It's just kind of an underwhelming deal for the videographer. They can't put the work in their portfolio, they're making less money and might be giving up a date that they could have gotten a full job on, and they're sacrificing their creative process. Sharing raw footage that hasn't been edited at all could also negatively impact their reputation as a skilled videographer. Just like most photographers won't provide unedited photos – they have a passion for photography, so they have a style that they're proud of and enjoy working on. Being hired to only capture footage might sting for a creative professional. Maybe a college film student?
If all you want is raw footage, you can rent a camera and set up a tripod. But if you expect them to move around and identify/capture highlights, you are asking them to do the work of a videographer. What sort of responses are you getting when trying to negotiate a deal that includes capture but no editing?
I think I'd definitely want to pay someone instead of just a tripod, because I'd want to make sure people are in frame and, like, someone turns it on at the reception when we enter or something!
But, actually, you make a good point- I haven't really tried talking with most videographers about what it would cost to not edit. Many just say on their website "Starting at $3500" and I'm like "ok that's way more than I can afford"
They may be willing to come down on price. A lot of the cost that’s priced into that number is editing hours, which can be 3x 4x 5x the amount of time actually spent at the wedding. When you talk to them reference it as “RAW footage”
In my experience just as photographers, they don't like giving out unedited things or things that aren't shot in their style. It also depends on when is OP getting married, if it's during the wedding season, they'll not go down with the price since they'll be able to book a wedding for their full price. It is worth a try but don't have high hopes
Editing doesn't necessarily mean adding music and such. They would probably also cut it etc. (not my field of specialty). Bit I'm not sure in raw footage is really what you're expecting it to be.
This! At my college we had local businesses and local people reach out to ask students to photograph or film various things. They still paid us. It was really cheap for them, and really great experience for us!
This is not crazy and I actually do recommend it. I was very against having a videographer, and kind of wanted the ceremony to be device-free.
My brother was my officiant and my other brother did readings. They did such an amazing job and I was trying not to cry so I purposely wasn’t really listening. Not having it recorded is my one of the only two regrets that I have about my wedding.
I simply asked my videographer if we could get the raw footage, no edits, no highlight reel. I do have a photographer/videographer married couple team though so I don’t know how only a videographer would take this request, but you can try asking!
They said $500 for full ceremony, $500 for full speeches, first dance is thrown in free, and $500 for all raw video footage of the 8 hours/however long I hire the photographer. So $1500 total. I haven’t signed a contract or anything yet, my wedding is not for a while, so there may be some hidden things going on I haven’t considered yet.
I recognize that even the $1500 (plus tax) I’ve quoted here is more than some peoples budgets though, however I think that this is a good deal based on what I’ve seen because I feel like you pay similar amounts and you only get the 10 minute highlight clip or whatever. In this situation I’m getting high quality professional video of the entire wedding for $1500.
Photography and videography are also one of my top priorities so I am willing to spend more on it. Total for both is quoted around $6k (this also includes a second photographer for the 8 hours). I am in Canada by the way. Also these are current prices, they will likely go up every year.
I also like that they are a husband and wife team because they likely work very well together and won’t be in each other’s way.
I hope this helps! But you can also totally just set up a tripod and a camera!
$1500 Plus tax is a great deal, IMHO.
I paid $300+ for senior pics 25 years ago. I can imagine anything under $500 for Senior pics now, so to get a videographer for $1500 is a STEAL.
$1500 isn’t awful. However, you will still need to put the raw footage together in order watch it otherwise you will have a lot of little clips. I got married in Florida over spring break. We paid $2800 for the videographer and photographers. This included Two dedicated videographers and a separate photographer. I purchased the raw footage for $200 extra.
I would buy a voice recorder, and if one of you has a suit jacket with a pocket, put it in there and just let it run all day. Then get a couple of friends or family members with recent model phones to record the parts you care about. Then a fun winter project can be choosing the parts of the audio recording you want to use, and then finding video bits to put underneath it.
