More About the Wedding Video Packages

What is basic editing?

This means:

• Simple titles with couple’s name & date
• Basic effects (dissolves, sepia, black and white)
• 60-120 minute “long form” of video plus a highlights montage (lengths vary, see edit specs per package)

All of our packages start with this level of editing. You can customize your wedding video with advanced editing, a life story photo montage, a love story concept video, customized credits, or even a music video.

 

What is advanced editing, and what goes into a cinematic short form?

This recap upgrade, featuring the Cinematic Short Form, includes all effects in Basic Editing, but the video is custom-edited, including treatments unique to that couple only. For montage sequences, very dynamic effects feature vignetting and blurring to achieve a cinematic look, color isolations (chroma keying), and a host of other subtle effects which change light and color. Additionally, focus and attention on family, friends and guests’ emotions and use of compelling soundbites (including the optional use of “timeshifting,” or using soundbites from one part of the day while featuring highlights from another part of the day) will be incorporated into this filmic, storytelling presentation.

We can provide it in multiple formats including a High-Def format you can upload to YouTube or Vimeo. Or, have it on your iPad or iPhone! Imagine being able to take your video anywhere or send a web link to all your friends, family, and coworkers to share a stunning recap of your entire wedding day!

Example videos link: For two different types of examples, click here to watch the video for “Brooke & Blair.”

 

Why would I need an additional videographer or another camera at my ceremony?

This is the most highly recommended option to add to any single-camera ceremony package. Ensure your wedding edit is perfect with a two-camera ceremony by adding a second videographer. The second videographer is onsite for a minimum of two hours, usually covering some of the pre-ceremony, the entire ceremony, and a bit of the post-ceremony photos.

There is nothing like the ability to edit between two perspectives of your wedding and ensure all moments are captured uninterrupted. We can capture the whole scene from the back of a church or other space, as well as get close-ups of the bride’s face during the most important moments of the ceremony.

Add this option to the Touch of Reception or Classic Reception packages.

 

What is a life story photo montage?

A montage of photos telling a “life story” of the couple, i.e., from childhood to adulthood. Photos are key-framed for dynamic movement.

Here’s an example:

 

What is a love story concept video?

Some couples like to tell the story of how they met, whether to their guests at the reception or to their family on the finished DVD. Either way, we’ll choose a great location in the San Francisco Bay Area that the couple identifies with. The video will help illustrate the couple’s story and highlight them on screen.

 

What is the music video option?

You’re a rockstar! Show it off! Probably the single most fun thing you can as part of your wedding package is to get your bridal party, and family if you wish, together a few weeks or months before your wedding and shoot a music video to the song of your choice! Thomas will personally oversee the artistic output. No cheese here. Let’s get creative and pull all the stops out to create a stylish and entertaining gem that you can show as part of your big-screen audio/visual presentation at your reception.

Want to see a music video Thomas directed at a chateau in France in 2013? Take a look:

 

What is your ceremony highlights (same-day editing) for reception presentation all about?

A stunning presentation awaits your guests at the reception with this add on! Immediately following your ceremony, the footage is imported into a mobile laptop digital editing suite, edited together into a montage set to music of your choice, and voila! DVDs or prints back to MiniDV tape can be made, or given enough time and the right playback equipment — the laptop itself can be used, or a Blu-ray disc can be produced for a high definition presentation!

Add this option to maximize the “wow” factor for your reception!

 

What is the long footage option, and what do I get on a 2-disc set?

This is different from ordering additional DVD copies. These are 2-disc sets that tell the entire story of your day. This is a required upgrade if the total length of your footage exceeds approximately 135 mins (2 hrs. 15 mins).

A simple analogy: it’s like paying for overweight baggage at the airport. Why only 135 mins. per disc? In order to produce quality video, we must limit the ‘compression’ of the edited footage into DVD files, and that means limiting the amount of footage per disc. Since the majority of wedding edits come in at 135 mins or less, this isn’t often an issue.

What would cause the footage to exceed 135 mins? More often than not, it’s because a ceremony exceeds about 1 hour. So if you have a 60+ min. ceremony, or a Tea Ceremony + plus a normal ceremony who’s combined total exceeds 1 hr., etc, then the total footage probably would go past the 135 mins. Most reception events, when edited together, last about 1 hour. Your highlights video will probably be no less than 10 mins. Adding that up, it’s 130 mins. Only 5+ additional mins. of a ceremony or reception events, or Guest Messages, etc., and the total edited footage would exceed that length.

With 2-disc sets, it applies to all copies you get in your package. For example, if you got 2 DVDs and 1 Blu-ray disc, you’d receive 2 sets of DVDs (2 discs per case) and 1 set of Blu-ray discs.

 

What do I get with customized credits?

You get personalized, Hollywood-style, one-of-a-kind credits. You’ll provide up to 20 names. Isolated shots of each person in slow-motion are coupled with uniquely styled fonts for the names. Go classy or sassy! You choose.

 

Does the final DVD have menus or chapters?

Discs feature chapters generated automatically every five minutes with a simple main menu to navigate to the major parts of your day including your highlights recap (e.g. “Highlights – Ceremony – Guest Messages (optional) – Reception”). Other custom parts of your day will be included (e.g. “Tea Ceremony,” “Mariachis,” etc.) for you. Custom-chaptered discs are available and will be priced upon special request.

 

So if I book you for 6 hours of filming, I get 6 hour of DVDs, right?

Occasionally it’s misconstrued that if we’re onsite for six hours, there must be somewhere near six hours of raw video, right? Not so. The average four or six hour wedding usually yields around 2-2.5 hours of raw footage.

For longer weddings, and of course certain ethnic weddings (such as Indian weddings), raw footage usually ends up being closer to 3 or 4 hours. See the above for more information.

 

Then what is the final disc length?

For the typical “Western-culture” wedding, the average ceremony edit is 30-60 minutes. The average length of your reception events, when strung together, are about 1 hour. Guest Messages are normally 3-7 minutes. And your highlights are as described above. All elements of your video are included on the same disc, unless multiple-disc sets are required (see below). The average edited disc therefore is around 90-120 minutes.