Details on videos please..

When people say videos are cheesey, what exactly do they mean? Is it the baby photos, the interviews with the guests, the creative four in one things they like to do, or what exactly?

I assumed a lot of this is due to your input after seeing the full, unedited version. How much of a say do you actually have in the finished version?

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To me cheesy is little graphics and animation on a video (peter pan waving a wand etc).

(Not to offend anyone who has this) I know I will get yelled at for my honesty...

The company I went with, made me have no doubt in my mind what the finished product will look like.

Check out Wild Rose Video (a vendor on here). I think they do the most beautiful work I have seen.

I am on the intro with some other ladies from LIW and some other LIW ladies have their recaps on there!

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Thanks Jennbaby. That was one thing I was thinking. Isn't that up to the bride and groom though at the time when the finished video is being discussed? Or am I all wrong about how much say we have in the finished product?

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I agree with Jenn (duck and watch for flying vhs tapes). Cheese to me is the video's with animated endings. Lousy effects like turning everyone into cartoons or something.

We used Renaissance Video, and they are doing similar things to what Wild Rose does. We are having documentary style (like Jenn) where we are interviewed after and it's edited together almost like a When Harry Met Sally type film. With snippets of us now while the wedding is being shown. The music is classy, the effects are understated and not mushed together. Our video guy was very very unobtrusive, filming us without tapping us on the shoulder to tell us to smile or wink or do something silly....he just left us alone and captured our day as it played out!

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I think most video places have a style and you dont get much input on what the final edited product is. Even with our beloved Wild Rose who probably gives you more input than most, I still didnt know what my edited video would look like until I got it. So if you choose a company that has those animations in their samples, you will probably get something like that in your video.

The animations are definitely cheesy but I think its more than that. You have to have the right 'eye' shooting the video to get the footage that makes a good one and the right eye doing the editing to make a smooth flowing story. Ive seen videos that are plain aweful without any special effects b/c the guy who videotaped it all just didnt know what to shoot and how to do it.

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You're right Stef, it is all in the person shooting. Just do your homework on the video person you hire, and you'll be ok. Look at a lot of samples, ask to see un-edited reels (meaning not just their promotional reel, but actual wedding videos). We did this and it really helped.

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I almost didn't get a video because of the chessy ones I've seen in the past. In all honesty, I even think the baby montage is very cheesy. My video starts pre-ceremony and ends as we leave the reception. No photo montages for me!

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Ddune: I was the same way. I was really against getting a video for a few reasons, the cheesy factor being one of them.

I think some photo montages can be cheesy but it doesnt HAVE to be. We have a baby photo, relationship photos and honeymoon photo montages at the very end which are very simple, just the photos set to music. (not that it cant be cheesy b/c I have one, i just think i have a pretty high standard when it comes to this stuff)

Its not something that you think about now, but when youre 50, everyone will get a kick out of seeing your baby and honeymoon photos. In fact, I think everyone gets a kick at seeing them now. At least thats how I feel but Im a pretty big photo nut.

Its all about preference. Im sure what I think is cheesy, another person might think is the cutest thing ever.

And keep in mind that even the best wedding video is a little cheesy. Its hard not to be when the subject matter is sort of mushy soft stuff...its a very delicate balance. Even Wedding Story or WEddings of a Lifetime (who have a lot more resources to create the absolute perfect look) are pretty cheesy. The key is finding a videographer you can trust and whose style suits your personality and your budget.

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LOL Stef, I think the cheesiest thing in the world is that song that TLC uses as the theme to Wedding Story.

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our baby pics are at the end...with our HM pictures...adn everytime we see them we smile...

but I never liked the animated videos...or when they have people stand next to the bride and offer their blessings/greetings/wishes, etc...


I also like when the video is not in the face of guests...

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Wow you girls are good and very knowledgeable. So in other words, as well as knowing your photographer, you must ask him to let you meet your videographer. I thought once they were book that was it.
Do I have a lot to learn.

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As a rule, I would say not too book a videographer thru a photography studio. Most photographers add on videography as an easy way to max profits out of their photography clients. The better videographers will sell their product seperately b/c its good enough to stand alone. Im sure there are exceptions to that rule, that is just my general observations from what i have seen.

On a seperate note, there is nothing funnier than seeing those wedding videos where they pass arond the mic to the guests to say somethign to the bride and groom...and then some old guy proceeds to ask for the Chicken Cordon Bleu....hahahhahahh That is priceless!

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Stef, I agree about the separate video and photo. You wouldn't want a plumber doing your electrical work, so why would you want a photographer doing your video work. Kind of in the same family or work, but still different. Also, as much as I tried to limit the cheese factor in my video it is still in there...like you said you really can't help it when you look at the subject matter you are filming.
To each his own...that's what makes the world go round.

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I agree with what has been said. i also think some videos can be plain boring to watch. when you just film, straight on, and then put it to tape.....boring...boring. also i wanted quality! If I couldn't hear my vows on the tape then why bother getting a video?
my video is easy to watch, people tell me that they are shocked it is my wedding video because it wasn't cheesy or boring.
i never did the wedding center superstore stuff. i picked each vendor based on what they do best. i wouldn't let my photographer do my flowers, why let him/her do my video. being a good photographer does not make you a good videographer. they are total different.
but like stef said one person's cheese is another person's favorite part.

(my shift key is all messed up so sorry for no caps)

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Stef, you just reminded me of a REALLY funny story. My grandmother (God rest her) never got 'technology'...so when the microphone was handed to her at my sisters wedding, she took it (upside down), neverlooked directly in the camera, but looked to the middle of the table and spoke into the wrong end of the mic. When the video guy tried to tell her to look at the camera, she put the microphone down, put her arm around the person next to her and smiled (posing for a still shot).

By far, the funniest raw footage moment in my family.

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Oh girls, my dear grandma who passed away after my brother's wedding did almost the same thing. Thank God we got her on tape. It truly shows her true personality and it's worth all the money the video cost. She too had no clue what they handed her. When my cousin told her to talk into it, she came to life and shouted, 'Hey, Joey!!! This is your grandma. I love you and remember, you are always my baby.'
We smile through our tears when we see it. And we do watch it every so often just to see the people who have passed away in the past ten years.
Cheesey or not, these are the moments that must be preserved for the future.

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omg// I've never seen any cheesy ones before thank god! lol peter pan? lol turning people into cartoons! LMAO!

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Marcella like peter pan or cinderella flying across the screen or characters waving a wand or flying

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Yes Marcella, they can be pretty bad

But the worst thing I ever saw on a wedding video was when the video froze on the bride & groom kissing or dancing then the screen split to a blood rare prime rib (they were showing the carving stations at the dinner). It was awful and hilarious at the same time

Michele- you are so right about watching videos. They can be really boring. I was having such a hard time finding a videographer because I would watch the videa and nothing. That's why I can't wait until we get ours - the ones we saw actucally moved me they were so beautiful. I figured if videos of strangers could be shot & edited in such a way that I was emotional, I couldnt wait for them to shoot our video.

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Boring videos are the worst, and when you have to sit & watch & can't say a word