Video for weddings « Videomaker Community Forums

rarobles
Member

I am putting together my equipment for making video of weddings. I am going to work with a Canon Optura either 300 or 400. For sound I am looking into a Schriber Acoustic SA-568 shotgun mic. Where I am little lost is with the lighting. I live in Tijuana Mexico. Down here the weddings are not like in the US where is common to have them during the day and in open places. Most of the weddings here are at night in private places where is very dark and the only lighting is from candles. So as you can see lighting will be a challenge. What equipment do you recommend this? Note that I don't want to ruin the romantic ambient and be walking around with a big spot light. Thanks.

Posted 7 years ago #
compusolver
Member

I think you've got a problem.

If I were you, I'd want to test different cameras in the conditions I'm going to be shooting in before making a purchase.

Have you talked with other people in the business in your area? I'd want to find out exactly what they're doing and how.

I'm not sure if there IS a camera that will do what you want. You may have to make some compromises. Perhaps you could hide some 250's here and there.

Have you considered shooting stills and using your video editing software to blend them in to your wedding video. If you shoot scenes of preparations, outside of the church (daytime) and the reception, you could use panning & zoom to sort of animate the stills and make a nice slideshow with the actual live audio and sandwich them between the prep video & reception video. At least this way your color rendition and quality would be good.

By the way, I'd invest in a wireless mic system like Azden's and use a lavilier mic on the groom instead of a shotgun. Use another mic to plug into the house sound system or however you're going to pickup the music, etc. and blend them as needed in your editing software.

Speaking of using a shotgun on the groom, kind of reminds me of my own wedding...

Good luck (buena suerte), & let us know how it turns out.

Posted 7 years ago #
komlor
Member

compusolver Wrote:

By the way, I'd invest in a wireless mic system like Azden's and use a lavilier mic on the groom instead of a shotgun.

why do you suggest this over the shotgun Mic. I seem to be getting mixed signals. Some say shotgun others say wireless lavilier

I asked this same question on the sound advice board
http://www.videomaker.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1123

Posted 7 years ago #
compusolver
Member

The best way to get your answer is to do some tests both ways in the actual room you'll be shooting in.

A shotgun mic is going to pickup whatever you point it at. But it is a shotgun, not a rifle. It will also get whatever is close to or behind your subject. If its curtains back there, you're probably OK. If it's bare walls or a group of people talking, you may not be OK.

A shotgun mic may at one point be three feet from the subject and get great sound, and later it may be fifteen feet away and get "not-so-great" sound. Your best sound is likely to be when mic'd from up close.

I know you may not want to spend the money for both a wireless lavalier and a shotgun if you're just starting out but there will be times you'll want one or the other.

If I had to sum it up, I'd say that the preference would be to use the closest mic possible. Sometimes conditions just don't allow a lavalier and that's when you use the shotgun. If the shotgun picks up undesireable ambient noise, you can use software like Audition, SoundForge or Cool Edit Pro to clean it up.

Posted 7 years ago #
komlor
Member

cost is less a concern right now as quality. I think I'll take your advice and invest in both

Posted 7 years ago #