Wedding Video Talk Blog

Wonderful Article about why wedding video is so important

2010-09-23T11:30:00Z

Hello my friends,

I’ve got to dash off this not to let you know about a wonderful article I read and just have to pass on! This just in, a blog post from a wedding planner that truly understands wedding video and its importance to not only the couple but also to the family! Please take a moment to read the blog, if you’re like me you’ll be walking on air for a little while. Most importantly let the author know how much it means to you, not only that she understands but that she takes the time to educate her clients on a regular basis. Many thanks, to Sara Renee for permission to repost the link to her blog. Please show her some LOVE!

Sara Renee – Wedding Video Ain’t What It Used to Be. http://partyguru.wordpress.com/2010/09/13/wedding-video-aint-what-it-used-to-be/

Reception Coverage

2010-09-15T03:57:05Z

Hi,

We just published two podcasts that were recorded at the July 2010 meeting of the New York Professional Videographers Association. We were asked by members to put the presentation together to illustrate how we cover the back end of the day and to demonstrate how we do what we do. The presentation was so long we cut it in two to give people a bit of a break. Part 1 starts with the establishing segments and walks you through what we do prior to the grand entrance. Part 2 takes you from the grand entrance through pack up and leaving. Hope you find this useful. Please email us to let us know comments and/or if you have questions or suggestions for upcoming podcasts. I'm currently working on the next podcast with our friend, Florida fil

Back from WEVA EXPO 20th Annual convention

2010-09-01T05:00:00Z

Hello WedVidTalk listeners,

Al and I are just back from WEVA EXPO 2010 the 20th Annual WEVA Expo. As always it is an enlightening, invigorating and exhausting experience.

We go because we have made so many friends each and every year and look forward to seeing them again. We meet new people each year and it is exciting exchanging information with them. We learn new ways of doing things from people all over the country, scratch that, the WORLD.

This year I was the chairperson of the 20th Annual Committee. It was wonderful working with the volunteers who want to make the Expo experience exciting and fun for the attendees. Committee work is very rewarding and watching people work their special skills on behalf of the industry never fails to give me goosebumps. I feel it is the way it is just supposed to be.

My thanks to Dan Krieger and Fred Tims who volunteered their skills as professional photographers to be our Opening Night Paparazzi for our red carpet walk into the reception. Thanks also to Neil Enterprises who donated the paper, printing and customized folders for the photographs that were given to the attendees! Those pictures were terrific and I'm sure they sold quite a few printers as the prints were amazing and many many videographers are offering day of photography among the services they offer clients.

Also on the committee was Chicago Videographer, Barb Scheman who also received the Pam Andelora Ambassador Award and boy if ever there was a person who deserves this it is Barbara! She is a joy to work with and a spirited colleague who keeps things on track with a ton of enthusiasm. Natalie Neal of Philadelphia spent a great deal of time on decor as well as being chairperson of the Ambassador Committee our fearless diva took on every thing that was thorough at her and she did, as always, an amazing job at everything she touched. Ken Kurita, Chairperson of the Special Awards spent time getting info on photography and lighting, Sarah Pendergraft worked the Social Networking, and Sue Lawson, a crackerjack reporter and Producer of the WEVA NewsMinutes, was hot on the idea trail and we used many of them! We were also fortunate to have WEVA Hall of Fame Inductees Joyce Bertolami (also on the Special Awards Committee) and Kris Malandruccolo (Chairperson of the Public Relations Committee) working on the committee, many many thanks to all the time and attention to detail for so many months. I would particularly like to thank and recommend Linda Elland the meeting planner of A2Z meetings, Tampa, Florida, that WEVA hired with less than a month out to help pull all the details together! Linda Elland ROCKS. If you ever need a meeting planner, hook up with her and just hold on while she makes the magic happen!

Al spent weekly conference calls since January working on the Tools and Technologies exhibit with Scott Scheman, Fred Tims, Lauri Batwin and Scot Sheely. They not only met weekly to discuss the history of the industry but they produced several videos on the state of the art and the contributions of several pieces of equipment to the development of the wedding video industry. Look for the videos on You Tube soon. Many thanks to the committee for their devotion and skills. They are very much appreciated. and a great big hit at WEVA EXPO. So many interesting conversation were struck up around the use of the equipment. Industry veterans and newbies alike enjoyed it.

