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That hollywood look - part 2 of 1 2

by Victoria Grech Published 01/11/2012

Finding a style

Victoria freely admits that she dived "in at the deep end" when she first started offering a video service, and despite having survived the experience she recommends that others don't do the same. "I decided to go for broke because I had clients waiting and I needed to invest to make sure I had the gear that I thought I needed. This meant that I did end up buying some expensive kit that I've never used. For example, I spent a lot of money on a rig and yet I've never really found it that useful. For wedding films you really need to be mobile and having an intrusive rig didn't work for me. Instead I find that I use monopods and they can work really well once you know how to film with one.

"Other things I've found to be essential include fast memory cards and off-camera recording devices. On-camera sound never works and if you're anal, like me, then you'll probably want a back up for your sound recording as well. I've also loved having a Think Tank belt with clips for extra small bags. When you're filming you'll need lots and lots of memory cards and batteries, so having kit on you all the time is essential.

"You can also go into filming on a lower level than I did and then build up the bits and pieces of kit you need as you go along. A vintage style of wedding film is much more forgiving than a Hollywood type production, and can be covered on a much smaller budget. I haven't seen lots of fusion-based products for sale on the market and I think this is an area for new photographers to start trying to cover. Perhaps you could film the service and speeches (with or without audio) and then add them to a slide-show of your stills. Once you get more confident with filming and taking photographs you could also put together a short film trailer of the wedding including photographs and video footage."

Spreading the word

As someone who moved into video without the benefit of any dedicated training Victoria is aware of how challenging it can be to pick up everything that you need to know on the job. To help others who want to follow in her path she's intending to set up workshops herself next year, and she'll also be speaking at the Convention on Friday 11 January, delivering a talk entitled 'How I increased my profit margin in a recession through HDSLR Cinematography Filming'.

"This seminar will give delegates an overview of my journey into film and the pitfalls we experienced," she says. "It will discuss several ways to incorporate film into your current business, and will show how film can be added to portrait, wedding or commercial photography in a large or small way. I'll also be explaining how to sell this product to your current clients and ways you can market to new clients. "I wish there had been more training available at the time when I was starting out. It took me much longer to learn through trial and error, and it's only recently that courses have started to be offered that are run by those who are already established videographers."

It will be (ea taste of things to come for those who attend and Victoria is confident that over the next few years filmmaking is going to become a crucial strand of the business for more and more photographers.

More information: www.victoriagrech.com

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1st Published 01/11/2012
last update 09/12/2022 14:59:38

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