Wedding Cinematography ~ ‘What is It?’

Wedding cinematography is the new buzz word and what does it mean. As defined  with Wikipedia “…the term is defined as making a movie or film. Within the wedding videography Melbourne industry it has taken on the following meaning: It is captured and edited for the dramatic effect and mood. It is usually presented with a particular style and “wow” effect that may not be present in a “mere documentary” of the event…” There is ‘NO’ over stylising or tacky effects. It captures the essence of the wedding day with a narrative based story. It is more than just pretty pictures and music! Or just using a DSLR camera!!! Wedding videographers have of late obtained relatively cheaper equipment in the form of large censored DSLR cameras and quality lenses. Thus has opened the door to creative filming and editing. But its not always about the DSLR, it does come down to the quality of the lens also. More importantly, lighting, composition, creative flair and knowledge is also a prerequisite.

Wedding Videography Melbourne

Many Melbourne wedding videography studios have moved into producing cinematic wedding videos. So what does it really mean, well simply put it is filmed in a similar style as feature film. With the use of camera stabilizers, dollies and off camera lighting to enhance the production value of the vision. Composition and correct exposure and natural lighting all help to enhance the overall look of the wedding film.

Glidecam Wedding videography melbourne

Image stabiliser

Slider Wedding videography melbourne

Slider (dolly)

But what all wedding cinematography studios strive for is Depth of Field. And its this look that is prevalent in all feature films. Depth of field is defined when a lens focuses on a subject at a distance, all subjects at that distance are sharply focused. Subjects that are not at the same distance are out of focus and typically are not sharp.

Depth of field - wedding video melbourne

The other aspect of wedding cinematography is the ability to compose a natural story. It includes video that relies on sound bites recorded pre, during or in post, usually from the bride and groom. Gathered from the speeches, ceremony or throughput the day. These sound bites are then added to the audio track for dramatic effect and to push the story of the day forward. It helps maintain the audience attention with integrating the sound bites and time shifting the vision to propel the story along.

In conclusion wedding cinematography is similar to a short film and typically does not run for longer that 20 minutes. As do most short films, it includes a beginning middle and end an is filmed with larger censored cameras to produce depth of field or pretty pictures.