Archive for the 'Wedding Ceremony' Category

Being Prepared to Film at Mixed Ceremonies

Published at 8/30/2008 in Mixed Ceremonies. 4 Comments

If you are asked to capture the wedding ceremony, there is big chance you belong to the same culture as a groom or a bride, or both. Yet when the groom and the bride have different cultural/religious backgrounds, you may find yourself in unknown land.

The situation basically falls into one out of three possibilities:

  1. Two separate ceremonies happening on the same day or some time apart.
  2. One hybrid ceremony with equal participation of clergy from both sides.
  3. Main ceremony with some deviations, often the ceremony follows bride’s background with some changes to please groom’s family.

In the first case you have a double job, and need to learn details of both ceremonies. Second and third cases are more tricky, and may catch even an experienced wedding videographer off guard. So be prepared.

Discuss the details of the ceremony with the couple while paying attention to all the changes made to the traditional way of liturgy. While shooting, think of balanced capturing, i.e. try to cover details of both traditions equally. If the ceremony is a traditional one with minor changes in order to pay respect to the”less significant party”, make sure you cover those little details for they will add to uniqueness of the ceremony.

Once I happened to cover mixed wedding of Lebanese Melkite Catholics and Polish Roman Catholics. The bride was a Melkite, and so the ceremony was conducted in the Melkite Church with the liturgy in Arabic and English languages with some lines in Polish. But at the very end of ceremony when the time has come to say Lord’s Prayer, groom’s family stood up and read the Prayer in Polish while the rest of congregation was only listening. This was the moment not to be missed, and probably of the same importance as the exchange of vows, since it created that very unique merger of two traditions blending together under the same roof.

Shooting at Jehova’s Witnesses Ceremony

Published at 6/26/2008 in Jehova's Witnesses. 3 Comments

Shooting Jehova’s Witnesses wedding is not much different from any other western type wedding. Entire day is very similar to other weddings and I suggest you to check through existing posts to get details on other parts of the day including the Ceremony.

As for the Ceremony, it is happening in the Kingdom Hall (or Assembly Hall) with the elder presiding at the podium in the very front of the Hall. The Ceremony as a ritual is visually very simple. So is the interior of the Hall. Therefore I’d suggest to spend more time on guests and family arrival. Don’t forget shots of the parents and grandparents on both sides.

Discuss with the marrying couple if they want you to record entire Ceremony, or just bits of it to be edited later.

For the former you’d be filming the elder giving a speech, or sermon with possible reaction shots of the bride and the groom. Position your self on one side between the elder and the couple where you can pan your camera left and right.

For the latter, get shots of the couple sitting in front of the elder and listening to him. They may be looking into the Bible and reading paragraphs mentioned by the elder. Vary shots of the elder with reaction shots form the guests. Use wide, medium and close up shots to make the edited copy look better. Use the side aisle to walk to the back of the room to get wide shots.

Exchange of vows and exchange of the rings, and the book signing all are very similar to the Catholic Christian Ceremony.

Divorced Parents

Published at 7/22/2007 in Wedding Ceremony and Entire Wedding Day. 0 Comments

You may sooner or later encounter a delicate problem of how to videotape divorced parents both present at the wedding. It is not as trivial as one may think.

There are few staged shots you may want to call, like asking parents to say few words on camera, or have parents blessing their daughter or son. Before you run into a problem, ask the bride, what is appropriate in the situation, and what does she want to see.

It may depend on many factors, like how long before the wedding the parents got divorced, or if one or both side remarried, and probably most important - who is paying for the wedding.

In any case keep your coverage balanced, paying equal share of attention to all parents through the wedding day. Stay away from the trap.

Related articles: Father Meeting the Bride, Shooting a blessing, Best Wishes from Mom and Dad

Christian Orthodox wedding ceremony

Published at 5/9/2006 in Orthodox Christian and Entire Wedding Day. 7 Comments

Christian Orthodox wedding ceremony is quite different from the Catholic one. First of all, it may be Greek, Russian, Ukrainian or Lebanese. They all have very much in common with some differences as well.

Prior to filming in the church find out, whether you are allowed in the front of the altar, so you could see bride’s and groom’s faces or you have to stay behind the marrying couple. There are usually some restrictions different from church to church and from the priest to another priest, so be prepared. Discuss the range of your movement with the priest.

