I thought I was recording!
 

Anyone made this mistake? I thought I was recording a really good take of the bride getting out of the car and walking to the church and for some reason I didn't notice I knocked off 'record'! Only when it came to uploading the footage did I notice the mistake. I think I might have fired myself from this job.

Forgot to hit record, forgot to turn a mic on..... oh yeah.... count me in there too !!!!

The last time, I made the mistake of mentioning my mistake to my second shooter. Since then when I do critique what she is doing I have been told "at least I hit RECORD". :-)

Hi Guys

It's so essential to watch the EVF information and make sure the little red light is on and the time is actually rolling over!! A mate of mine (pure nerves as it was his first wedding) was shaking so much that he pushed the record button twice and the camera went into record and then back into pause. He did the entire ceremony with the camera in pause!!! Disaster!!! ... that wasn't enough and he also did the same with the speeches!! Luckily he used footage from the brides brother who also was filming!

My HMC's have a extra red tally light at the rear of the cams which is great to check that you are recording when the camera is on tripod and you are standing watching.... Yeah Chip...the Rode mics now get turned on and left on as soon as I arrive and turned off when I get home!! Been there and done that!!

Chris

Like Chris I used to rely on the Z1s rear tally light - now we've switched to MRC1 recorders (not in camlink mode because although we don't run tape the only way to remove the annoying tape out flashing in the viewfinder/screen is to put a tape in) the tally light no longer glows reassuringly - in fact for the present the realisation that it isn't glowing sends a momentary chill down the spine every now and then.

Fortunately our MRC1s are mounted on a custom-made bracket at the rear of the Z1s (rather like Sony's option but costing considerably less than Sony's UKL100 each) but the tally light on them is so small it's like watching for a glow-worm at noon.

Guilty of all of the above at different times early in my 'career' as a part-time shooter! Now have a printed check-list taped to the inside of my camera-1 gear case!

last weekend, not with my camera but with my zoom h4, when I arrived at a castle where they were doing the wedding outdoors I had virtually no time to set everything up, I had to mic the groom who I couldn't directly find as he was hiding behind a building just before the ceremony started but forgot to tell me, nobody knew where the priest was so I had to find him as well to put on his wireless mic, then I had to run and set up my 2 camera's (one small one unmanned and my main camera) and then off to a small group of violists to put my zoom h4 and there it went wrong, with the zoom you need to press record twice and I could swear it was running but at the end of the ceremony when I collected it and pressed the button again to make it stop I noticed that the time indication started running. Later on I saw I did not have any sound recording from this group. It is not a major disaster as I have background sound recording from my second camera which was closer to that group but it was a lot of wind so I will be limited what I can use.

Stress is a very important factor at weddings which often can lead to mistakes, as I work alone I always try to be as calm as possible but I can tell you that I age a few years everytime I do a wedding. :)

Noa; been there, done that; in fact I think it's one of the most unsatisfactory things about the Zoom, sadly not the only one. We've resuscitated our mini-disk.

Years ago I did the same thing on a dance recital. Halfway through one of the numbers I was shocked to notice the rec light wasn't on. At intermission I sheepishly explained the situation to the husband & wife owners of the dance company. We had a pretty good relationship since I'd done a lot of work for them -- so it turned out near the end of the show, they announced to the audience that they liked a particular routine so much they were going to ask the dancers to perform it one more time. They saved my face, basically. I never made that mistake again.

With dance this sort of thing is recoverable. Much harder to do on a wedding though.

If it makes you feel any better, the Sony PCM-D50 works the same way.
And the mistake I made was identical, even if the circumstances were less disastrous.

Hey Noa

I agree about stress. When things go wrong and you start to panic that's when you do stupid things like forgetting to record. I've learnt now that I control what I can and forget what I cannot!! I used to panic and stress like crazy when the photog used to walk in front of the camera but now I just cover it with a cutaway. If something is going to be "not as perfect as you expected" just relax and things normally sort themselves out. It's probably better to just "go with the flow" and your footage will more than likely turn out just as good!!

