W. Cardone Productions Blog » DIY Wedding Videography

Don’t Neglect Safety at Your Wedding

admin — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 16:54:49 +0000

All brides at least have in the back of their minds a worry that something horrific will go wrong on their magic day. They pray that their wedding day might not be spoiled by an event so horrific that if captured to video would become an instant YouTube hit. Worse… what if someone received personal injury because of a safety issue such as a light cord strung across a walk-way or an ornate glass decoration positioned such that playing children could tip it over.

In a DIY wedding you may find yourself placing decorations that create hazards you may have never thought of. We observed one such example recently at a wedding in Detroit. Please examine the photo below and observe the red circles identifying tall glass vases filled with water and marbles. These water-filled vases lined both sides of the processional isle where equipment laden photographers and videographers were to traverse. As the wedding began and the bridal party began to come down the isle, someone brushed against one of these vases causing it to fall and shatter spreading a million pieces of razor sharp glass, marbles, and water down the processional isle and into the guest seating. Several guests stepped up and began a quick cleanup picking up any marbles and glass shards that could be found. Fortunately, no marbles escaped detection for someone to later slip on and nobody was cut picking up the glass shards.

You may find beautiful ornamentation to grace your wedding day but always keep safety in mind. It can bite you when you least expect it.

Uncle Fred’s Attention

admin — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:23:39 +0000

Yesterday we discussed audio as it is distinguished between home movies and professional event video. Another consideration is something you might not think of. That is Uncle Fred’s attention span as he captures your wedding. Like any family member or relative, Uncle Fred is interested in your wedding day and to some extent is pre-occupied with experiencing events of your day. Consequently, his attention is drawn often away from various technical considerations. His own children may be present drawing his attention away at times. At times his imagination may be captured as you recite your vows, exchange rings, light your unity candle, etc. Any number of personal things may distract his attention away from the imaging you are expecting him to be attentive to.

DIY Wedding Videography

admin — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:26:51 +0000

The question often arises among couples to be wed, “Why not buy our own HD camcorder and have Uncle Fred video our wedding?”

To answer that question the couple must determine exactly what it is that they would like in a wedding video. If the couple is more interested in home movies of their wedding, then this is probably an EXCELLENT choice that makes sense. If, however, they are looking for a keepsake that captures the sights, sounds, and emotions of the day, consulting with a pro would make sense.

There are a variety of considerations which distinguish professional from consumer videography. Probably none is greater than audio. A professional will mic up the groom and officiant with wirless UHF diversity microphones costing in the mid to high three figures each. He will also take an XLR line from the house sound board to capture whatever is in the public address. Additionally he usually has some audio redundancy with a shotgun mic mounted on one of the cameras. Mastered in the edit room, the audio will capture the sounds of the ceremony completely unlike the ability of any on-board camcorder microphone can do.

There are a number of other considerations in what to expect from a professional videographer which will be covered in subsequent blog posts here.