Having a wedding video was something we weren't that bothered about initially. When we were first planning the wedding, there seemed to be so much to fit into the budget that having a video of the day was something that seemed excessive. It was firmly on the "nice to have" not "must have" list - especially as Tom is an actor so didn't want our wedding day to feel too much like being at work! But now, a few months after the wedding and with all the benefit of hindsight, our wedding video is one of our most treasured possessions and, along with the photos, the perfect way to recapture the magic of the day when faced with a January slump moment.
When I was gathering quotes to get an idea of what cost what, I asked a few companies that I had seen featured on blogs to give us a price on getting our day filmed. Some of these had gorgeous portfolios and seemed like they would be great to work with but the prices I was getting back meant we couldn't justify the cost within our budget. We were incredibly lucky to then find out that a friend of ours Matt, a film maker and director that Tom had worked with, had started making wedding films. Tom had done some favours for him in the past, so he gave us a great deal on our package. After seeing some of his previous wedding films we were sold.
We got the most incredible service from Rozier Wilkinson from the start. We met up and had an initial meeting, speaking through our plans for the day and the logistics of getting to all the key places at the right times. Having videographers there on your wedding day is very similar to having the photographers there - they are with you while you're getting ready, need to blend in with the guests while they go about their job during the day and, crucially for us, be as unobtrusive as possible during the big moments. It's really important that you feel like the people you choose to do this are people you get on with and don't mind having about while you are emotional / make-up-less / practicing your speech etc..! I would say a pre-wedding meet up is pretty essential to get to know each other and go through things in a calm, considered way. Most good photographers offer this as standard so make sure whoever you choose to shoot your video does the same.
We filled in a detailed booking form a few weeks before the wedding, once we had a good idea of what times everything would happen. We also allocated one of our fabulous ushers and one of our gorgeous bridesmaids to look after Matt and Pete on the day, and made sure they knew what they would be doing when. This meant they had a point of contact on the day that wasn't either of us and worked really well - for more on this, have a look at my post on Suppliers.
I can honestly say that despite both of us getting ready in pretty tight areas, our ceremony taking place in a teeny church and then having the reception in our oddly shaped tipis (not much room to hide!) Tom and I barely noticed Matt and Pete going about gathering footage on our wedding day. They were totally unobtrusive and a joy to have around. Two cameramen and two photographers (the fabulous Tino & Pip) could have been too much to hide but working with such professionals meant they got on with sharing the spots and getting what they needed as quickly and painlessly as possible.
When we returned from honeymoon there was the excitement of getting our still photographs back from Tino & Pip, which was just amazing. We were then so lucky to have the further joy of getting our edited video back from Rozier Wilkinson a few weeks after this. To begin with, they put together a 3 minute edit that was perfect for sharing on Facebook and sending online to friends and family overseas. We couldn't believe how perfectly they had managed to capture our day in the short time of the video, it brought it all back and anyone who hadn't been able to make the wedding got a pretty good idea of the day just by watching it. If you'd like to take a peek have a look here, we're the top one.
The final video was 20 minutes long, using music from our day along with some other favourites, and nothing could have prepared us for how beautiful it was. Matt brought the video over to us, gorgeously packaged up, and we watched it with him for the first time - lots of tears! The guys film in HD so the picture quality was fantastic and the fact that both of them are film makers first and foremost meant that it really did feel like a movie. The disc included "DVD extras" of all the speeches and the wedding ceremony in full which are also lovely to have.
I could gush about our videos for ages but suffice to say - Rozier Wilkinson are highly recommended! There are of course lots of other great wedding film makers out there and you will get some good names by looking through the big wedding blog archives for their pick of all the gorgeous wedding films out there.
What do you guys think? Are you thinking about having a wedding video or does the price make it impossible? Did you have a film made of your wedding day and are you pleased you did or do you think your photographs would have been enough? I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Have a great Wedding Wednesday y'all xxx
A few stills from our wedding film...