The altar itself in Orthodox Church is a sanctuary decorated with icons and lights with an ornamented door in the center. Nobody but the priest is allowed inside. You may be allowed to position yourself just outside of that door on the groom’s or the bride’s side, so you could see both the priest and the couple.

The couple does not speak too much during the ceremony. In Russian Church the priest usually asks if the bride and the groom have been baptized as Orthodox Christians, and after they confirm that, the questioning goes on. In the rest of Orthodox Churches that first question may be skipped and the priest proceeds to the next part, asking if the bride and the groom come on their own will and if they have not committed (or promised) to someone else. This questioning may happen at the door, as soon the couple enters the church, or in front of the altar prior to the ceremony. After the priest is satisfied with the answers, the ceremony commences, and the couple keeps silence until it’s over.

You need to shoot the priest blessing the rings and placing them on bride’s and groom’s fourth finger of the right hand. It may as well be the best man who places the rings on groom’s and bride’s hands, or they may help each other. The ring usually goes half way through and stays like that until the end of the ceremony.

Another key moment is crowning. The priest blesses two crowns, asks the bride and the groom to kiss crowns and passes crowns on to the best man or to the best man and the maid of honour (witnesses, friends, “druzhki” might be the other names of those participants). The crowns are being held above marrying couple’s heads and then later may be placed on their heads as the ceremony goes along. Then the couple is being offered red wine similar to Catholic tradition. The priest holds the cup in his hands and lets the couple to finish the wine in few takes.

The culmination of the crowning is a processional walk around the altar table. The priest goes first being followed by the bride and the groom, and then by the best man and the maid of honour. The ceremony includes three circles around the table and is considered to be a wedding culmination, so keep rolling on all three rounds.

At the end the priest, while standing in the altar door, invites the couple to come closer and talks to them in plain language wishing them well and welcoming them to keep coming to the church.

During the ceremony the priest would be going into the altar and back outside, reading from the bible and singing. You should ask the couple prior to the ceremony if they want you to shoot everything he says. If this is the case, just continue rolling all the time, especially if you don’t understand the language. If the couple lets you use your own discretion, do some beauty shots between shooting key moments: candles, icons, parents, children in the audience, reaction shots from the bridal party, wide shot from the back of the church, etc.

After the ceremony is over the couple leaves the church in very much the same way they would be leaving the Catholic church.

Shooting the newlyweds leaving after the wedding ceremony

Published at 6/12/2005 in Orthodox Christian, Catholic and Wedding Ceremony. 0 Comments

After everybody is done greeting the newly married couple and wishing them well, after the group photo is taken, the couple will leave for the photo shoot, for the reception, for the honeymoon, or just to take some rest and enjoy each other.

This moment is important as a closure for the ceremony segment of your video. If the couple is leaving in the limo, the chauffeur may offer them Champagne. Shoot the bottle, the cork being crack open, wine being poured into nice glasses, new husband and wife cheering up and giving each other a kiss. You may need to direct them as well.

Get a shot of the couple getting into the car. Shoot from the door side so you could see their faces rather than their backs. You might as well ask the driver to roll down the window just for that shot. If it is not too awkward to get inside of the limo without tearing wedding dress apart, try that. Get the shot of the happy couple and their friends inside the limo. Most people don’t ride limos very often, so it will be appropriate to show the significance of the moment.

Let the driver know that you are going to get a shot of the limo leaving the spot. If the limo has that “Just married” sign on the rear, you may start on the close up of that sign. Start zooming out after the car goes.

You may start on the front of the car, low angle. Let the limo drive by to discover the church and the crowd waving good bye to the couple.

What to shoot after everybody has left the church?

Published at 6/12/2005 in Orthodox Christian, Catholic and Wedding Ceremony. 0 Comments

Along with taking a big group photo on the front steps of the church or the hall or other place which accommodated the wedding ceremony, there is a lot of interaction happening right before, after and during taking the photo. And that is exactly what you want to capture - the interaction.

It may be the best man shaking groom’s hand, grandmother giving the bride a kiss, parents on both sides greeting each other in their new status. You won’t be able to catch everything, the couple will be very likely drawn apart by the guests, and that’s OK since you don’t need to shoot everything anyway.

