Are you using a videographer? I can't decide...

epona225

Hi ladies, time to give your opinion/advice!  We had originally decided that a wedding video was not a priority for us, but now I'm having second thoughts.  So are you getting a video, or not, and why?  Also, I have been thinking about having just the ceremony filmed, so tell me your thoughts on that too.  Thanks

em01092

We are not having any part of the wedding filmed. We thought about it, and we just didn't feel the expense was worth it to us, on top of photography. We figure we'll watch the video a handful of times at first, then show our kids one day, so we just didn't feel it was worth it to spend another 1K or so. We'll have pictures, and that's fine with us.

Had our budget been bigger, we probably would have had it filmed. 

One of my BMs said she knows someone who does it on the side and offered to give that to us as a wedding gift. I told her it was not a huge priority to us, so I think she let that go. She's also kind of bad about promising things and then not following through, so I never really had my hopes up anyway. 

bakersduzin

I wasn't planning on hiring a videographer, but my mom and a few married cousins finally talked me into it. I'm only having the videographer for my ceremony. He's actually a student at the college I attended - the film studies chair was my academic advisor for 3 years, so I talked to him and he was able to give me a good recommendation.

inhisname2010

It cam as part of my package deal so yes, we're having one.

kmac821

We aren't, but I might con some of my relatives who will be in the audience to film it--my half brother is very handy with electronics and loves to film and take pictures so that might be easy.

For us it was the cost. I'd rather have gorgeous pictures which we can hang in our home and give to our family than a video that is recorded on a DVD which will at some point become obsolete anyways (glass half empty this morning).

If you want it though, get it. We aren't the type to watch things over and over (unless Anchorman counts...). Plus if you have budget do it!

carl4252003

were getting a videographer ... my fiance really wanted one .... he was telling me a story that the only thing left from his father when his fatehr passed away is the video from his brothers wedding ... so he would love to have a video of our wedding for keepsakes and memories ... i said fine and we worked it in our budget ... we actually got a REALLY good deal from our photographer recommendation 

rlavach

We didn't originally budget for video either. We also felt that it was an unnecessary extra expense. Then I realized that although our photog is absolutely amazing, there is just something about being able to HEAR our wedding. To hear the vows and the claps and laughter and music. It is so much more real and deep than photos are. 

My grandfather gave us an early wedding gift and told us to spend it on something that we previously couldn't afford for the wedding. Well, that's exactly what we did. We chose GT Modern Creations based out of NYC and are paying $1500 for all-day coverage by 2 videographers, including getting ready for both B&G, 5 min highlihght, 3 full-length DVDs in HD. 

futuremrsdavies

I chose to do video but refused to spend over 1200 on it.  Not surprising, but my twin date rlavach and I have similar taste and I was IN LOVE with GT but ultimately couldn't justify the extra cash for an hour video. (ALTHOUGH THE WORK THEY DO IS INCREDIBLE) and so i chose a company that does all day shooting and make it into a 2 hour video with 8 min highlight to show family and friends.  That way I get my whole ceremony on film, a good chunk of my reception, but don't have to bore family and friends with it

chickenbut143

We decided about 1/2 way though planning that a video would be pretty important since my elderly and handicapped family members can't make the trip to my destination wedding.  We're only opting for the ceremony to be filmed.  Because it's so expensive we're not having the venue hook up the sound system (each one, the video & sound system is $500). 

faerylvr27

Our package with the venue came with video or photography so I opted with the video. If it didn't come with it, I probably wouldnt have spent the extra money, although my friend who got married last year said she kind of regrets not having one. I agree with PPs that said it's nice to be able to hear the events of the day in addition to the photos.

