Sunday, 26. April 2009
This afternoon I was on the web and came across a blurb that a photographer wrote on his website about videographers. It was in his ‘Questions’ section:
The question: “Will having a videographer affect my pictures?”
Answer that was posted: “Most videographers are professional and unobtrusive. Some like to stand very close to the couple throughout the ceremony and the first dance which ultimately results in images with the videographer in them. A word with them beforehand will usually suffice.”
I believe that being both a wedding photographer and a wedding videographer I have a unique perspective. When I’m working a gig it gives me the opportunity to see what other one is doing and how they do it. Mind you, I’m not interested in their technique or their posing style. I have my own style and I work on perfecting my style with each wedding. What I mean by watching them is seeing whether or not the wedding is about the Bride and the Groom or them.
On the wedding day we are all here for one purpose and that is to ensure that the bride and groom enjoy their day. Videographer, photographer, deejay, florist, coordinator, caterers. It’s not about us! It’s about the bride & groom!
As a videographer I’ve had photographers stand right in front of my camera causing me to completely miss a shot (but, hey she got her shot right?). As a photographer I’ve had a videographer literally push me out of the way while I was photographing the cake cutting (but, hey he got the shot right?).
Here’s one: I was out photographing a wedding near Lake Jennings and the bride & groom hired two film students as their wedding videographers. Nothing wrong with that except one thing: during the ceremony they positioned their cameras in the middle row on the third aisle blocking several from watching the ceremony. Worse – they were in every shot.
Here’s another: while being a videographer the photographer ensured that he was in every shot. Almost like he thought I was going to cut him some kind of demo reel.
As camera prices become lower and what was once out of range for many is now within reach of many you are going to find a lot of people all of a sudden claiming they are ‘professional photographers’ or ‘professional videographers’. It’s not about the camera. Just because he has a Canon 5D MkII or she has a Sony Z7U HD videocamera doesn’t mean professional. It’s about the person behind the camera and their experience.
As a videographer I always will give the photographer a ‘heads up’ about what I am about to do. For example, I like to walk around the bride and groom two times during their first dance. I know that some photographers will shoot the first dance with a wide lens and I want to be sure I’m not in the shot while also trying to get my shot.
As a photographer I always have my bride and groom hold a pose a little longer for the videographer because I know that filming a scene takes more time than the quick click of my camera.
I guess what I am trying to say is this: that photographer did not need to make that comment. The question and the answer goes both ways. True professionals understand and respect the other vendor. That is how it should be. Unfortunately, it’s not always the case and it is those unprofessional vendors who give we true professionals a bad rap.
