Serendipity Cinematography

The Sedona Wedding Studio is hosting a Sedona Wedding Bootcamp on February 18th. This bootcamp is to inspire couples to create their own unique wedding in Sedona. Serendipity Videography is a member of the Sedona Wedding Studio and I am overjoyed to have been asked to be a speaker at this event. I will be discussing the latest trends in Wedding Cinematography as well as making sure quality cinematography is a part of your wedding budget. Other speakers include Katrina and Andrew from Sedona Bride Photography, Deb from Classic Party Rentals, Bobby Russell from Sedona Sounds, Jim from Events By Showstoppers and Margaret Van Damme from Van Damme Weddings. It is the perfect way for a couple to learn about how fabulous a wedding in Sedona can be in an intimate setting.

Hello everyone!  Sarah here, excited to be done with college and back with Serendipity!  I’m older, wiser, and not as single as I was earlier this year.  I simply can’t wait to get my hands on the footage from your special day and to make “cinemagic”!  If being an Editor has taught me anything, it has taught me that your final film is only as good as the hands who shot it.  At Serendipity our Videographers have spent years as professional Videographers- capturing those moments they know will sing, framing a shot up just right, and making sure that the unique sights and sounds of your day are properly documented.

That’s why when Taryn showed me a new videography company featured on a popular wedding blog last week I was disgusted – nay – appalled by what I saw.  Said company sends you anywhere from one to five flip cameras, you pass them out to your family and friends, send the footage back, and either edit it yourself online, or have a ‘professional’ edit them for you.  All for only $300.

Friends, let me explain something to you – putting your memories into the hands of your best friends or family members who are knocking back one too many glasses of wine is a bad idea.  The reason that professional cinematographers exist is because brides were sick of their uncle’s shaky shots, bad audio, and inability to capture the important moments.  And now you’re paying ‘professionals’ for just that.  How have things come full circle in such a bad way?!

I understand the need to save money, believe you me.  As a new college grad and potential bride, I am pinching every penny I can.  This company has given today’s couples an opportunity to save in an ingenious new way, and in theory it is a really good idea.  But in actuality, you will be much happier in the long run going with the professionals.  Do you really think you will be satisfied with the footage your drunk friends and family are going to provide you with?  Are you willing to leave that responsibility in their untrained hands?

Let me get personal for a moment here; My dad got in an accident 4 years ago and was taken from this life.  As his unmarried daughter, I would give anything in this world to have him at my wedding.  When I get married, you had better believe that I will have a videographer there, because I know what it’s like to loose someone unexpectedly.  I know what it’s like to treasure the pictures and videos that we still have of him.  What are your memories worth?  What are your family and friends worth?  When you hire a videographer, you’re not just paying for the cost of some camera men to hang around at your reception, high priced video equipment, or the few DVDs you receive in the end.  You’re paying to have a cinematic memory of all of your loved ones gathered around you on your special day.  You can’t put a price on that.

When you hire Serendipity you can be sure that you will not have any drunk, bone headed well wishes or interviews.  Why?  Because we’re experienced enough to know that all interviews should be done before or during cocktail hour.  You won’t have hours of wide shots of your reception because we understand the importance of variety.  Your shots won’t be shaky and inaudible because we are professionals!  We document your love in the way that you choose to create a piece that you will love to share, and love to watch over and over (not one that makes you nauseous).

Please, I beg of you – Your wedding is something that only happens once.  Don’t let this be a case of ‘live and learn,’ because you won’t get another chance.  Trust me on this one – I’m a college grad.

I am completely copying Kelly Gill’s post from Phoenix Bride and Groom Magazine because she laid out this big news perfectly. Plus it is the end of wedding season and my brain is mush. I can barely form 2 sentences at this point so I am just going to let Kelly do the talking. Thanks Kelly for a great post!!!

For the very first time ever, Major League Baseball is getting in on the wedding game in a big way! They are holding a contest where the prize is a ceremony and reception at the All-Star FanFest at the Phoenix Convention Center on Tuesday, July 12. Couples submit their stories (in video format) online by June 1 and the winning couple will be chosen by All-Star Ambassador (and the D-Back’s favorite former player) Luis Gonzalez, Celebrity Wedding Planner David Tutera and Jenni Croft Badolato from ABC’s “The Bachelor”.

You are never going to believe the amazing line-up of wedding vendors that are donating their services to the wedding! Wedding Coordination by Charlee Geisler of Signature Events- a veritable wedding rockstar here in the valley- along with:

Angelic Grove – Floral décor and arrangements :: Eyes 2 See Photography – Wedding photography :: Serendipity Video – Wedding videographer :: Classic Party Rental – Specialized party supplies and rentals :: F/X Entertainment – Ceremony and reception music :: Celebrations in Paper – Invitations and wedding program :: Cheryl Roberts with Steven Paul Salon – Hair and make-up :: Julia Baker Confections – Wedding cake :: Men’s Wearhouse – Tuxedos

(Iamge Courtesy of Eyes2See Photography)

They are also giving away some fantastic loot: a catered reception for 50 guests by Aventura Catering, a wedding ring package from Molina Fine Jewelers, a wedding dress by Uptown Bridal, roundtrip airfare and tickets to the 82nd MLB All-Star Game. The lucky couple will also receive items from Major League Baseball partners including a $500 MasterCard gift card, beverages for the reception provided by Anheuser-Busch, hotel stay provided by InterContinental Hotels Group, and a $500 Newlywed Lawn & Garden Kit donated by Scotts featuring a wide array of Scotts Miracle-Gro products.

