(The picture above has nothing to do with this post, it’s pretty and makes me happy, that’s all!)
Ok, I’ve been wanting to blog about this for as long as I can remember, but due to lack of time, it has been on the back burner. Today is the day I am going to put it all out there.
Let me start by saying this: This post is NOT an attack on videographers, or any other vendors for that matter. When my brides ask me if I think they should hire a videographer, my answer is as always, yes find one that you can’t live without, and hire that person/company.
Today I was casually scrolling through Facebook. I belong to so many “photographer” related groups that sometimes I’ll spend 30 minutes looking through an album and I don’t even know the people in the images OR the photographer for that matter. I’m sure a lot of photographers do this as well. As I was scrolling I noticed a wedding album. I quickly started scanning through all of the images, grinning from ear to ear seeing how happy this bride and groom were. It didn’t take long for my grin to turn into concern, and my concern to turn into anger. During this couple’s sweet ceremony, there was barely even a handful of images where the videographer wasn’t basically right beside the couple or directly behind the couple. It was very distracting.
NOW, I don’t know this couple. I don’t know this videographer. Potentially, this couple could have requested this for all I know, but I do know the 120+ weddings I have documented, I can tell you that none of my bride and grooms would have liked ANY vendor that close to them/ that visual throughout the duration of their ceremony. [YES, I have had quite a few of my couples request photos of their first kiss on the opposite side (me facing the guests, basically where the minister stands) and YES, I do walk around as unobtrusively as possible during ceremonies. I wear dark or neutral colors to cause the least amount of distraction I possibly can. If I have to sit I sit as low to the ground during the ceremony, to stabilize myself and my camera, and to ensure I’m not standing in the aisle throughout the entire ceremony. A lot of times, I even turn around backwards and give a thumbs up or down to the videographer I work with to ensure I am not in all of their footage.] In my opinion (yes, I am allowed to have one of those) it seems there was a GIANT lack of communication between the bride and groom and their videographer, or a lack of communication between the photographer and the videographer, or maybe, a lack of communication between them all. Hey, it happens, we are all humans, but there is no way that the couple I’m referring to can look through their images and be happy that their videographer is in almost every single image. For this very reason, my contract states “I am not responsible for the actions of other vendors.” and honestly, it’s sad that it has to be that way.
Here’s my thoughts/advice: (take it or leave it, it’s free either way)
We as wedding vendors should ALL be Team Bride and Groom. Let’s remember WHO we are there for, and not trample on those who have the same common goal as we do. Take turns with the other vendors who also have a job to do. I’ve worked with videographers who have shoved me, pushed me down, spit on me, and John’s almost been punched by one, and AS crazy as that sounds, I’ve also worked with videographers who have HELPED me get the shot I desired. I’ve had videographers that have held lights for me, grabbed my bag as I ran to a different location, assist with hanging the dress, and I’ve even had a few SAVE my @$$ before. So let me be crystal clear here, communication is the KEY to success. And by success I mean excellent products from both your videographer AND your photographer. You don’t want to LOVE your wedding images, but HATE your wedding cinematography, or vise-versa.
I’ve spoken to several other wedding professionals about this, both videographers AND photographers. One videographer told me they were once approached by a wedding photographer who they had never met and the first exchange of words from the photographer was “Are you going to be in my way today?” This is not ok, folks. A photographer isn’t more important than a videographer, and a videographer isn’t more important than a photographer. WHY? Because the bride and groom hired BOTH, meaning, they are counting on BOTH to do their very best jobs and DELIVER the products they were promised.
My good friend and photographer Kevin Barre had this to say about communication between vendors: “The best tack is to make sure you stress that it’s all about making great images for the clients. Great images AND great video. You can’t do that if you are ignoring the other vendors. Everything we do on the wedding day should be about making the best experience for the couple. Working closely together, making sure we all have each other’s backs, is the best way to accomplish that.”
So bride and grooms, lets make sure all of our vendors are on the same page, and that page is YOU.
XOXO
(Don’t agree with this post, then you’re probably one of the problems!)