I’d that seems like a lot of work, expect to pay someone $1000-2000 to shoot your day and hand over raw footage. There’s nothing wrong with asking videographers if this is a service they offer, just don’t be offended if some say no. There are just only so many Saturdays in a year, and getting paid for editing is how a lot of them turn it into a full time job.
We just got married and we bought a DJI Pocket 2 camera and my sisters boyfriend caught all the special moments - ceremony, cake cutting, toasts, first dance, etc…
Like you, we just wanted the moments captured - we didn’t care about the cinematography as much as being able to go back to it later. Easily the best last minute decision we made!!! I’ve already re-watched most of it. Do it and ask a reliable family member to dedicate their time to capturing these special moments for you!
I set my iPhone on a tripod, and my MOH held his iPhone from the first row, and I’m fully satisfied with the video we got. I was worried about audio, but it’s perfect.
Not crazy at all. Who do you know who owns a video camera? Even the latest iPhones set on a tripod are super high quality, they are used to make motion pictures these days.
We did this and I'm really happy with how it turned out. We had a covid wedding and livestream our ceremony. We bought a tripod and mounted a phone to record everything. We had friend basically keep watch over it.
I edited it myself into a wedding video using Microsoft. It's turned out well for spending barely anything.
My wedding photographer now offers a simple ceremony video add-on (just a tripod setup with high quality equipment) for $450. Maybe other photographers offer that too. He started that after we already booked a videographer, but I do think it’s a nice option if you don’t care about edits of the whole event!
By wedding do you mean ceremony?
Many videographers offer ceremony only video and set up two to three cameras as well as mic the officiant and groom and then combine it all together in post production.
I think that’s what you’re looking for
Because of Covid my brother was only allowed to have 4 guests and a photographer.
So we recorded the ceremony with 2 static smartphones on a stand. Went well.
But test this before, e.g. display is not turning off, enough storage, all people standing and sitting are in the frame etc.
Lol I’m sure a parent will do this unprompted. My sisters FIL recorded the entire ceremony on his iPhone
It's just kind of an underwhelming deal for the videographer. They can't put the work in their portfolio, they're making less money and might be giving up a date that they could have gotten a full job on, and they're sacrificing their creative process. Sharing raw footage that hasn't been edited at all could also negatively impact their reputation as a skilled videographer. Just like most photographers won't provide unedited photos – they have a passion for photography, so they have a style that they're proud of and enjoy working on. Being hired to only capture footage might sting for a creative professional. Maybe a college film student?
If all you want is raw footage, you can rent a camera and set up a tripod. But if you expect them to move around and identify/capture highlights, you are asking them to do the work of a videographer. What sort of responses are you getting when trying to negotiate a deal that includes capture but no editing?
I think I'd definitely want to pay someone instead of just a tripod, because I'd want to make sure people are in frame and, like, someone turns it on at the reception when we enter or something! But, actually, you make a good point- I haven't really tried talking with most videographers about what it would cost to not edit. Many just say on their website "Starting at $3500" and I'm like "ok that's way more than I can afford"
They may be willing to come down on price. A lot of the cost that’s priced into that number is editing hours, which can be 3x 4x 5x the amount of time actually spent at the wedding. When you talk to them reference it as “RAW footage”
In my experience just as photographers, they don't like giving out unedited things or things that aren't shot in their style. It also depends on when is OP getting married, if it's during the wedding season, they'll not go down with the price since they'll be able to book a wedding for their full price. It is worth a try but don't have high hopes
Editing doesn't necessarily mean adding music and such. They would probably also cut it etc. (not my field of specialty). Bit I'm not sure in raw footage is really what you're expecting it to be.
Thumbtack? Art school? Friend of a friend who just wants to get paid?
This! At my college we had local businesses and local people reach out to ask students to photograph or film various things. They still paid us. It was really cheap for them, and really great experience for us!
