Master tapes
 

what is the oppinion of giving the master tapes to the customer after they get the edited version.

Why is this not a good idea, or maybe it is a good idea.

Thanks

Willis

I do not give the master tapes (or even a copy of the master tapes). A fewof the reasons I do not is:

1) I don't want them asking "Why didn't you include...?" when they see it in the raw footage and then request a free re-edit.

2) There's a lot of bad footage - i.e. at the beginning of the ceremony we start all cameras. One camera is generally a "roving" camera resulting in lots of ceilings, feet, floors, walls... each time the camera is moved. If I DID give the footage, I would want to edit those sections out requiring more time on my part.

3) Technically, I have copyright on that footage.

If by "master tapes" you mean original tapes, my answer is no. Once a project is finished, I archive any footage that I think I may want to use, then erase the original so it can be used again. I'll record over a tape twice before throwing it out.
If by "master" you mean a tape copy of the finished project, I keep that for at least five years. Then it, too, is trashed.

Only once have I been asked to shoot a wedding and deliver the originals without editing. That was some time ago. My potential client wanted to edit the tapes himself. This was for a Hindu wedding, and father of the bride correctly assumed I would not be able to identify the subtleties of the ceremony. Though I really wanted to shoot the wedding I politely declined for three reasons: The negotiable fee was not satisfactory. I would have no footage for advertising use and, at the time, I did not feel comfortable having my shooting errors available for distribution. Now I think I would have no trouble shooting and handing over the original tapes.

Perfect answer ed. I would only consider it if they paid me, and just the edited version on dv.


John

Hi John,

I sell them the raw footage.

1. Putting a price tag on it makes them think twice. Especially since I include a lot of deleted scenes. If it's somewhat interesting they'll have it on the DVD.

2. They get to see just how much work went into the editing. Color-correction, non-linear. They will appreciate even more the time that it took.

3. I usually clean it up quite a bit before handing it to them. I get rid of the bad shots as I edit, if I know they will purchase it.

-Cesar