At WEVA 2010, John Zale, Director of Education pulled together an excellent array of speakers and panelists. There were many first time speakers and it was great to hear that they also want to give back to the industry that they have learned so much from. It is a wonderful circle. We also enjoyed the returning speakers who have educated us before and expanded their knowledge and shared it with us. Of course special thanks to Roy and Linda Chapman who make WEVA what it is.

As we walked around it made us so happy that many listeners stopped us to say hi and let us know that they learned so much from wedvidtalk and encouraged us to start up again. Speakers told us they were new to the business when the podcast started and now they were speaking! So cool!

As most of you know, we were recording the WEVA On The Air podcasts and it had become too hard to do both. Since the WEVA On the Air podcasts have been put on hiatus, we decided to take our listeners advice and jump start WedVidTalk. We recorded our presentation on Receptions at the NYPV meeting and that two part podcast will be up first. We follow up with a podcast with Al's first video assistant (back in the 80's) and catch up with his relocation and new line of video work.

Of course, Al and I recorded new podcasts at the EXPO that I am in the process of editing and all will be posted on at www.wedvidtalk.com before the end of the month.

Hope you enjoy and give us your feedback with ideas for new show and topics!

Wishing you all the best,

Kathy and Al Ritondo

Hosts and Executive Producers

Wedding Video Talk

www.wedvidtalk.com

May

2008-04-26T16:01:00Z

As May comes upon us I begin to think about how intense this business can be. We get busier and busier juggling all of the jobs that running a video production company brings. Over the winter the shooting season relaxes and our weekends are free. We almost begin to forget our chosen careers!

During the weekdays in the down season, we put together schedules, organize and pay bills, balance the books, write copy for ads, check inventory of our printed materials, write follow-up emails, design and print packaging for each event, purchase media, design and update our website, post to our blog, check statistics to find out what has been working, seek out new areas to promote our work, network at association meetings, set up appointments for pick ups and deliveries, and of course edit the work that we have shot. It’s busy, but you get used to the rhythm because the weekends are slower and you get to breath.

Then May hits like a whirlwind, and you find yourself checking equipment, sending out for repairs, restocking your media cabinets, and you’re prepping all day Friday and shooting all day Saturday and Sunday. The seasonal work such as communions, confirmations and graduations hits us just as the wedding season starts, and suddenly we’ve lost three days of the week and our down time. Traditionally people in the wedding industry have taken Monday off to recoup from weekends like these, so a fourth day goes down. That leaves 3 days to edit and run your business. So, how long will each job take to get done in a schedule like this? It feels like being squeezed in a vise.

It’s time to start thinking about outsourcing some things to gain back some sense of sanity and to get your life back. It’s time to remember why you got into this business in the first place. It’s time to figure out what you love about the business before the madness of summer comes and you burn out.

April

2008-03-26T15:59:00Z

April is a good month to look for the camera you’ll be using this coming season. It gives you time to get to know the ins and outs before you dive into shooting season. April is the month that manufacturers release all the products they will be introducing for the year. Manufacturers work all year for NAB, but gone are the days that nothing is released before NAB. Now the leaks are fast and furious in their attempt to beat the competition. Since there are so many new product releases manufacturers drop the prices of the already existing inventory, thus JVC has just dropped the prices on their HD line and great deals are to be had on SONY HD cameras. Next month, Armato’s will be sponsoring our meeting and giving us their annual NAB wrap-up. I’m sure they will be coming with unique deals on the cameras you’ll need for the upcoming season. So, if you haven’t begun your research for your HD camera needs, now is the time to do it!

Remember to check the status of your batteries, filters and other accessories that may have become damaged or are in disrepair. If it’s been awhile since you’ve used your equipment, you may not remember a frayed wire. Have repairs made. Go over your packing checklist and revise as needed.

This quarter, April/May/June is the season for Communion, Confirmation, Graduation and Dance Recitals. Double check your order forms (fill it out yourself) to be sure all the information is correct. Check the contact information (is your email address current? Has your website address or telephone number changed since you last used the form? Are you asking for email address of the client on the form to add to your marketing database?) The one thing all of these shoots have in common is a tripod. Have you looked at your tripod lately? Is it good to go? If you hire other videographers to shoot for you, have you checked your contracts with them and reconfirmed the shooting dates and information? When all is said and done, don’t forget to put short clips of these pieces on your blog and let the other professionals you’re working with know they will be there and that you’ll mention them by name, so they should check out your website.