The key, of course, is also preparation...getting to the ceremony 30 seconds ahead of the bride and trying to setup is a recipe for disaster. There is always a less stressful solution too!! A photog and myself arrived 30 mins ahead of the bridal arrival time once to find the limos had dropped her and gone to park..instead of panicing, we simply asked her to "do it all again" ..and got a perfect arrival. (I have actually had a situation where we completely re-shot a civil ceremony just to get better video and everyone was more than happy to oblige.. only happened once in my life but it was a solution!!)

Chris

A couple of years ago, I was recording the IEEE National Robotics Championship in Lubbock, TX., I somehow stopped recording during one of the contenders runs. Fortunately, someone else was also recording. Sometimes I kick myself.

Jeff

Often it is like that, here we don't do rehearsals, the only preparation I do assure that I have everything I need within handsreach and then it's like a robot, you make split second decisions what to do first and where depending on the situation which changes everytime. The problem is not getting everything in place in time, the problem is the lack of time to recheck it's functioning properly. This means I have to do it right the first time. Now in case of the zoom I was almost sure I saw the timeindicator running but those digits are so small I probably have misjudged.

There is actually no way to be absolutely sure nothing is going wrong. During an event I also can't monitor the zoom and one iriver I have live to check up on their functionality, even if the appear to be running, a bad sd card, bad batteries which run out too early f.i. can ruin it as well. Therefore I use more then one external audio recording and even if that would give me 5% chance of one device not functioning (one that I cannot monitor live) I can live with that.

Just take my Canon xh-a1, 1,5 year ago I recorded a wedding all day onto new unused hdv cassettes, no problem, untill I got home and checked my cassette containing my church recording. I had over 100 drop-outs which appeared to be unrecoverable. I immediately bought a HVR-DR60 as extra recording source and now I record to minidv tape for back-up and at the same time to my sony recorder. After that disastrous recording the mini-dv cassette recording showed no problems anymore so I thought it was a one-time problem (I had the camera checked at Canon and they couldn't find a problem either.)

Two weeks ago I needed to get a part from a mini-dv cassette because I was too late turning on the HVR-DR60 (that takes 14 seconds) and what did I see, every 10 second a drop-out again all through the tape. I did a new recording to test and all was alright again without any drop-outs.

So you see, I do what I can to get what I want but as long as most wedding couples are not willing to invest into second shooters (I always work alone and they never, ever want to pay extra for a second cameraman) they have to take the risk into consideration as well. (I tell them exactly that but they are all OK with that.)

One of my rules is to try to get to the ceremony venue at least 1 hour prior to the ceremony time. Not always possible but I really try hard to get there that early. As for forgeting to hit record and stuff like that, there are only 2 kinds of video people. Those that it has happened to and those that it will happen to. We're human and mistakes happen. All you can do is grin and bear it and try not to let it happen again but stay around long enough and I can say with assure that it will.

Well similar thing happened to me about 5 years ago. One of my best friend asked me to film when his mother was about to see him for the first time in 10 years. So we have been waiting her at home and when she rang the bell I jumped from sofa grabbed the camera and......it was so emotional moment!!! you can't even imagine....well after like 3 - 5 min of "filming" I realised what I DID! Most important that we still best friends! ))

A news shooter friend had a name for when you press the record button twice by mistake (therefore creating a tiny little clip a few 10th's of a second long - he called it double-punching. It's happened to both me and my wife more than once. It's easier to do with some cameras than others, but if the button is rather soft or the switch is old, it's easy to do.

We just always look for that red light now... more than once. We are also using an MRC-1 with an XH-A1s and I look on both the cam and the MRC unit to make sure we are red lighted on both.

It is a horrible sinking feeling to get back to the edit and realize you didn't get the shot. One other mistake I've made with the Canon 5D is taking a still shot by mistake instead of starting the video - different buttons, but still easy to do sometimes in the heat of the moment (especially if you are shooting some stills along with your video for your cover, webshots, etc...)

When working alone that is never possible here as there is always a legal ceremony in the town hall just before the church wedding, that means you always arrive at the church at the same time the bridescouple does. So when you are trying to find a parking space the limo is already standing in front of the church and if your lucky you get the shot of them stepping out.
Arriving a hour early would solve a lot of problems indeed and limit mistakes.

Ah, yeah that can make it tight. Well you could always clone yourself. ;-)

That's what happened! - I pressed record twice by mistake. The brightness of the outside light and hectic pace I was moving, I didn't notice the tape was not moving over. As I was following the bride I was anticipating the direction and place I needed to dash to, I simply missed the tape counter.

