Wedding Care to help me with an informal study so I can craft a pitch?

[TravelingGal]

Ladies, I am curious about something and could use your two cents.

My understanding from reading this board is that nearly all brides would not skimp on the photographer. However, they would skip a videographer before cutting out a lot of other things.

My opinion, however, is that video from a wedding is SO wonderful to have.

So my question is this: If there was a product out there geared toward brides/grooms that could easily show you how to edit videos that people may have taken at your wedding, complete with wedding music that you can tailor to fit your video exactly how you need it and it was a sub $100 product, would you be interested in purchasing it?

 

[neatfreak]

I probably wouldn't...but that's because I know how to edit using software I have already. And videos aren't/weren't very important to me.

 

[Shoopy]

Date: 10/28/2008 2:10:34 PM
Author:TravelingGal
Ladies, I am curious about something and could use your two cents.

My understanding from reading this board is that nearly all brides would not skimp on the photographer. However, they would skip a videographer before cutting out a lot of other things.

My opinion, however, is that video from a wedding is SO wonderful to have.

So my question is this: If there was a product out there geared toward brides/grooms that could easily show you how to edit videos that people may have taken at your wedding, complete with wedding music that you can tailor to fit your video exactly how you need it and it was a sub $100 product, would you be interested in purchasing it?

Assuming that people actually take videos at the wedding, then yes I would pay for the product. For me, I agree that the video from the wedding would be so great to have but with the changes in technology its hard to keep your video up to date whereas a photo is printed and with you forever (so to speak). But if people took video then I would absolutly be interested in getting a copy and learning how to edit (besides that kind of stuff is fun)

 

[elrohwen]

I wouldn''t. Mostly because I''m lazy

, but also because I am so not creative in that area and I know it wouldn''t turn out very well

But I think it''s a great idea that most brides would love! If I could buy the software and get a creative friend to do it for me, I''d be on board

 

[Sabine]

I wouldn''t, but I was never interested in having a wedding video in the first place, I''m much more into photography. If I was doing a wedding video myself, I would probably find a way to use software I have/have access to (through work, friends, etc.).

 

[CNOS128]

You know me so well, TravelingGal!

I decided early on that photography was going to be my ''splurge'' item and that I didn''t want a videographer.


I would probably be unlikely, however, to use any video editing products. I''m just lazy. I have hundreds of photos that have been waiting for years to be put into books, and I can picture having hours of similarly unedited video sitting on my computer for years to come. But, part of the reason I decided against a videographer was that I don''t believe I''ll want to watch a video of my wedding. Others who''d want to watch might dig that idea.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I wouldn''t. Then again I can''t even bring myself to choose photos for the album after a year.

The only thing I really like about our wedding video (which we didn''t want and didn''t pay for) is that we can replay the ceremony because there are so many details I don''t remember. And that doesnt'' require any fancy editiing. Our video is very well-executed and professional, but I feel pretty "meh" about that part. The only part I really care about is the 10 minutes where my conscious mind apparently blanked out.

 

[Sha]

I wouldn''t either, honestly - I would be hesitant about the amount of time involved in a project like that, and also, I''m not THAT ''techie'' to want to get that involved in video-editing, really. I''d rather have it done for me!

 

[TravelingGal]

This is SO interesting! I wonder if grooms would feel differently?

I am a decently techie person so this kind of stuff appeals to me. With so many brides creating wedding homepages and stuff, I wondered if this has a place. So far, it seem it does not.

I will say from experience that I agree with NEL...it is really nice to actually have footage of the ceremony because it''s such a blur! I love our photos, but when I hear the officiant pronounce us man and wife and the expressions and joy on our faces when we turn to kiss one another was simply not done justice in the photos. I also find that as more time passes from my wedding, the more video I wish I had.

Now, I will assume that the game changes when we talk about having children and taking video of them....

Still interested in more responses, if you ladies have the time to help!

 

[marchswallowbird]

I would totally do this, in a heartbeat. But I love doing online photo projects, and I''ve produced a bunch of videos for work, so I''m attuned to how to do this kind of project and make it come out really well.

To all of you who are suffering post-wedding let-down; this is EXACTLY the type of project that might help you.

