work is really important because this is a one-shot deal that has to be right... combination of personality/rapport, technical chops, and of course good taste/sensibilities with editing.

Okay, well I'm just putting the finishing touches on the application, and it's looking good. Thanks so much to everyone who replied; it was definitely helpful.

^Stop flirting with us.

Don't pretend you don't love it.

Oh, and I didn't get into that stupid lousy program. I just thought I'd post that for posterity, in case anyone ever stumbles across this post.