Now WHAT?!?!
 

OK, I'm new to this whole wedding videography business!! lol! I have three client interviews this week!! The clients already know my pricing and want to hire me. Other than collecting my deposit and getting a timeline of the event from them what else do I NEED to remember/ask/make note of ???

Any help or advice is appreciated!

Thanks
Kelsey

CONTRACT!

also don't call it a deposit, use retainer fee.

Note to self: retainer fee!

OK...contract...UGH! Is there any where I can be directed to find out what needs to be included or covered in one of those?!

Thanks for the help!

Hey neighbour.....

The Burlington/Hamilton area is pretty small, so i usually like asking who the photographer is..
This gets my "personal space" set up ahead of time..

I don't know your style of shooting/editing, but for the most part, it seems that event details, contract and deposit are the three majors...
Give yourself some setup time, charge your batteries, and make sure that you've scouted the locations ahead of time....

Just roll with the punches, expect rainy days, and know where all the wall plugs are ahead of time >_<..

Good luck!!!

Small World Peter! Thanks for the input!

There is so much to learn! Do you find there is a lot of work in your area? I'm surprised how many calls I'm getting which makes me wonder if there is a demand for videographers in our area?

As far as work in the area is concerned......
Where there's a wedding, there's usually a videographer, and ALWAYS a photographer...

The question is, what TYPE of work is available.
There's been many local pop ups that charge cut throat rates, just to get their foot in the door, and undercut his neighbour...

They get the work, in two seasons, they find out that they can't keep up for long at those rate, and shut down or move on. In the meanwhile, the bar has been dropped both in quality AND price for the next guy..
Before you know it, B&G's are trying to get $500 weddings.

There's more than enough weddings in this area to keep all the businesses happy, without having to resort to cut throat prices...


Personally speaking, i don't advertise, and it's all word of mouth..
After seeing what kind of a business this can be, i've cooled down considerably..
People like Patrick Moreau get me worked up, propped up, and thinking positive again.

As far as videography demands go, your busy phonelines won't lie. More importantly, connections and referrals will take you beyond the advertising.

My editing suite is my passion, but unfortunately, due to logistics, money and demand..... it can't replace my full time job..

Kelsey:
I would introduce to them the way that you will shoot the wedding and if you are using any lights explain to them how and when you will use them. Try and prepare them a bit. You might also ask them if there are any special things that she would like footage of or if she will be wearing any heirloom jewelry.

John

All good advice so far.

For me the most important thing about the face to face meeting (besides the contract and retainer) is giving me the opportunity to get to know the couple as well as give them a chance to know me and see if it's a good fit.

Find out wedding details (vendors, locations and such).
What kind of music do they like?
How did they meet?
How long have they been together? etc.

I take along an audio recorder (or take notes) and record these answers if possible. Sometimes I wind up using these in the actual video if they are worthy of such. This is not an interview or love story session. That's latter if decided upon.

All of this kind of information can be very helpful in crafting their wedding video.
The more you get to know about them, the easier it will be for you to film in such a way that they will truly love their video.

BTW don't talk too much. If you ask a question, let them do all of the talking, and listen.

Ask if you may attend the rehearsal. You'll be able to scope out camera locations and to meet the officiate.

Don't offer to video the rehearsal. You might want to shoot a little video to check out light levels, although a night rehearsal will be of little help for a day wedding. If the wedding is at the same time of day as the rehearsal, you could shoot some exteriors.

Thanks Everyone! This is such a helpful board!

I've now armed myself with a contract! lol so that's a good start!

I love the tip about the heirloom jewlery! Whodda thunk?

Thanks for all the advice!

Kelsey

Andre.


Kindly explain the semantics of favoring RETAINER over deposit.

Thanks!

I believe a retainer is non-refundable.