So if you are a baseball fan and your dream is a wedding on the baseball field enter the contest!!!!

Hello brides to be, I am Kristen Carpenter. I am an Editor here at Serendipity Videography. I am from glorious Gilbert Arizona and I attend Arizona State University.

I am going to guide you in what choices you can make that will help your wedding film be spectacular as well as what you can do so that your personality as a couple shows in your wedding film.

First off, I highly recommend that you have your Videographer shoot your photo session. I know that may sound a bit odd because that is your time with your Photographer…. You are probably wondering why that needs to be shot by the Videographer at all but the photo session ends up being some of the most romantic footage of the entire film. You guys are smiling at each other, sneaking little kisses and it is a moment of true love that is conveyed in your wedding film. The photo session makes your film more personal and it gives your wedding film more character. If you don’t have your photo session shot what usually is put in place of that is detail shots of your ceremony site or reception site. While those are important and should be included in the overall film the moments with your new hubby are going to matter more to you in the years to come.

Second, your music selections make a world of a difference on the flow of your Highlight Film. When you’re choosing music for your Highlight Film, make sure that these tunes are going to stand the test of time. You have to think long and hard about selections like “Like A G6″ while a fun and novelty song right now will you think it is just as fun 10 years from now. If you choose a fast, upbeat song the video will be fun, have more fast editing and the clips will move along with the music. If you choose a slow, steady pace song the video with be more relaxing and will move along with the pace of the song. If you need ideas on song selections, you can check out Serendipity’s blog and browse through the different highlight films and see which one fits your style as a couple.

This video demonstrates perfectly how a slower song choice looks on a highlight film

Here’s an excellent example of an upbeat and fast flowing Movie Trailer.

Lastly, the more Reception footage the better. What exactly is Reception footage? Reception footage is the video we shoot during the reception. So basically, you and your guests having a good time. When you look back in 10 years and you watch your highlight film you probably would want to see what went on at your Reception. I would strongly recommend that Serendipity is there long enough to shoot your first dances, cake cutting, bouquet toss, garter toss, and your toasts. Those are all the main highlights of your Reception and they will be very important to you after your big day.

I went to a wedding a few weekends ago.  The bride was beautiful, the food was excellent, and the guest list was huge.  It was about an 8 hour day of shooting for us, and when we were packing up at about 10pm to head on home, one of the groomsmen asked me if we were going to do a same-day edit and get the video to them soon.

A same day edit?  Starting at 10PM?!

It was then that it struck me that most people probably have no idea how long the editing process takes.  I wanted to take this opportunity to shed a little light on the matter for those brides, families and eager groomsmen who want their movie ASAP.

Let’s say a wedding happens on Saturday.  The camera man drives 45 minutes home after a long hot day shooting in the sun and falls right to sleep.  He wakes up Sunday and brings it into the office and begins to download all of the footage onto the computer.

Now this is the part where I come in; Monday morning comes and I’m looking forward to getting that new footage!  I open the project and have to watch every single minute of video (luckily I can watch them in extra fast forward), starting from the time the videographer begins shooting to the end.  Mind you, the cameras are not rolling continuously throughout the day (thank goodness), so the clips range from anywhere between 4 seconds (for detail shots) to over an hour (during the ceremony).  As I watch the clips I name them, as well as mark the ones I want to use for the Trailer.

The whole process of just naming (or, as we call it, logging) the videos takes about an hour and a half or longer depending on the amount of hours the couple hired us to shoot. This gives us the organization that we need to begin the editing process.

Now the fun begins – the actual editing!  A good rule of thumb is that it takes about one hour for every minute of video that you see and that’s BEFORE the special effects. The color correcting, slowing down or speeding up footage, getting the timing, audio and transitions just perfect – it all takes time.  This of course depends on the editor’s skill, as well as how involved the video is – Trailers take a little less because there is little to no audio, and Hightlight films may take more with all of the story, music, and audio involved.

Here is a list of features, and the amount of work spent on them on average –

The Shoot Day – 6-10 hours

Logging – 2-3 hours

Trailers – 4 hours

Chapter Menus – 4 hours

Highlight Film – 20-40 hours +

Creating, burning, and copying the DVD – 3 hours

That is a total of between 80-90 hours of editing. So when you take a look at a videographer and are surprised by the investment recognize that the majority of what you are paying for is the editing time. One thing that I love about editing is the time that I put into it, creating every perfect detail to please the new bride, and creating something that didn’t exist before.  It is a science, a creative science and it’s not a cookie cutter formula that we use.  Each video is as unique as the couples we film.  So, same day edit?  Probably not.  But if you want a quality video that is made with love and meticulous care and that tells your story, we’ve got you covered!