Wedding Videography

[Don Bloom]

Well, I know folks that use everything from GL1s to DSR570s but here’s what I use (at least for a while and perhaps until I retire)
1 or 2 PD150s and a DSR250 ( I used to use a JVC5000 with the PDs but found color match to be a bit more difficult but loved the image control of the JVC BUT to save time in post went back to the DSR250)
Anyway, for the 150s I use the LCD for framing but use the viewfinder for exposure control-on the 250 I of course use the VF but when on a tripod I use the LCD-easier for these old eyes to see.
I use the full size camera because thats what I “grewup” on in the business and I like having my on camera lite and wireless recievers on the camera at all times without the extra length of wires running down my side as it were.
Anyway, I also have an old VX1000 (circa 1995 or 96) that still produces a kick butt image that I use on occassion.
Hmmmm, sounds to me like I’m pushing the Sony product.
Some folks will tout the newer HD cameras but I have to be honest here and tell you that I have not had a single client ask me seriously about doing HD and IF it does come up in conversation they admit to me that they do not have nor do they intend to buy (at least not yet) any type of HD DVD player HOWEVER HD will in my opinion be a very viable product in the next few years so thats up to you but again, for now I LOVE the Sony cameras.

HTHs
Don B.

[Ted Snow]

I have a Sony VX2100 and love the picture quality it gets. The low light performance of this camera is hard to beat.

[Doug Graham]

Because of their excellent low light ability, there are probably more VX2100s and PD170s out there shooting weddings than anything else.

However, ANY three-chip DV camcorder can do a good job for weddings and events. My own cams are a Sony TRV-900 and a JVC DV-500.

Your choice should depend on 1) what feels “right” to you…what camera(s) do you get along with particularly well? 2) budget and 3) market. In these last two categories, the question of whether to go HD now, or wait until later, comes up. So does the question of whether to use a small handheld camera, or spend more for a big shoulder-mounted one.

Regards,
Doug Graham

[Richter12x2]

Although on the topic of HDV, even for those who haven’t gotten an HD player yet, you can still deliver HD Video on CD-Rom or DVD-Rom as an option at additional cost.

[Doug Lewis]

I use a Canon GL1, and a GL2 and a Sony VX2100. My favorite is the Sony. If only the VX2100 had a 20X zoom, like the Canons, it would be perfect.

[Randall Raymond]

My advice would be to find a shooter with good equipment. You edit his weddings and he shoots yours. It’s the best way to grow a wedding business.

[Mark Goldberg]

I am also a Vegas user, having come over after many frustrating years with Premiere and its rogue’s gallery of glitches and lockups.

My suggestion for a camera for you is the Sony Z1. The move to HD is inevitable, so you might as well get some experience with a camera in that format, and with the widescreen image. It sensitivity is just a half stop less than the PD150, and I find it quite adequate for what you will face in the field. It has many professional refinements which will serve you well, and if you choose to shoot HDV, you will find that Vegas (with Connect HD) is a viable editing solution.

Of course the HDDVD vs BluRay battle hasn’t been decided, but you can put out regular DVDs for now as well has WMV-HD.

I like my Z1 very much and feel it was the right choice. Getting something not in HD would be the wrong choice.

[Wayne Grauel]

All good points. I use a DSR390 and would recommend that you choose one good 3 chip camera ( a real one with large imaging real estate. The DSR 300-500+ series of camera will be hard to beat in this category. The XL-1′
s fall way short when it comes to real low light…. being able to go into a room with next to no light and stay at 12DB of gain.

Good B roll are PD and VX series… i just picked up a 2100 and it’s a lot of camera for the money.,

The HD question is one that I thought about to, but the wedding market can be a tough one when it comes to a significant return on your investment.

For this reason, I stayed with standard Def. as i could not see brides paying me more for HD equipment (good equipment)… if it is not a great picture with good lowlight ability, keep looking.

The significant increase in cost for a comparable HD camera would not be recouped in my market as the wedding video business took a huge dive after 9-11. Many of us had a hard time and a significant number of bottom feeders came in with cheap equipment making a couple of hundred bucks to shoot a cheesy video.

Same goes for a lot of high end photographers I worked with. When you go from shooting 40 jobs a season to 5 you really start to look at your vulnerability.

Only now is it even starting to come back to the point where the better clients will spend real money for Video… so you may want to build a client and referral base before plunging into HD…. less in several months I get a good buy on a nice HD camera from you because you made a huge mistake.

It is not the equipment that makes a good videographer or a pleasing video for this type of work!

Just my 2 cents.

Wayne Grauel

[Steve Edwards]

I appreciate all you guys giving your feedback on this issue. I was just wondering for the price of the VX2100, should I just buy a AG-DVX100B Panisonic. Seems like a lot more camera for the money than the VX2100. Then if I ever want to shoot in 24p, I can.

Steve Edwards

[Doug Graham]

There are plenty of fans of the 100B in the wedding biz. I’m a Sony fan myself, but there’s been lots of outstanding work done by users of the Panny cameras, and the 24p gives a very nice look.

Regards,
Doug Graham