Greetings! Today we are so excited to have Jewel Savadelis from Savadelis Films here with the first of a 3-part series on How TO DIY Your Wedding Video. We find the #1 regret among brides after the wedding is that they didn’t get a good video. Here’s a way you can avoid that regret.
Jewel and her husband Chuck are among the best videographers in the country. Based on six years’ experience producing great wedding movies, they have put together the most important tips for getting a better wedding video, just for our readers.
To Bay Area couples – Chuck and Jewel are offering a seminar on How to Make a Wedding Movie Everyone Will Love on Sunday, March 22 in San Francisco. Click here for more information and to register. If you leave a comment at the end of this post by February 14 with your name and email address you will be entered into a drawing to win TWO FREE TICKETS to the seminar! In addition anyone can enter the drawing to win a FREE FLIP VIDEO CAMERA ¬here
Part I: Ten Tips to Instantly Shoot Better Video
The four reasons you DON’T want your buddies to shoot your wedding video are: poor images, poor sound, they missed something important, and the video is B-O-R-I-N-G. Here are some tips to fix the first two problems. Part II will address the last two problems.
TIP 1: Stop the wild camera movements!
If your subject is worth seeing, it’s worth seeing well. The hallmark of a novice videographer is that they jump from one thing to the next, not holding any shot long enough for anyone to see what’s going on. And, please, stop the zooming! The constant in-out-in-out movement is distracting from what your viewers want to see – a beautiful couple getting married and friends and family having a good time.
TIP 2: Take the jitter out
Once you’ve settled down (see Tip #1), learn how to hold your camera so you can take out those small movements that make viewers feel seasick. Here’s how:
a. Bring your elbows into your sides and hug the camera close to you; don’t hold it out in front of you where it is unsupported.
b. Lean up against a wall for support.
c. Go down on one knee and lean your camera elbow on your knee to steady the camera.
d. The wider the shot, the less noticeable the shake.
e. Put the camera on a tripod for the steadiest of all shots.
TIP 3: Hold each shot for at least 10-15 seconds
You can always make a 10-second shot a 2-second shot.
TIP 4: Shoot more than you think you need.
TIP 5: Frame your shots well
Obey the “rule of thirds” Imagine a tic-tac-toe board over your viewfinder. The lines intersect in four places. Frame the action at one of these four spots, off-center not squarely in the center. Oh, and don’t “bull’s eye” your shot. That is, if you draw a horizontal line that bisects the screen so 50% is above and 50% below it, do NOT frame the shot so a person’s eyes are on that line. Frame the shot so a person’s eyes are on the top line (66% line) of that tic-tac-toe board. This is one of those things you have to experiment with and then you get the “ah ha” moment. See what I mean?
TIP 6: Shoot from many angles
For static shots like the ceremony and toasts, the best place for the camera is on a tripod. But for the unscheduled activities like the cocktail party and open dancing, take that camera off the tripod and shoot from creative angles!
TIP 7: Get good sound
Even a cheap mic close-up will get better sound than an expensive mic far away. If what you’re recording is important enough (like your vows), rent a professional grade wireless mic for about $40 to get much, much better sound than you get from the built-in camera mic. Oh, and check to make sure the sound is on, that you can hear it through your headphones. And make sure YOU are not talking while the sound is recording! Video accompanied by ambient sound is much more interesting (glasses clinking, people cheering, children laughing).
TIP 8: Know your camera well
Learn how to use the manual focus and manual exposure on your camera. Your shots will improve greatly.
TIP 9: Turn off the special effects
Please! If your camera has special effects like sepia, B&W, autofade or dissolves – turn them off. Nothing looks quite as dated and cheesy as those effects. There’s plenty of drama going on at the wedding. Focus on that.
TIP 10: Have fun!
Shooting video is a lot like dancing. Once you have the basic steps, it becomes natural and then you can really really have fun. The more you practice, the better you’ll become.
Greetings! Today we welcome back Jewel Savadelis from Savadelis Films (www.savadelis.com) with the second of a 2-part series on How TO DIY Your Wedding Video. We find the #1 regret among brides after the wedding is that they didn’t get a good video. Here’s a way you can avoid that regret.
Jewel and her husband Chuck are among the best videographers in the country. Based on six years’ experience producing great wedding movies, they have put together the most important tips for getting a better wedding video, exclusively for our readers.
To Bay Area couples – Chuck and Jewel are offering a seminar on How to Make a Wedding Movie Everyone Will Love on Sunday, March 22 in San Francisco. Click here (www.movie-me.com) for more information and to register. If you leave a comment at the end of this post by February 14 with your name and email address you will be entered into a drawing to win TWO FREE TICKETS to the seminar! In addition anyone can enter a drawing to win a FREE FLIP VIDEO CAMERA ¬here (www.movie-me.com/register.html)
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