This has happened to me and I am now paranoid about it. About two years ago I missed the bride coming up the isle when I "double dipped". Luckily I had the rear view from my second camera but the sinking feeling I got when I realised went down to my gut and since then I look at that red record light through ceremonies and speeches like I suffer from Compulsive Checking Disorder.

It wil probably happen again though. We are not infalliable. I just hope it's not when I am the only camera and miss someting of utter importance.

But planning is everything. Like Don I get to the church an hour before the ceremony to make sure I have time to set up with no fluster, check everything is in place before wiring the groom up and filming guests arriving. Get the stress out of the build up to the ceremony and thigs run a hell of a lot smoother.

Stress and lack of time = mistakes.

Do you single shooters manage with the preps and getting to the church to set up in time for the arrivals? I am finding that stressful.

Hey Charlie

I'm assuming you mean two cameras and one operator??? That's me too!! What I do on preps is tell the bride that I have to be at least 30 minutes ahead of her so if she's being picked up at say, 2:30pm..I'm out of the prep venue by 2:00pm. If she is not in her dress by 1:45pm then I tell her she will lose out!!! Regardless of whether I get all the footage she and I want or not..I'm GONE at 2:00pm!!!

This usually works a treat and they make sure that they are on time...and yes, I have left a bride before she had her gown on ..but she knew the rules. 99.9% stick to my time schedule.

By being 30 minutes ahead (and the bride is usually a bit late as well) that gives you enough time to setup a fixed camera, hook up radio mics to the groom etc etc and STILL gives you time to catch your breath while waiting for the bride to arrive. The last thing you want to do is have to rush out of the Church, hot and sweaty as the limo pulls up....that's a sure case for "double dipping"

Chris

I talk to the bride well in advance and go over the timeline of the event, explain to her I need to be at the ceremony at a certain time and why I need to be there and in almost every case they understand and change their timeline. Not hours but in some cases just an hour sometimes less. Move things up (earlier) to accomadate me. Not a big deal. So if for instance the ceremony starts at 3PM and the church is 30 minutes from the prep spot, I want to be at the church by 2 or 2:15PM so I'll back out the time and figure out when I have to leave the prep and then go back an hour or so from that. So if I need to leave the prep at say 1:45PM then I'll start at around 12:30 stay for about an hour then off I go to the ceremony. By and large it works out but yeah sometimes it gets tight, traffic, road construction, maybe she's running a bit late but luckily many times I'm in a venue I've worked at before and know the church people so I know the rules, what I can and can't do and have a system to get set up fairly quickly but yes, it can be stressful but that's part of the game. 3 deep breaths and hit record, ONCE! ;-)

Hi Chris,

I am finding 30 minutes is pushing it. I of course go to the church before the preps for the establishing shots but the vicar is usually not there then. So by the time I unpack and move the gear from the car, wire the microphone and establish my camera position, the photographer is already at the scene with the first guests.

What's also awkward is that I promise to be discrete so it's difficult to get past people when in a hurry to get to the vantage point.

The wedding in question when I started this thread was in a tiny chapel and they didn't want any tripod, just one camera so I was shoved in the corner to the side. They're not getting all the ceremony of course, so it was slightly easier in that respect and it's how I think I'm going to go about it from now on. Tell the client up front I only shoot segments of the ceremony and speeches - like the photographer.

Why make a job more stressful than it needs to be? Glidetrack, steadycam, multiple cameras, etc.

The timeline from Bride prep to Church is indeed the most stressful part of the day. You barely have enough time to set-up, locate the Groom to mic him, find parking.

Just last Saturday, I missed the Bridal entrance at the Reception, we finished the park shoot at 9:00 pm, the Reception starts at 9:00pm, there's no way I can make it on time. The couple has the luxury of having a limo, I have to park 2 blocks away from the reception. If you have ever done a Shoot in downtown Toronto, you'll know what I mean. I immediately told the Bride what happened, she was cool with it. Next time I'll hire a driver/assistant if I am shooting in Downtown Toronto.

Charlie been there as well. Now it is 2nd nature for me to check REC ON before anything else, sometimes I push record way before I frame the subject. Hopefully, the B-cuts will fill in the spaces.