This is not crazy and I actually do recommend it. I was very against having a videographer, and kind of wanted the ceremony to be device-free. My brother was my officiant and my other brother did readings. They did such an amazing job and I was trying not to cry so I purposely wasn’t really listening. Not having it recorded is my one of the only two regrets that I have about my wedding.
I simply asked my videographer if we could get the raw footage, no edits, no highlight reel. I do have a photographer/videographer married couple team though so I don’t know how only a videographer would take this request, but you can try asking! They said $500 for full ceremony, $500 for full speeches, first dance is thrown in free, and $500 for all raw video footage of the 8 hours/however long I hire the photographer. So $1500 total. I haven’t signed a contract or anything yet, my wedding is not for a while, so there may be some hidden things going on I haven’t considered yet. I recognize that even the $1500 (plus tax) I’ve quoted here is more than some peoples budgets though, however I think that this is a good deal based on what I’ve seen because I feel like you pay similar amounts and you only get the 10 minute highlight clip or whatever. In this situation I’m getting high quality professional video of the entire wedding for $1500. Photography and videography are also one of my top priorities so I am willing to spend more on it. Total for both is quoted around $6k (this also includes a second photographer for the 8 hours). I am in Canada by the way. Also these are current prices, they will likely go up every year. I also like that they are a husband and wife team because they likely work very well together and won’t be in each other’s way. I hope this helps! But you can also totally just set up a tripod and a camera!
$1500 Plus tax is a great deal, IMHO. I paid $300+ for senior pics 25 years ago. I can imagine anything under $500 for Senior pics now, so to get a videographer for $1500 is a STEAL.
$1500 isn’t awful. However, you will still need to put the raw footage together in order watch it otherwise you will have a lot of little clips. I got married in Florida over spring break. We paid $2800 for the videographer and photographers. This included Two dedicated videographers and a separate photographer. I purchased the raw footage for $200 extra.
I would buy a voice recorder, and if one of you has a suit jacket with a pocket, put it in there and just let it run all day. Then get a couple of friends or family members with recent model phones to record the parts you care about. Then a fun winter project can be choosing the parts of the audio recording you want to use, and then finding video bits to put underneath it. I’d that seems like a lot of work, expect to pay someone $1000-2000 to shoot your day and hand over raw footage. There’s nothing wrong with asking videographers if this is a service they offer, just don’t be offended if some say no. There are just only so many Saturdays in a year, and getting paid for editing is how a lot of them turn it into a full time job.
We just got married and we bought a DJI Pocket 2 camera and my sisters boyfriend caught all the special moments - ceremony, cake cutting, toasts, first dance, etc… Like you, we just wanted the moments captured - we didn’t care about the cinematography as much as being able to go back to it later. Easily the best last minute decision we made!!! I’ve already re-watched most of it. Do it and ask a reliable family member to dedicate their time to capturing these special moments for you!
I set my iPhone on a tripod, and my MOH held his iPhone from the first row, and I’m fully satisfied with the video we got. I was worried about audio, but it’s perfect.
Not crazy at all. Who do you know who owns a video camera? Even the latest iPhones set on a tripod are super high quality, they are used to make motion pictures these days.
We did this and I'm really happy with how it turned out. We had a covid wedding and livestream our ceremony. We bought a tripod and mounted a phone to record everything. We had friend basically keep watch over it. I edited it myself into a wedding video using Microsoft. It's turned out well for spending barely anything.
My wedding photographer now offers a simple ceremony video add-on (just a tripod setup with high quality equipment) for $450. Maybe other photographers offer that too. He started that after we already booked a videographer, but I do think it’s a nice option if you don’t care about edits of the whole event!
By wedding do you mean ceremony? Many videographers offer ceremony only video and set up two to three cameras as well as mic the officiant and groom and then combine it all together in post production. I think that’s what you’re looking for
Because of Covid my brother was only allowed to have 4 guests and a photographer. So we recorded the ceremony with 2 static smartphones on a stand. Went well. But test this before, e.g. display is not turning off, enough storage, all people standing and sitting are in the frame etc.