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Questions To Ask A Wedding Videographer

What questions should you ask a wedding videographer? Or maybe just any wedding vendor for that matter. In today’s article, I will tell you two stories of why it’s essential to make sure you hire credible wedding vendors and what can happen if you don’t. So you’re looking for vendors and you want to make sure that you are well taken care of. Knowing what to ask your wedding videographer may save you in making sure your wedding film is given to you safely and in a good time frame. Over the years I have heard many horror stories from clients explaining how long it took them to get their video. Truthfully wedding films will always take longer to receive than your wedding photos but there is a line to draw with this rule. I would say anything beyond 6 months is excessive and I would advise you to make sure when booking that there is an agreed time frame in which you should receive your wedding film. This will save you the disappointment of waiting months or sometimes years with no answer from your vendor.

The best example I have is a story of a photographer who I won’t name that had ghosted a few brides that I knew. Essentially we both shot the wedding and when I delivered the wedding film to the bride they had expressed that they were shocked that they received the video first. They told me that the photographer kept promising a date and then the date would come and they would receive nothing. To keep a long story short I had messaged the photographer multiple times and eventually it got to a point where they had finally given into our demands. For me hearing that clients were ghosted like that especially because we had a relationship didnt sit well with me. My number one rule for couples is to always research the vendors you book as it will save you serious stress. Also if you can’t find them on Google that’s also a major red flag that they have something to hide or they’re not legit.

Another thing to keep in mind is who will be editing your photos, sometimes in an effort to deal with backlog photographers or videographers will outsource there work to other people. Although this can be done well if the outsourced editor is familiar with the photographers style at times this may not be the case and it’s worth asking when you book. A good red flag of a company that doesn’t do all there editing or shooting is to ask how many weddings they have for the year. If they say anything beyond 50 I would take that as a warning sign that you may be dealing with somebody that double books or outsources there work. This could mean that the person that you initially spoke to won’t be doing your wedding. Some vendors will train staff and this can work but I’ll say specifically for video emulating styles can be very difficult. Art is a very personal and stylistic thing and for theost part videography companies that offer multiple employees usually have a bunch of videos with very inconsistent results. A lot of people that work for these companies are not paid as well as business owners. As a result this can lead to you possibly booking a company that sends you an employee who lacks the same care as the initial owner that you spoke to. Depending on who and how you want your wedding photos and video done this may not be of concern to you but it is definitely worth talking about.

Another example I have is a wedding I filmed where a photographer sent another photographer that the bride wasn’t expecting. Because the bride was not notified she was shocked and a bit uncomfortable when the initial person she booked didn’t show up to photograph her wedding. Thankfully the photographer’s photos were great but the way they conducted themselves on the wedding day showed a lack of professionalism. The photographer would smoke during the photo session, was a bit aggressive when he spoke to the client, and also wore distracting clothing that is not good for a wedding day as this could potentially ruin photos or video. This whole situation led to the bride being upset and overall you want the people that you hire to be good company. All the vendors that you hire will be spending at least 8 hours with you. With that said it’s a good idea to make sure that you ask all the right questions when booking a vendor to make sure that you are taken care of and that your wedding day memories are forever safe.

Check out the full episode on The Simple Wedding Podcast

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