April is a great month for spring cleaning. Wednesday April 2nd is our meeting. As Al mentions in his column we’ll be having a SWAP meeting. Please be sure to price your items before you arrive and arrive early to set your stuff up. Additionally, we’ll be having a magazine exchange table so bring magazines you’re done with and we’ll have them on a table so other members can benefit from them. Leftover magazines at the end of the evening will be recycled.

Where's My Helicopter Here?

2008-02-28T21:20:00Z

What inspires you? Just back from PMA08 I can say I was inspired again and again. While we were Podcasting for WEVA, through many of the sessions, I was able to catch up with some remarkable people. Danny Sayson is always marvelous. He is so funny and personable and is such a font of information on how to get the bride to look her best. I know I’m older than Danny, but I want to be like Danny when I grow up.

Jeff Wright got me to pondering what takes one out of your regular routine way of thinking. How do you switch gears? What gets you to say, "You know, I think for this shoot we’ll need a helicopter and some underwater gear". I get that he has had an underwater photography passion and has been collecting the gear for some time, but what makes you think Helicopter? From now on when I do a presentation I’ll be thinking "Where’s my helicopter here?

Mike Nelson talks about being a Videographer for a Lifetime. We’ve have used this philosophy for years in our company, so as much as I love Mike, I would have missed his perspective which has gone far beyond what we’ve done, including the now popular Thank You DVD’s but also, Christmas Card DVD’s for clients that now have Children, Grandparent DVD’s that emphasis the relationship of the children with their Grandparents and more.

Several interviews we did, Tim Sudall, Dave Williams, David Hohenthaner and Maureen Taylor all mention the trend to sell custom encoding and send trailers of the event the Monday after the wedding via email to excite the customer and keep them satisfied until the final delivery of the DVD. With your logo bug in the trailer, you can encode it to go viral and have the client promote your company for you! Just amazing stuff!

You really should plan on attending the next conference, workshop or seminar in your area! If you want the most bang for your buck, plan on attending the next WEVA convention!

By the way, if you're not a WEVA member several of the podcasts that we recorded in The Studio That Sells are available in a non passcode protected section. Go to www.weva.com in the left hand column click on the link for WEVA On the Air and five podcasts with the latest new products introduced in the Studio that Sells will be there. Enjoy.

We're not gone!

2008-01-26T01:13:00Z

For those of you not aware, we are also producing podcasts on the WEVA website. There are 73 podcasts there. WEVA members can log in and click on WEVA On the Air, the list of the various shows comes up.

In the Biz is about business issues facing the industry today.

Tech Talk is about the newest technology and how to navigate it.

Connections is about Local Association Life.

Expo Edition is where we cover the WEVA trade shows from behind the scenes.

Finally we have a vidcast called Legends from the Vault in which we interview the WEVA Hall of Fame inductees to find the life lessons they have to offer.

If you are not a WEVA member you can join at www.weva.com.

We will be covering the WEVA Wide World of Weddings at PMA-08 so if you have questions we'll try to get them answered while we're out there.

Looking forward to blogging at the show!

Wishing You all the Best,
Kathy

GPVA April Meeting

2007-04-19T23:24:00Z

After the day long seminar in Philly, I was lucky enough to attend the regular meeting of the GPVA - Greater Philadelphia Videographers Association. This was anything but a regular local association meeting. Thanks to the board and the participants who arranged a mock wedding, complete with invitations, a bride, groom and full bridal party, minister, a ceremony and a reception.

Three videographers took turns at staging how they would shoot a single camera event. We saw a hand held full shoulder mounted camera, a smaller camera on a tripod and a stedicam gig each take turns at what they would do in the same circumstance. It was part serious and part comedy with a whacky photographer jumping in the way obstructing the entire event. After the set up, we were treated to viewing the footage with live voice over of the videographer explaining what they did and why.

I fell asleep laughing from a comment by the first videographer who earnestly described what he did and why. He had in my opinion had the best line of the night when he said "Why do I frame the shot so that I don't get the Exit sign over the head of the bride and groom? (short pause and no answer forthcoming from the crowd) "Because people can read Shi*..." I almost slid under the table laughing and have several times since.

The emperor has no clothes moment was is that in reviewing the footage from the first camera, there was digital artifacts that were so bad, blocking so bad, that you couldn't see the activity in the center of the screen. So, yes he looked like he knew what he was doing and explained it well, but what if he had to give that to a bride?
The next two videographers up described what they did, mostly defending why things didn't look as good as they should and blaming the phony photographer and saying they do short form weddings and normally have one or two other cover camera's to help them along, even though this was from the start specifically about shooting a single camera job. I think no one was really prepared for the unexpected, as the photographer got more and more aggressive with each passing ceremony, much as what happens in real life! Serious life lesson to be learned from this is never ever do a single camera wedding or event if you want to produce a wedding you can be proud of because sh*t happens and at the very least have an assistant that can take the photographer out, I mean "help". By the way we also had an opportunity to see the same event taped in HD and boy it was dark. No joke. All of us in attendance, understood that conditions were not ideal (as if they ever are).

