Hey y’all! How the heck are ya?! As we head back towards normalcy, I’d say things are looking up on my end! I hope the same for you.

So many of my brides and grooms have had to reschedule their incredible best days ever, and though I touched on how stressful and heartbreaking that is in this blog post, I’ve heard from a few folks that it’s actually a bit of a relief. One of the few “yays!” of having a postponed wedding is that you have more time to explore, create, save, and decide all the things. Was there something you couldn’t have on your original date that perhaps, now you can? Perhaps… hmmm… a videographer?! I sat down with Maryland wedding videographer,  Lovely Productions, to bring you some tea about wedding videography. Scroll down!

One of the things that often gets cut when budget gets tight, unfortunately and especially when clients splurge on other things, is video. Guys— listen to me! Cutting video or, even worse, skimping on videography services is one of the worst mistakes I see as a vendor. As my BP brides and grooms know, Brey Photo provides a complete list of favored vendors that are basically awesome in every way. If you have had to reschedule your wedding and are on the hunt for a videographer, now might be the perfect opportunity revisit that list and check out my gal Danielle at Lovely Productions.

Danielle and I met at my third ever wedding. Shooting alongside Danielle was so intimidating because clearly, she’s an expert in her art. At the same time though, she’s sweet and calming and sooo friendly. We sparked up a conversation on a step while scarfing down our vendor meal before first dances and we’ve been friends ever since.

But I don’t recommend Danielle because we’re friends. I recommend her because she’s the best videographer for my clients.

Danielle is a badass, houseplant tending biker chick. Her husband and partner in crime, Brad, who flies your wedding day drones, is equally as cool. Lovely Productions is the real deal and Danielle has no reservations about making those crazy whack ideas you might have your wedding video come to life.

She’s a self described nostalgic person which allows her to capture emotion in a strong way. She has amazingly detailed and creative ideas, and yet, filming is like breathing to her. Just like me, she doesn’t feel the need for tons of equipment, distractions, or bossiness. We have never forced our couples to be uncomfortable and never once has a wedding day had much awkwardness.  I asked her to do an interview for the blog, because last year when I asked her to link up with BP, she said yes and then she lapped me by booking out literal years in advance. She’s that good. So, I’ll take what I can get!

 

An interview with Lovely Productions, Maryland videographer

Q: How did Lovely Productions become Lovely Productions?

A: I started wedding videography as a hobby back in 2014 when a dear friend asked me to film her wedding. I rented all of my equipment, did some quick YouTubing, and filmed the dang thing! Six years later, I now put together wedding highlight films that cater to each individual couples style and personalities.

Q: Why weddings?
A: It’s capturing one of the happiest days of someone’s life. I am able to see all of the big emotions as well as the minuscule candid ones that people tend to look over. After my first wedding, I instantly fell in love with capturing those little subtleties.

Q: What inspires you?

A: My husband, mostly, and nature. I know the former sounds super corny, but it’s so true. There are moments where I take mental images of the way he looks at me and I try to emulate those emotions when I create my highlight videos. All of those warm and fuzzies that I feel, I want my clients to feel. Nature inspires me in other ways, it calms my soul and resets my sometimes noisy inner voice. I enjoy sitting and listening to the different sounds and observing the animals that frequent my back yard.

Q: What are the most important questions a couple should ask their videographer prior to hiring them?

A: What are the differences between a highlight film & full wedding edit? How do you pick your music for the video? How will you work with our photographer?

Q: Are there any mistakes you see couples make when hiring a videographer that is not you? 

I knew Danielle would be too nice to answer this, so I’m going to answer it for her. One of the worst mistakes I see couples make is investing a lot of money into their other creative vendors, only to hire a poorly equipped, inexperienced, cheap videographer that causes a distraction. Your wedding day is not a “gig”. If you’re going to splurge on photography, floral design, your venue, your DJ… hire a good videographer so that your other vendors can do their jobs well. Shooting a ceremony is hard, and it’s even harder when there’s a camera from 1985 placed right in the groom’s line of vision as his bride walks down the aisle.

Q: Why it’s important that a photographer and a videographer work well together?