 

[Rhea]

I wouldn''t. We''ve been married over two and a half years and still no photo album. It''s not something we''d watch.

 

[sunnyd]

Funny you should ask, I was watching a wedding video with a recent groom and he said he would rather have the video than pictures! They had a friend videotape (somewhat badly, blame the booze) their wedding/reception and it's fun for other people to really get a sense of what the event was about.

I'd buy software! I wouldn't get a pro videographer, but it would be fun to edit amateur film.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/28/2008 3:22:03 PM
Author: Addy
I wouldn''t. We''ve been married over two and a half years and still no photo album. It''s not something we''d watch.

We have an album, but I haven''t picked it up yet!

What I am realizing is that I am putting together albums of TGuy and me for our daughter. My mom never looked through her albums of my dad and her, but I LOVED to do so. I''d whip them out a few times a year to look at gorgeous pics of them before I was ever in existence. I wish they had a wedding video...their pics (what little they have) are so formal and posed that I would have loved to see the emotion behind the day.

 

[bee*]

I''m getting a video and it''s something that D and I really wanted, so I probably wouldn''t try and do it myself. I really want a professional one.

 

[Shoopy]

Date: 10/28/2008 3:45:43 PM
Author: TravelingGal

We have an album, but I haven''t picked it up yet!

What I am realizing is that I am putting together albums of TGuy and me for our daughter. My mom never looked through her albums of my dad and her, but I LOVED to do so. I''d whip them out a few times a year to look at gorgeous pics of them before I was ever in existence. I wish they had a wedding video...their pics (what little they have) are so formal and posed that I would have loved to see the emotion behind the day.

Sidetrack:

Funny you mention that because I was looking at my mother''s album the other day and thought the same thing. There were no photos of their first dance which would have been a lot of fun to see. There weren''t even photos of them doing anything fun except the bouquet/garter toss (where you can obviously see that my father had a few champagne glasses

). Every other picture was posed. It would have been cool to see a video of their day too so I think that def. for your children, its a good investment.

 

[Octavia]

I wouldn''t buy it if it was solely dedicated to wedding video editing, but might be tempted if it was an "easy video editing" tool that could be used for other events as well (such as grandpa''s 80th birthday, parents'' 40th anniversary, etc). Although I''m not a big video-watcher, I do think it''s nice to capture some of those important moments.

For our wedding, we''re definitely not hiring a videographer because I find them intrusive and annoying and FI couldn''t care less, but I think we might have a friend tape the ceremony. If people want to play around at the reception and add stuff, that''s great too. So this type of product could appeal to me, if done right and if it got better reviews than other, similar products on the market.

 

[CrownJewel]

DH''s parents are using some sort of video editing software for amateurs to piece together all the various clips people recorded during our wedding. We did not have a videographer, but some people had cameras with great quality movie capability.

I would not be interested, even though I think I''m a tech-oriented person. If it weren''t for the photographers in our family, I wouldn''t have placed much emphasis on photos either. Of course, now that we''ve seen our photos, I''m thinking, "everyone must have photographers!"

DH would probably be interested. He makes video montages of clips and photos from his camera. He sets them to music and puts it up on youTube. His family and friends love his little "movies."

 

[gtn]

We hired a videographer and my dad''s friend video''d the ceremony. I was so happy to see the poor shaky video of the ceremony when we got back from the honeymoon since there were things I could see since they looked me in the brides room. We have video editing software, but if we didn''t, we would buy it.

Nothing beats the pictures we have, but it''s nice seeing video too.

 

[sunnyd]

Date: 10/28/2008 4:01:07 PM
Author: fieryred33143

Date: 10/28/2008 3:45:43 PM
Author: TravelingGal

We have an album, but I haven''t picked it up yet!

What I am realizing is that I am putting together albums of TGuy and me for our daughter. My mom never looked through her albums of my dad and her, but I LOVED to do so. I''d whip them out a few times a year to look at gorgeous pics of them before I was ever in existence. I wish they had a wedding video...their pics (what little they have) are so formal and posed that I would have loved to see the emotion behind the day.