Key moments to look for:

  • newlyweds looking at their brand new rings after leaving the church;
  • bridal party members greeting newly married couple;
  • parents on both sides (very important);
  • close family with the babies;
  • grandparents.

You may choose to shoot it wide, coming close to the action, shooting from your hands raised up when necessary. You may shoot it tight (zoomed in) from the steps down. Or mix a bit of both. Start from establishing the scene: show the couple’s faces first. Then you may shoot from behind, paying more attention to the guests’ faces. Combine wide shots with close ones.

Videotaping during a group photo shoot after the wedding ceremony

Published at 6/8/2005 in Orthodox Christian, Catholic and Wedding Ceremony. 0 Comments

Usually, if weather permits, the newly married couple has their photo taken with all the guests. Depending on the photographer it may be a small festival on its own, or a well organized event. For the first case see Guests Greetings, for the second, play along with the photographer.

While the photographer is putting the people in place, shoot the action: smiling faces, handshakes, babies, interacting family members, etc. You can walk along the front row with your camera rolling after everyone is in place. Approach the couple and ask them about their feelings after the ceremony.

It may as well be good time to take the wireless microphone away.

Step back so you can see all the guests in your wide shot, zoom in on couple. When more or less everybody is paying attention to the photographer, start rolling and slowly zoom out to complete the segment on wide shot.

You may need to adjust your plan if there is something special like releasing doves, tossing rose petals, blowing bubbles, etc., being planned. It’s good to be informed about such an event in advance.

Filming the newlyweds leaving the church

Published at 5/29/2005 in Orthodox Christian, Catholic and Wedding Ceremony. 2 Comments

First of all, take the spot in the central aisle facing the altar. You will be going backwards, so make your intentions clear to the photographer. It will be better for you to stay on the right hand side of the photographer. So then you will be able to see the photographer on your left and to coordinate your movements along with his or hers.

The segment starts from the announcement and congratulations from the priest. Frame on three: the priest and the newly married couple. You may want to start rolling a bit earlier, especially if you are planning to edit the video. Keep it on three through the whole announcement. Hold it like that while the guests start giving the couple a standing ovation.

After few seconds of applause the Wedding March begins to play giving you a signal to start slowly backing up toward the exit. If the couple does not follow you, slow down, keep rolling and recon them to follow you. Keep it wide all the time and control framing by adjusting the distance between you and the couple.

Keep going backwards to the end of the aisle, or almost to the end, and then make a side step to your right or left into the empty row or behind the back row. You may want to check your options in advance. Hold the same angle, let the couple leave the frame and keep on rolling on the bridal party and the close family following the married couple. You can pan up on the altar in order to make a transition to your next shot.

Shooting a Communion

Published at 5/24/2005 in Catholic. 0 Comments

Communion is usually the part of the Catholic Wedding Ceremony. You can make few colorful shots during the Mass. Position yourself in front of the Altar.

The first key moment is when the bride and the groom are taking Communion: zoom in on the couple having bread and wine.

The next key moment is when the bride and the groom are giving Communion to their guests. Take a shot of the bridal party and the close family taking Communion only. You don’t need to shoot the whole ceremony.

Use the rest of the time to get some more colorful side and reverse shots.

You might as well get ready for leaving: collapse the tripod, pack the bag, check the tape and the battery, and get ready for the leaving shot.

Shooting the signing ceremony

Published at 5/15/2005 in Orthodox Christian, Catholic and Wedding Ceremony. 0 Comments

The newly married couple proceeds to sign a register right after exchange of the rings. Take your spot in front of the signing table, most likely next to the photographer. Make sure there is no bouquet or other obstacles between the camera and the register book.

The bride signs the register first. You may start from the shot including bride signing the book, groom standing by his bride and the priest or the minister on the opposite side.

It is sufficient to videotape one signature for each person.

To avoid jump cut, use transitions. For example: using three shot for the bride signing the book as an opening shot of the segment, stop rolling after the bride completes first signature. Frame on groom’s face and start rolling when he starts taking a seat to sign a register. Let him put his first signature, then stop your camera, zoom out wide to see the bride, the groom, the priest, the best man and the maid of honor, all five people around the table. Start rolling after the best man goes to the table to sign the register, and so on.