Overall, It was a terrifically entertaining evening. Much much effort was put into pulling it all together. My thanks to all for putting it together, Natalie Neal, Brooke Rudnick, Mark Smiler (the mc and inspiration behind the project), the videographers, bridal party, photographers and guests. Thanks for it all. Kathy

A Seat at the Feet of A Master

2007-04-17T07:31:00Z

David Robin Seminar - Philadelphia, Pa. April 17, 2007

A Seat at the Feet of A Master by Kathy Ritondo

The Day with David Robin hosted by The Greater Philadelphia Videographers Association begins its incarnation with a trip back in time to a Christmas card for his vendor connections in the Los Angeles area which was received with thunderous applause.

People from all over the country have come from Texas, Virginia, New York, New Jersey as well as Philadelphia to hear one of the best our industry has, as he welcomes us to his world of weddings. He introduces us to the new David Robin Films by showing us his first paid wedding from June of 1985 complete with titles! David shares his early inspirations from starting his own local video association to joining WEVA and APV (now defunct), the earliest national associations, and the people who have inspired him.

Style changes over time. David Robins' current demo has so many new and interesting techniques that in the 5 minutes it takes to show it you feel as though you've been to weddings around the world. You are knee deep in the world of 3D, film techniques, black and white, color isolation, 8mm film, high angles, low angles, moving images flying over balconies, through doors and mirror reflections, children playing, lots of them! too cute by far, far too many techniques many to remember and I'm typing fast! I want to see it again and again, especially the kids, their crawling up windows, spinning around, stealing kisses, hugging and spinning some more. It definitely leaves you wanting more. It leaves you wanting, no needing your event to be covered by David Robin. Breathe.

He's speaking about getting the business in the door: marketing your demo shouldn't be only to clients but to other wedding professionals as well through building relationships. Begin by attending other organizations meetings such as ABC, NACE, ISES, etc... (He's preaching to choir here! We just did a podcast with Richard Markel of AFWPI; Association for Wedding Professionals International, their convention is next week in Ventura, California!) When meeting with them you talk with each person about the things that are important to them. The most successful source of business for him has been Event Planners.

You need to know where you want to go and start with a business plan. He recently added David Robin Films to his letterhead in an effort to develop still higher end clients. Boulevard Productions will still exist but now will be for the corporate end of his business. He notes that it's important to build your brand with email using Constant Contact (or some such) email program to send your newsletter. Develop and maintain your own client database. Learn how to write a press release and send them out. David walks us through The Anatomy of his Website and blog and why he has made each decision on his site.

David firmly believes your prices should reflect your level of expertise and education. When you raise your prices, which David does every six months, he suggests you will see an initial drop off of bookings but within a month or so it will go back to normal. In the meantime, he suggests offering another product to fill in, in this gap. In his case, it was Photo Montages. He tripled his montage business in a year when he introduced the 3D photo montage. He also mentions he went from doing 150 events per year to 50 events per year but he is making more money. When asked what the appropriate length of a wedding video should be he replies that a wedding video should be as long as it needs to be based on your conversation with your client and their desires.

We break for lunch and attendees discuss the concepts thus far presented and how to make them work in their market. The afternoon presents us with more video samples of David's award winning Concept Video's, his Time Shift strategies , amazing 3D Photo Montages the likes of which I'll never see unless we hire him to do them, which I am delighted to add, is mentioned as an option! I am most impressed with the Family biographies and films he produces because it is near and dear to my heart. Apparently, I am not alone in this because it is the number one thing my colleagues return to discussing at the break. Some numbers have been mentioned and peoples' jaws are still agog.

I am most impressed with a line that he uses when discussing the biographies in giving clients a quote for how much it will cost them. "Based on the assets you have given me, it will be "X" amount." This allows them to add additional assets to the project and you can increase your quote as the assets increase. You are not stuck with an underestimated project on your hands and they are not stuck with a surprise bill at the end.