Sidetrack:

Funny you mention that because I was looking at my mother''s album the other day and thought the same thing. There were no photos of their first dance which would have been a lot of fun to see. There weren''t even photos of them doing anything fun except the bouquet/garter toss (where you can obviously see that my father had a few champagne glasses

). Every other picture was posed. It would have been cool to see a video of their day too so I think that def. for your children, its a good investment.

Exactly! Sure it''s great to see pictures, but video shows what they were like...if that makes sense. You get a sense of the personality. I love looking through my parents'' old stuff.

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/28/2008 4:51:12 PM
Author: Octavia
I wouldn''t buy it if it was solely dedicated to wedding video editing, but might be tempted if it was an ''easy video editing'' tool that could be used for other events as well (such as grandpa''s 80th birthday, parents'' 40th anniversary, etc). Although I''m not a big video-watcher, I do think it''s nice to capture some of those important moments.

For our wedding, we''re definitely not hiring a videographer because I find them intrusive and annoying and FI couldn''t care less, but I think we might have a friend tape the ceremony. If people want to play around at the reception and add stuff, that''s great too. So this type of product could appeal to me, if done right and if it got better reviews than other, similar products on the market.

Yup, it would be an easy video editing tool, with some cool bonus wedding stuff thrown in. But it could be used for anything. And a key component would be easily uploading to iPods and sites such as YouTube.

Thanks ladies!

 

[redfaerythinker]

I wouldn''t. However that is mostly because I cannot stand watching myself on film. It makes me nervous. lol

 

[luvthemstrawberries]

I''d definitely be interested!!

I''m a tech person myself. We''re having a wedding website but designing it ourselves (from scratch with web design software, not a "ready made cookie cutter" website that does them for you). I''d love the idea of being able to do it myself - I plan on a lot of DIY details of the wedding, so this seems no different.

Plus, under $100 bucks, are you kidding??? I''d definitely go for it if it''s something I could do. Videographers are WAY overpriced. Plus, then the video would be MINE and not his!

 

[ChinaCat]

Our video is my favorite thing, and I hate watching myself on film. I didn''t think I cared but someone told me they regretted not having it, so we did. It''s so cool to watch again- my DH and I watched it on our anniversary and will probably do so every year.

I agree with NEL and TG- my fave part of it is the ceremony. Plus they did this really cool montage of all of our guests dancing- I love seeing all the people I love having a great time.

That being said, I am not techie enough and would rather pay someone. But if money were an issue, I think this sounds cool- and my DH would definitely be into it.

I think the younger generations will be more into stuff like this- already making videos and editing for YouTube and such. Great idea.

 

[Deelight]

Date: 10/28/2008 5:46:11 PM
Author: TravelingGal

Date: 10/28/2008 4:51:12 PM

Author: Octavia

I wouldn''t buy it if it was solely dedicated to wedding video editing, but might be tempted if it was an ''easy video editing'' tool that could be used for other events as well (such as grandpa''s 80th birthday, parents'' 40th anniversary, etc). Although I''m not a big video-watcher, I do think it''s nice to capture some of those important moments.


For our wedding, we''re definitely not hiring a videographer because I find them intrusive and annoying and FI couldn''t care less, but I think we might have a friend tape the ceremony. If people want to play around at the reception and add stuff, that''s great too. So this type of product could appeal to me, if done right and if it got better reviews than other, similar products on the market.

Yup, it would be an easy video editing tool, with some cool bonus wedding stuff thrown in. But it could be used for anything. And a key component would be easily uploading to iPods and sites such as YouTube.


Thanks ladies!

I probably would but then again I love messing with imaging programs already so something like this would appeal to my latent creativity .

 

[pocahontas]

I'm going with the majority here and voting no. Having a video just isn't that important to me. Not for any particular reason; it just isn't and making it more affordable or a relatively easy DIY project wouldn't be enough to entice me to change my mind. Photography on the other hand is something I would never sacrifice. I'm the kind of person that has albums and albums of pcitures of trips, birthdays, etc. all with captions highlighting the moment or memory of the picture. Seriously, I don't think I've ever gone on a trip and come back with less than 100+ pix.

 

[kstar512]

I am actually a film student and plan on having my little sisters friends video, and then I will edit it later. I love the idea of being able to show my wedding video to my kids later on. Film has a whole other dimension than just a flat picture. In the long run I would regret not having it.

