Written By: Therese Farrow, Owner Therese Farrow Films

A few weekends ago I was filming a wedding inside Galloway’s “Carriage House”. A part of the wedding had come up where all the guests surrounded the bride in a circle on the dance floor and everyone took turns swinging her arm in arm. At one point someone led the brides 90 year old grandfather out to the floor. As she danced with him hand in hand her eyes filled up with tears as they stayed on the floor together and finished out the song. No one else tried to jump in as every guest took in this very special moment. As I stood there filming this, I realized just how much this captured moment was going to mean to this family and I felt a great sense of pride in the job that I do.

Anyone who’s planned a wed­ding knows the kind of organiza­tional feat it is.

There are so many aspects of the day have to be dealt with; Will the band keep everyone dancing? Will the food be great? Will there be enough flowers? Even things as simple as coordi­nating the bridesmaids shoes can become big time stresses. But amidst this logistical whirlwind its important not to forget that once the top of the cake is snug in the freezer, your dress gets put in that big box in the closet and your unwritten thank you cards haunt you with every passing week, that nothing will let you relive this day like your wedding movie.

Photography has always been a must have priority to a bride and groom, and rightfully so. Your photographs are extremely precious. Many couples take a lot of time to look through different photographers albums, pricing, and style to find the one best for them. Sometimes though, with the whirlwind of other issues, many couples end up neglecting the video or even forgoing the idea all together. I’ve been in this business long enough to know that no one ever regrets having their wedding video. But I can’t count how many times a brides sister or mother after looking at my work will wistfully state they wish they had their wedding on video. Sadly, once the day is over they realize they will never be able to hear the sounds and see the motions of what occurred on this day ever again. They are lost forever. No photograph can actually capture the music and the motion of your first dance, the sound of your voices exchanging your vows, or the crazy groves your family and friends danced all night the way a video can. No photograph of a speech made by a beloved friend or family member can capture what exactly they said, how they said it, and how everyone laughed or cried. Video is such an important component to preserving everything that unfolds this day and definitely needs to be high on the priority list of every couple.

Not only that but with the advancement of digital technol­ogy, there is no need for big equipment and bright lights like some people may remember from the past when video first came on the scene. The truth of the mat­ter is that modern digital video eliminates the need for huge equipment and stationary light­ing. There is an array of light­weight camera and stabilization equipment available to modern videographers today and there are many quality companies that will not intrude or take away from the class of your day in any way.

That’s not to say that some lower priced companies may not still be using old equipment and outdated styles. I’ve heard many times from clients, who have been to another’s wedding and been turned off by a videographers lights, inexperience, or obtrusive behavior. That’s why you should always meet with videographers and ask these questions before­hand. It is also a good idea to ask a quality photographer for a recommendation. Photographers and videographers usually work in very close proximity during the day so very often their techniques are well known to one another. If your photographer is also con­cerned about professionally and unobtrusively covering your day, he or she will usually know which videography companies are the same way.

Once you have narrowed it down make sure you view a full wedding they have filmed as well as samples. There is so much a videographer can do in post via editing software to make the true beauty and the fun times of the day come through. If you have ever had to sit through a long boring wedding video--it prob­ably wasn’t creatively edited or possibly not edited at all. With editing, the videographer has control over how the story will be told so to speak so every videogra­pher has a different style and way they go about creating a wedding film. Note how the videographer moves the video along, the qual­ity of the audio, how the footage blends together and if the style suits your personality. This is why it’s very important to meet or oth­erwise talk to him or her and see if you connect. A videographer who sees your day the same way you do will have a product that reflects that.

When you go into this impor­tant choice more informed, you can be sure that when all is said and done, years from now, you can feel good when you sit on the couch together on your anniver­sary (maybe with some extra little feet sitting next to you) and relive that day all over again.