rlavach

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2012-weddings_are-you-using-a-videographer-i-cant-decide?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:05427f07-4ba2-44d6-9271-99a7af1ee5c0Discussion:915a42bb-953a-488a-aa2f-104c7d9ec5d0Post:950ee33c-0d7e-4fd3-8d7e-113cf2677c0a">Re: Are you using a videographer? I can't decide...</a>:
[QUOTE]I chose to do video but refused to spend over 1200 on it.  Not surprising, but my twin date rlavach and I have similar taste and I was IN LOVE with GT but ultimately couldn't justify the extra cash for an hour video. (ALTHOUGH THE WORK THEY DO IS INCREDIBLE) and so i chose a company that does all day shooting and make it into a 2 hour video with 8 min highlight to show family and friends.  That way I get my whole ceremony on film, a good chunk of my reception, but don't have to bore family and friends with it :)
Posted by futuremrsdavies[/QUOTE]
They're amazing, aren't they! And so sweet too. At first I was trying to stay in the $1000 range but noticed that around here it's either super cheap ($500) or super expensive ($2500+) and you do get what you pay for. Everything under $1000 was just of quality that I didn't feel was even worth that money. For that, I'd ask a family member to shoot from a cell phone. <div>
</div><div>So ultimately, we went with these videographers even though they were $500 above what we wanted, we felt that it was worth it. Other comparable videographers that I met with wanted over $2500+. So I figured, if I'm spending the money, I better make it worth it. </div>

blgrout

We decided that we didn't want to spend the money on a videographer.  Sometimes I second guess that decision a little, but in the end it's just not worth the extra cash for us to spend on it.

FutureMrsWright2012

I really didn't feel like it was a justified expense, but my FI insisted, so we did end up booking one. It's kind of an up and coming company out here in AZ with a more modern style that we like. They'll be with us all day (from prepping till we ride away to our wedding night hotel)... They'll give us everything unedited and the finished product will be like a longer version of a music video. I'm excited to see how it turns out, and think that ultimately, I'll be glad to have booked it.

mybestfriend4eva

We are not hiring one its just way out of budget for us. That being said a family friend knew that we coulnt afford it and would have had a videographer if we could have so she is going to record it for us. Her offer not us asking.

Honeybumble

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_april-2012-weddings_are-you-using-a-videographer-i-cant-decide?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20Club%20BoardsForum:05427f07-4ba2-44d6-9271-99a7af1ee5c0Discussion:915a42bb-953a-488a-aa2f-104c7d9ec5d0Post:b287f7e5-95b3-4109-8d6a-02f48eb331dd">Re: Are you using a videographer? I can't decide...</a>:
[QUOTE]We aren't, but I might con some of my relatives who will be in the audience to film it--my half brother is very handy with electronics and loves to film and take pictures so that might be easy. For us it was the cost. I'd rather have gorgeous pictures which we can hang in our home and give to our family than a video that is recorded on a DVD which will at some point become obsolete anyways (glass half empty this morning). If you want it though, get it. We aren't the type to watch things over and over (unless Anchorman counts...). Plus if you have budget do it!
Posted by kmac821[/QUOTE]

Exactly this.

meganb1977

We didn't want to spend money on a professional videographer, but I could see the point in wanting video just to have it (even if we only watched it a few times, we'd have it so I wouldn't have to regret NOT having it).  I finally thought that my sister's boyfriend who is handy with a camera will be sitting in the front row with my parents and won't really know anyone except my family.  And during the reception my father would probably appreciate the buffer of taking video since he doesn't really enjoy socializing.  I ran it by my sister and she thinks her boyfriend will be fine with it to be in charge of the video during the ceremony, so it should be a win-win situation for everyone for him and my father to take some home movies.

redfallon

I want one for keepsake and to hear it, and also to have those live memories of people who will not be around in a few years - grandparents, etc. We do not have anyone yet to do it, and we're not hiring anyone. I'm just seeing if anyone in the family would like to take some home movies for us. 

rlavach

I agree with PP that I probably won't watch it over and over again into eternity. BUT, I know my parents and his parents WILL. When my FBIL got married 6 years ago, a family friend video taped (yes, on tape) the wedding and set it to some corny music. It is a really low quality wedding video, but that's what you get when a non-professional friend does it for free. 

It was a mega hit with his parents. Absolutely every person who goes into their home has to watch it. Really, I'm not kidding. They are so proud of what their son has accomplished. A relatively simple wedding here is like a royal extravagant affair in comparison to what is typical in their home country. So the parents were very proud to show the video. So much so that the tape is starting to skip!

So, while it was something that we did want, we realized that it was something that both of our parents REALLY would cherish. With that in mind, we decided to go for it. Each will get their own DVD. So even if we only watch it 4-5 times, our parents will definitely enjoy it even more so. 

justad0reme

Originally we had said that we didn't want to do videography but then we changed our minds.  We are using one of the in-house vendors for our venue since they already seem to have cameras installed all over the place which makes it less intrusive.  We were also able to negotiate the price and added lighting and photobooth so it actually worked quite well ;]