Hi Chalie it dpends how pro you want to go.

I cover EVERY ceremony with a minimum of three cams, often 4. Me at the front, camera down the isle, camera at the pulpit/lecturn, camera at the guests, and even sometimes another camea with me to zoom in on the rings going on while the main camera is filming them from waist up. PLus the groom is micced and there's a Edirol r-09 on the lecturn!

I might trim down a verse or two of All Things Bright and Beautiful but they get the service, and if for some reason I have double dipped I am now well covered. Ad I am single videographer, no second cameraman.

This all needs to be set up so I get to the ceremony an hour before kickoff. I very rarely get the bride in her dress at home. I lave before she gets it on and the first time it is seen is getting out of the vinage car at the ceremony.

I've done this a few times as well, hit record twice or not pressed the button enough. Fortunately (knocking on wood now) it hasn't happened during something critical like a processional, toast, etc.

I can't count, though, how many times I've checked the footage after the wedding and had a GREAT shot of a reception wall for about 15 minutes because I didn't STOP the recording!

I think we've all done it at some point. Not just video. I just spent a day on location recording multitrack audio. For this kind of thing I have a very tall racked flightcase, with pull out monitor for the dedicated computer, audio interface, and it's got video monitors too so I can see what I'm recording. Really clever, works very well.

Spent all day recording, watching 7 lines of waveforms and big red recording icons. So I was happy I was recording, a few times we needed playback to check things and hooking one of the outputs to an amp let them hear the playback.

Back at base - I transferred the files - lots of them, to the editor and discovered every track was identical - I'd routed mic 1 to all the tracks, 6 of the 7 mics were active, but not recorded - with just one working!

I feel really stupid. Luckily, the musical performances were a little flawed, so they apologised and asked if I'd record it all again - of course I would, I said! Phew!

Several years ago, I had an assistant shoot a simple 15 minute ceremony. He arrived at the site early, tested his camera, but didn't realize it was still recording. He recorded 50 minutes of nothing on a mini dv tape. When it was time to start the ceremony with only 10 minutes of tape left, he didn't have time to rewind. He ran out of tape just before the kiss. His spare tape was in the car.

"he didn't have time to rewind"

That's why i'm so glad I have a external recorder to go to tape and harddisk simultaneously. Some time ago during a ceremony which took much longer then expected I ran out of tape, just before the vows there was a 1 minute window I could exchange tapes. The back-up tapes I use now (the hvr-dr60 is my main recording unit) are all used once and I had rewind them all right after the first use, I thought.., when I pressed record I got a "end of tape" message. Luckily I could just fire up my dr60 and continue, otherwise I would have been s****** :)

Hi Steve. How on earth do you manage to retrieve all of your kit and get it packed away in your car after the ceremony without missing out on what's going on outside the church when the couple go out? I also work alone and usually have a second small camera (HM-100) locked on a light tripod and a radio mic on the lectern (groom's mic'd anyway). I can cram the second cam and mic into a grab bag and leave it with the wedding car driver, I don't risk getting to my car and back as I'd miss so much of those first reactions the couple have when they are first congratulated by their friends. I could wait until the photog starts but often they are so quick and ready to go I couldn't take the chance.

You have to be honest Steve, recording a wedding with 4 manned camera's I could consider "pro" if every operator knows what he is doing and would handle his camera in full manual mode but not if you leave 3 camera's unmanned. Especially at THE most important moment leaving your main cam unattended just to get a close up of the rings seems risky business. What if the couple moves to much, or the photog blocks the shot of your main cam?
I'm happy if I find the time to just add one extra camera as safety but I do cover the entire event with my main cam as if that was the only camera available, the second is just for B-roll.

While certainly having 4 manned cameras would be ideal, after a while you get to know where your cameras should be placed for maximum effect and coverage (and I even make sure to visit the cameras to reset zoom ranges for best framing), and so having 3-4 cameras rolling that have been placed in advance can provide angles in post that you simply can't get when you're a "one man show".

It's not as haphazard as you might expect, and while there's a risk of an angle being blocked, that applies even if you've got a manned camera, and although you don't know for certain what you've captured until you dump the footage, usually it will provide some great angles to cut to.

