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REHEARSAL

MAXIMIZING THE OPPORTUNITY
(A Videographer Attends the Ceremony Rehearsal)

by Clifford Tom
Video Consultant for Studio West, Inc. Hawaii

During the past two to eighteen months, youíve been planning your wedding from attending wedding trade shows, browsing through bridal magazines, surfing the internet, visiting bridal shops, perusing through vendors' brochures, etc. One of the last steps in the planning process is your ceremony rehearsal, which is normally held one to three days prior to your wedding date.

The rehearsal is a dry run through of the wedding ceremony often conducted by the church/wedding coordinator or officiate. It gives a chance for the bride, groom, bridesmaids, ushers, flower girl, ring bearer, parents, and others to practice their roles, especially their walking order and where to sit or stand during the ceremony. Final details and last minute questions are settled at the rehearsal. On the average, the rehearsal will last about one hour.

Your wedding videographer may attend the ceremony rehearsal to generate ideas to best service the bridal couple through their video production. Some videographers simply direct bridal couples on the wedding day to stand at forty-five degrees from the video cameras while exchanging their vows and rings. The challenge stems from the fact that each ceremony is some way unique. Video production details and strategies for maximum coverage should be thought about at the rehearsal and not one-hour before the actual ceremony starts. This serves to lower the stress of your wedding day by eliminating last minute decisions while minimizing the chance for blocked shots of family members or poor audio because a musician moved etc.

A conscientious videographer who is attentive to detail may do the following:

Attend the rehearsal despite prior experience of videotaping at the site.
Introduce himself/herself to the coordinator or officiate and ask about the restrictions regarding videography during the ceremony.
Review video camera placement and its mobility, audio recording, lighting, setup time, etc. with the bridal couple, coordinator, and officiate.
Ask the bride and groom about the type of floral arrangements that are planned as well as their probable placement. Point out possible concerns if those arrangements are blocking the video cameras view. Ask for permission to readjust the placement of the floral arrangements on the wedding day (such as those on floral pedestals), without interfering with the look of the wedding.
Having seen the rehearsal, the videographer is better able to plan his/her shooting strategy to capture the best shots.
Quite often it is necessary to suggest adjustments to where the bridal couple, officiate, and the bridal party are standing to maximize video coverage of the bridal party and guests.

You may want to hire a videographer who takes the time to attend the rehearsal; be oriented to what's going to happen and therefore be in a better position to anticipate the best shots for YOUR unique ceremony? Attention to these types of details helps to separate a great video from a good video!