 

[hopefulheidi]

I love video myself so having a videographer was non-negotiable for me. The movement and sound and voices of loved ones are all the sorts of thing that video can''t capture and I want to be able to relive the entire day The only things Nate and I had to agree on were standard vs. high def (HD all the way!) and whether we''d have 1 or 2 videographers (Only 1 - I let Nate win on that one).

That being said, "slideshows" of photos set to video do a good job of mimicking the motion of video so they can be a good solution. When my sister got married she didn''t have a videographer so I used software, photos, and her wedding processional song to create her her own executable file that I put on my website for all the world to see. I think I probably watched it more than she did hehe.

Not that you''ll want to hear this, but about 4 years ago I worked for a company (that is still in business) that sold this sort of easy to use software for about $70 at the time. It was pretty powerful stuff and allowed you to either put your photos in random order or a specific order, set multiple music/sounds as the background, manipulate the photos via transitions and photo editing capabilities and save it in any number of formats. Based on the sorts of calls I took in from customers, just about anyone was able to figure out how to use it hehe And we weren''t the only game in town. If you''re thinking about creating and running with such a product you may want to look around and see what sort of companies are already established in this field as they''d have a leg up on you. The wedding angle is a good angle though and might differentiate the product to that specific audience.

~Heidi

 

[TravelingGal]

Date: 10/29/2008 1:51:22 PM
Author: hopefulheidi
I love video myself so having a videographer was non-negotiable for me. The movement and sound and voices of loved ones are all the sorts of thing that video can''t capture and I want to be able to relive the entire day The only things Nate and I had to agree on were standard vs. high def (HD all the way!) and whether we''d have 1 or 2 videographers (Only 1 - I let Nate win on that one).

That being said, ''slideshows'' of photos set to video do a good job of mimicking the motion of video so they can be a good solution. When my sister got married she didn''t have a videographer so I used software, photos, and her wedding processional song to create her her own executable file that I put on my website for all the world to see. I think I probably watched it more than she did hehe.

Not that you''ll want to hear this, but about 4 years ago I worked for a company (that is still in business) that sold this sort of easy to use software for about $70 at the time. It was pretty powerful stuff and allowed you to either put your photos in random order or a specific order, set multiple music/sounds as the background, manipulate the photos via transitions and photo editing capabilities and save it in any number of formats. Based on the sorts of calls I took in from customers, just about anyone was able to figure out how to use it hehe And we weren''t the only game in town. If you''re thinking about creating and running with such a product you may want to look around and see what sort of companies are already established in this field as they''d have a leg up on you. The wedding angle is a good angle though and might differentiate the product to that specific audience.

~Heidi

Thanks Heidi, I''ve been in the software industry for 12 years now and work for an established one with products in existence. I''m just trying to figure out a good spin for different vertical markets.

I appreciate everyone''s input!!

 

[jstarfireb]

I might be interested, but I''m torn. I''m not having a videographer, in part because they''re expensive, and in part because I don''t think wedding videos are all that important, I hate seeing myself on camera, and I wouldn''t watch it again. So I''m not really sure if I''d care to have a wedding video at all, DIY or professional. I can see the appeal though and if it weren''t for the second part of my reasons, I''d be interested.

 

[October2008bride]

Date: 10/28/2008 2:42:48 PM
Author: TravelingGal
This is SO interesting! I wonder if grooms would feel differently?

I am a decently techie person so this kind of stuff appeals to me. With so many brides creating wedding homepages and stuff, I wondered if this has a place. So far, it seem it does not.

I will say from experience that I agree with NEL...it is really nice to actually have footage of the ceremony because it''s such a blur! I love our photos, but when I hear the officiant pronounce us man and wife and the expressions and joy on our faces when we turn to kiss one another was simply not done justice in the photos. I also find that as more time passes from my wedding, the more video I wish I had.

Now, I will assume that the game changes when we talk about having children and taking video of them....

Still interested in more responses, if you ladies have the time to help!

I would definitely do it. I was a photography girl all the way until a month before the wedding (or less, even). Then I kind of panicked and thought about how I might regret not getting a videographer.

We booked one for $500 for the day and at the end we have all the raw footage.

I''d love to have something to help me edit it!