It has been a dizzying array of ideas all day. I have attended David Robins' seminars since the early 90's at WEVA Conventions and Town Meetings (too numerous too mention). My traveling companion for the day and fellow NYPV member Lou Kulynych has just seen him for the first time and we both are blown away. David ends his seminar with a Question and Answer period and a trip through his video kit, describing what he travels with and why he has made the choices he has made.

At the end of the seminar, I am still very impressed with David Robin, the storyteller and David Robin the man, that I have seen grow and change over the years, into a delightfully funny, simply irresistible person I am happy to also call a friend.

It was great to catch up with my association mentor and WEVA Hall of Famer Dan Kreiger of AVP in LI, NY who was also in attendance. My thanks to David Robin for great inspiration and also to Lou Kulynych for the ride to Philly and back and to both for the great conversation in between, to WEVA MPV's Adam Mancini, Eric Model, former NYPV secretary Robert Knowles, and WEVA Hall of Famer Jenny Lehman who were great dinner companions and inspirations as well (now I don't feel so bad about how much television I watch!) and to my husband and hunny Al for encouraging me to go to the seminar even though he couldn't go with me.

Podcamp NYC

2007-04-09T16:15:00Z

We spent last Saturday in Manhattan at The NewYorker Hotel, where we used to host our NYPV meetings. Being there for so many conferences and conventions over the years, we felt immediately comfortable.

The Podcamp NYC conference was billed as an unconference and we were told to expect organized chaos. To my way of thinking it was very well organized. Lots of information on podcasting and blogging and the media of the future. So many sessions were going on we had to divide up and go to different sessions. It was really really great. We met up for lunch and my hunny Al took me to the Irish Restaurant we love to go to in the area for Shephards Pie and burgers. Over some fine food and beverages we talked about what we learned at the morning sessions speaking so quickly and with such passion both of us were reminded of the first WEVA conference that we attended. When we began the Wedding Video Talk podcast there were just over 2,000 podcasts our there, now there are upwards of 30,000.

What was surprising was how many budding videographers this new media has brought forth. The attendees of this conference come from all walks of life and have a passion for many things. What brings them together now is the medium for their message. It is video and audio and the web! PD 150's and 170's were all over the place! I was thinking that some of them will be showing up at our local association meetings in an effort to learn how to use all the gear they just bought.

Hopefully we will be bringing all that we've learned to the podcast and now our new blog to keep you informed and entertained!

Kathy

Welcome to our World.

2007-03-30T02:16:00Z

WedVidTalk is coming up on the second Anniversary and we've developed some plans for the future. We hope to make it easier to talk to you with the blog. So, welcome to Wedding Video Talk - The Blog.

Who thought up this name? Blog. Sounds like someone is sick. Not as bad as Podcast, which makes people think that someone from a Pod is coming to take them away, but still, don't marketing people ever get in on the early stages to make these tools at least sound attractive? Try as I might I can't come up with another name. It acts like a newsletter but it is so much more. If you can think of a better name, please let us know! When you email us, we answer you directly. But, so many more people may benefit from the same information that we hope to use the blog to answer questions, have discussions and generally, shoot the breeze.

As I write, we are working with our web designer to update the site (it's two years old already and news a fresh coat of paint.) We want to make it easier to navigate, easier to understand what a podcast is and how to listen to it and we want to make it nicer to look at. We're also working with someone to get sponsorship of the shows so we can keep it going well into the future.

A little background about us. I am one of 7 kids that grew up in Brooklyn, NY. My dad was a Sgt. in NYC police department as was his dad, and one of his sons. I come from a long line of blue! My mom was a mortgage origination clerk and had quite a full career in banking. She introduced one of her sons to the girl she was training, at our wedding Easter Sunday, April 10, 1977. He married her and now they have 8 children! My family had three boys, four girls. I was number 6 out of the 7 which is why I have the loudest voice. We have 27 nieces and nephews on my side of the family. Al is one of 2 boys, he also grew up in Brooklyn. He was in ROTC right our of College and got to working on getting rid of his Brooklyn accent as a result of that experience. His parents had an import business while he was growing up so he got to learn several languages. His mom became a teacher later in life, getting her Masters Degree well into her 50's. Al's brother has three children and two step children. We have 8 nieces and nephews on this side of the family. So, in total there are 35 nieces and nephews. I mention this because I'm always sharing stories about a niece or nephew. They are many and vary in age from 42 to 1 year old. Al and I are married 30 years next month. We don't have children, but we are great at being an aunt and an uncle.

We hope to talk about the passion it takes to do what we do in this blog, to celebrate the triumphs and to also share the pain.