How to make your wedding film look incredible

Lighting is very important to consider when you're having your wedding filmed and/or photographed. There are many challenging lighting situations that we often encounter that can easily be prevented with a little bit of insight. Here are some lighting suggestions to consider when planning you wedding:

If your ceremony is taking place inside, watch out for backdrop windows. Shooting against a window is very tricky as cameras see different than our eyes do. You may have a beautiful indoor venue with a beautiful window overlooking an amazing view, however, our cameras will not be able to see both the view and the people. If we expose for the wedding party, the window will be overexposed and blown out. If we expose for the amazing view in the window, the wedding party will be too dark. To avoid this, it’s always best to have blinds drawn or shift the position of the chairs to have the window light coming in from behind the cameras.

The photo above shows that the window behind the curtains is extremely overexposed. You can even see the nose of the groom is faded because the light behind him is so bright. If the curtains weren't drawn there would be too much backlight creating halos around everyone.

If your ceremony is being held outside, be mindful of the sun and shadows. If it’s a half-in-the-sun and half-in-the-shade situation, it quickly becomes difficult to expose for both lighting conditions. It’s similar to the backdrop window situation. We can either expose for what’s in the sun or the shade, but not both. The results become disappointing when one person is in the sun and the other is in the shade. Be sure to ask your venue what the lighting is like during the time and season of your ceremony.

The photo above shows what happens when the ceremony is half in the shade and half in the sun. The bride and the officiant are shaded and the groom is lit by the sun. This makes it very difficult to expose for both shade and sun. We usually tend to favor the bride in this situation.

As far as reception lighting goes, we highly recommend uplights. Uplighting is a simple and inexpensive way to decorate the entire room with colorful light. It makes your video and photos turn out great!

The photo above is an example of what uplighting can do to a venue.