A wedding is a one-day event, but you can encapsulate your special day’s emotions through professionally taken videos. Of course, photos provide your best moments, but videos capture both sound and movement. That’s why hiring a wedding videographer should be on your priority list without a doubt. On average, the cost of a wedding videographer ranges between $1,500 to $4000 or more. However, the prices vary due to location, time, and the videographers’ services and specializations, to mention a few.
Dynamics That Can Affect The Cost Of A Wedding Videographer
There is no one-size-fits-all price for a wedding videographer. The cost factor fluctuates depending on various facets, including:
Time
Time is of the essence in all life aspects, and filming a wedding is no exception. Capturing every special detail of your big day is, undoubtedly, your wish. But remember, the more the time, the more the pay. If the videographer covers other events like photoshoots and rehearsal dinner, your charges could add up fast. Most videographers offer different packages for the day depending on how much time you need.
In many cases, people don’t think about the fact that for every hour of filming there are countless hours of prepping before the event and editing after, and the more footage to look through means more time will be needed to create the finished product.
Wedding Location
If you’re in Southeast Michigan, hiring a wedding videographer near you would be ideal. There are tons of wedding videographers in the area to choose from and finding someone local minimizes the transportation cost, which in return reduces filming costs. If the videographer has to travel miles to cover your big day, plan on digging deeper into your pockets. In some cases, you will pay for their hotel accommodation. That’s why hiring a videographer within the vicinity of your wedding venue is an ideal decision.
Extras
- Additional videographers or Cameras – More cameras and more videographers mean more angles and fewer chances of missing anything. An extra videographer also lowers the stress of capturing each moment, allowing each of them to take more creative and risky shots. This leads to a much more interesting final product! Additional videographers are also needed if you want things to be filmed in different places at the same time.
- Traveling – Destination weddings are becoming popular again since they create remarkable moments and ambiance. If you hire a videographer near you, you may have to cater to their entire travel costs depending on your wedding destination. You’re also likely to pay for their accommodations and meals. Before making any drastic decisions when it comes to destination wedding videography, talk to the videographer to establish limitations and expectations.
- Extra Filming – Ideally, a videographer gives you the basic wedding package exclusive of extra filming. So, things like the bridal shoot and rehearsal dinner will be additional costs to the videographer service.
Working Crew
Wedding videography work isn’t as easy as it looks. Coordinating various equipment and capturing every special moment is no joke. Often the videographer will hire an assistant to help throughout the event.
Thus, in many cases, a videographer will be accompanied by his crew. The crew can include at least two people to a maximum number a videographer feels okay to work with. More so, these people have various skills that demand good pay. So, if your videographer has more staff, you’ll tend to pay higher.
Experience Level
Filming wedding videos can sound pretty obvious, but experience level gives different results. So you should aim at hiring a person or company that creates cinematic videos with a professional touch.
Professional videographers use the expertise and right equipment for a perfect craft. In addition, they have an eye for capturing visually appealing shots. These clear vantage points will make your wedding video engaging and alluring. Furthermore, professionals are equipped with modern camera technology. Therefore, they understand how to take crystal-clear and timely shots. On the other hand, an amateur may lack the right equipment and takes time to know the correct lens to use.
As professional videographers sound like the ultimate choice, their charges are relatively higher than novices. A professional with a Sony mirrorless or Canon DSLR camera takes dynamic videos that are incomparable with shots from an iPhone. Essentially, amateurs are suitable plugs when you’re on a budget.
Wedding Videography Packages
There is a videography package for every price, whether you’re paying $1,000 or $10,000. But you may find some terminologies confusing, especially if you have never worked with a videographer. However, there are basics that every wedding videographer should offer.
- Hours of Coverage: Time is a crucial package for any wedding videographer. It comes in a variety of options, such as 4-hour, 8-hour, 10-hour, 12-hour packages. Choose a few hours of filming if you have a tight budget. You can choose to skip pre-ceremony time and shoot reception moments.
- Equipment: Take notice of the number of cameras a videographer intends to use for your wedding. Are these cameras high-tech? For those who plan to wed during winter, ensure a videographer is equipped will all-weather cameras for clear shots regardless of the weather.
- Final Product: The final product is what matters the most. Would you want unedited footage or edited film, or a combination of both? You can often get a highlight video, about 5-7 minutes. The snippet video should offer enough details but not too long to be boring.
You can also get a feature-length video with some edited portions of your event. It’s more of a documentary but quite vibrant and cinematic. Alternatively, you can get the raw footage, usually long and unedited. Although long, you’re able to watch every step of your ceremony. The raw footage costs less compared to edited or feature-length videos. - Video Format: How do you want your wedding videos presented? The popular options include USB drives, DVDs, Dropbox, Blu-Ray, to mention a few. However, getting a digital copy is suitable and easy to share with friends and family.
- Extras: These services and products are not a must, but they make videos appealing. They include things like drone footage, a trailer, or same-day editing.
Your Creative Wedding Videographer Is A Call Away
Watching those essence moments of your ceremony in professionally captured videos is sensational. That’s what Michaels Entertainment is created to do. We capture all crucial actions to remind you of treasured moments forever.
Our videography package provides you and your loved ones moving laughers, tears, voices, and images to watch for several years to come. If you need some advice or help, our team at Michaels Entertainment is available to help guide you through the process and provide you with the best resources available when it comes to your wedding or special event.
Michaels Entertainment
2652 Renshaw Dr.
Troy MI 48085
(248) 462-7131