With "manned" cameras there are issues of zooming, panning, shaking, and other things - I'd rather set my settings so I know they are the same, press record before the start, pop by to zoom in once the wedding party is up front, and after they are out, pick up the cameras. It's not as crazy as it sounds, and IMO works very effectively to get the needed angles. It forces you to think through the venue layout and the progression of the service, so when it's actually happening, you've already done it in your head, which makes things much less stressful! Where it gets tricky is when it's a new venue that isn't easy to "set", and you've got to do it fast.

I'm not in the exact same situation. We'll have two or three people and either 4 or 5 cameras to get packed up, along with tripods, Steadicam, slider, three mic kits, and laptop. But still, it's a lot of gear to haul around.

My response is simple: nothing is going on outside the church right after the ceremony that needs covering. Unless there is something relevant like a dove release going on, I have no problem leaving the mingling and group photos to the photographer as we pack up our gear.

It's a matter of finding a plan and getting to know it inside and out. I am always up on right side of the church, facing the bride, and by the time the couple is a quarter of the way down the aisle I have picked up the Zoom recorder on the lectern, monopod, and tripod, and I'm speeding down the side of the aisle while everyone's eyes are on the bride and groom.

The other shooter covers them until they leave the church and then we're back inside, collecting mics, cameras, and making sure the cards we used for the ceremony are in a safe place. We can be gone before the bride and groom if that was what we wanted.

Of course, it's tougher with four cameras and one person, but I still personally believe that unless there is something important going on, put your energy into making sure you don't forget anything at the church. I have never had anyone say to me, "I loved the film, but can you add an over the shoulder shot of the photographer taking a photo of me and my cousins?"

I think the main thing I have taken from this thread, and for which I am a huge believer, is that if you need to be at the church a hour earlier, be there a hour earlier. Talk with the bride beforehand and explain, "I need to be at the church at this time, which means that you need to be in your dress at that time."

Ideally, the bride and groom should have hired you because they think you are fabulous. If they like you, they will work around your schedule.

And if they aren't into changing their schedule, kindly explain that means there will be no zipping up of the dress in their film. If they're cool with that, then at least you've done your due diligence.

Everyone knows what they need to do the job right.

If you're doing groom prep and need enough time to her, get him to fake putting the tux on and fixing his tie. Tell him he can take it off as soon as you get what you need. I don't know how many times this has happened to me.

If you're going to be late for the church, and the bride doesn't want to get the dress on early, then leave before the dress is on and cut the film in a way so that the big dress reveal comes at the church instead of her home.

If you're going to be late to the reception, then leave the photo shoot early. Get what you need as soon as you can and leave the photographer to shoot and be the one running in during the introductions.

If you missed capturing something you feel essential to their film, work on your editing until you come up with something that tells the story without that shot.

This all goes hand in hand with checking the traffic throughout the day, leaving early in the morning, and carrying tons of water in the car so you can quickly drink water that tastes like it's from a hot tub when you don't have time to stop at a store. We're the pros, we should know how to work around these obstacles.

My main point: take control. You are getting paid because you are the professional, and as a professional you should be able to speak up and take control of the day if that is what you have to do to produce a film the couple will rave about for decades to come. That's the name of the game, after all, creating something the bride and groom will love.

I apologize for taking this thread off track, as that's not the original post was about. But it seemed like this was where the thread was headed. If anyone in charge feels this is too off topic, please feel free to delete this post.

While I agree having the option of 4 cameraangles gives you a lot of possibilities during editing they won't save you on important shots, if my main cam gets blocked I just move to a position where I get a clear view but if your unmanned camera's get blocked in important shots that's gone.

So you are saying a manned camera might give you more issues then an unmanned camera??

Now picture this: (and I'm talking from a one person shooter point of view at a typical Belgian wedding - one cameraman because the couple doesn't want to pay for a second one and since this thread is about one person recordings)

You start at the town hall were the legal part with the mayor is performed, that's the easy part which takes about 15-20 minutes. You pack up your gear, go to your car and in the meantime the limo is standing in the front entrance picking up the couple while you still are putting all your gear in the car. With a little luck if you know some shortcuts you arrive at the church just before they do to find out there is no parking space left. You then park 300 m further, drag all your gear in while the limo is already standing outside. There is no master of ceremony and eventhough you asked the couple to wait untill you can mic th egroom everybody gets out anyway and while you struggle setting up your tripods, second camera and audio the priest allready leads the groom inside the church.
Only thing left to do is film that part, mic the groom when he's at the altar and immediately after that film when the bride comes in.

It doesn't allways get that hectic but it isn't the first time I had to deal with such a situation, getting full controll like this is wishfull thinking and has nothing to do with "professionalism", most couples couldn't care less about how you manage, it's their weddingday and they want to be disturbed as less as possible. They expect that you are professional enough to deal with these hectic situations. Even asking them to wait a bit longer at the town hall so you get your precious extra minutes is not done, I'm absolutely sure they will keep to THEIR timeschedule and expect you to keep up. That's what they think they paid you for.

I'm with you Noa, the only reason I use a second camera is that at one time I had a problem with tape drop-outs and so started to always use a back-up where possible for the ceremony. It's nice to be able to vary the shot in the edit but I too always use my main camera as if it's the only one.
By the way as I now shoot to SD cards so I have lost my fear of drop-outs but having only changed this year I am just about getting comfortable with using cards. It's very worrisome doing live one-off events.

Just a little bit in addition, I wrote the above earlier but didn't post it until after Matthew posted his.

You obviously have a different work practice with a crew to assist. I don't think that many (if any) of the churches here would permit four cameras to be recording during the ceremony. It often takes some careful negotiation to get permission for a second camera to be located somewhere "discrete". Most British vicars recoil from the thought of the ceremony being turned into a "film set"
Also I've only once been asked to present the complete ceremony and only then because the bride's mother was in the choir. I edit down to the essentials entrance, vows/exchange of rings, readings (if by family or friend) signing the register and procession out. The informal greetings outside with genuine wishes and kisses are exactly the things that my couples like and book me for, and I never had anybody say that there was something in the church ceremony that they felt was missing. I don't do over the photographer's shoulder shots anyway.

Do you use all of that kit in the church?

I don't understand the second line, do you record nothing outside the church?

Everything stays put in the church. I come out in front of the B&G walking backwards and film everything up to them getting in the car and driving off to reception. Then I rush into the church, pack up as quickly but as calmly as possible, then carry the gear to the car and then head off to reception. I am normally last to leave the church. The three small cams have stopped, battery run out. But job done with them. I have to trust that no one in the party will nick my gear in the church ( and the church warden is about anyway)

If I had 3 other operators I would be so much more expensive than I already am I would hardly get a look in. Arriving at the church an hour before gives me 30 minutes to get sorted, angles, framed and focussed. If guests block the shot for a short while ( it happens) its no big deal.

As for leaving my manned main camera unmanned, I am standing right next to it. When the rings go on the couples don't move. And the framing from the main camera is from waist up, so a bit of flexibility. I am the only one allowed to stand behind the vicar in 90% of weddings I shoot. The tog stands at the back or to the side. He won't get within ten feet of my camera.

Exactly Dave. And it is so easy to sunch up as the cameras are never turned off. Drop them on the timeline one above the other, sync them up and cut betewn them when needed. Makes my one man band show look like I have a full camera crew if used correctly. OK I can't zoom or anything but the effect is more than adequate.

One thing I can't do is beat the B&G to the reception if it's a church wedding. I am ten minutes after their arrival but no biggie. All I would have missed is the manager greeting them and giving them a glass of bubbly.

I will join Dave and most likely Matthew in "the more views the better" camp.

Dave, a hat tip to you, for being able to pull off four cams solo.

I know me, and when I get rushed, I get frenzied and right after that, then I start screwing up. I learned this the hard way first screwing up a great gig to the point of disaster, and the next time out, losing a cam out of my hands ...... lens first onto the concrete floor. I swore off doing solo multi cam shoots that night.

But, that's me and don't claim what works for me is best, but there sure are pluses for having one extra body along for the gig. For me, I don't look at the second shooter as an expense. For me, it is a requirement, just like a mic or tripod, if I am going to have anything when the job is done.

I did have a checklist before, but with the DVXs now, I need to build a new one to incorporate the differences. We won't discuss the button I left clicked on for the last two shoots, that shouldn't have been. As far as my second shooter will ever know,,,,,, it never happened. :-)