Engagement Fusion for Greg & Charlene

Our very first engagement fusion video. Enjoy.

Engagement Fusion with Greg & Charlene on Vimeo

[Stelios Christofides]

Travis you should use this video to advertise your new combined business venture. It shows your excellent skills in videography and editing as well as the correct attitude of the photographer (your wife) and the fantastic shots she has taken that you have included in this beautiful video clip.
What is by the way an engagement fusion?

Stelios

[Noel Lising]

Hey Travis, I rarely comment on your video as I can't find anything to critique, the pan up ( 1:51-1:52), I was waiting for the reveal but it jumped into the video of the couple. Same question what is an engagement fusion?

[Yang Wen]

Hi Travis,

Very good video. Good flow and length. However, I find it to be more of a behind the scene promo video for the photographer than a "fusion" type of product for the client. I know fusion is a bit difficult to define right now but fusion to me the integration of video and stills in a seamless fashion. That being said, I'm sure you can market this to your clients as fusion and they would love it for what it is.

The best fusion product I've seen up to date is this one.. Off Camera Flash by JVS JVS Portraits - Canon EOS 5D Mark II: Stills + HD Video + Audio I think he was tremendously successful in combining the seamless transition between stills and motion.

[Travis Cossel]

Hey guys, thanks for watching and commenting. An engagement fusion is where we shoot video and stills of the couple's engagement session, and then create a 'fusion' video that incorporates both the video and the stills. It's kind of a 'best of both worlds' thing. You get some of the dramatic mystery of the still images, with the cinematic drama of the video.

To be perfectly honest, I think we will quickly surpass this particular video in terms of quality and style. This particular couple was very reserved emotionally, and I think a lot of our other couples will have more fun with the video. Also, I used my steadicam way too much on this shoot, but it was my first of the sort so now I know. I also think I will develop a better way to incorporate the stills into the video. This couple was a bit fun and quirky .. thus the song choice and the choice to animate the video-to-photo transitions the way I did.

As for the pan up on that still Noel, the image was actually cropped and didn't show them from the chest up, so there was no where to keep panning to. I was fine with that because I liked how the still gave you a hint of the scene and then the video finished it off.

Anyways, thanks for watching guys!

[Travis Cossel]

Yang, thanks for the comments.

As I just posted while you were posting, this was my first one. The couple loved it. Their friends and family loved it. But I know I can do MUCH better.

I think part of the reason this felt a bit like a photog promo is that I had too many wide gliding shots with the photog. I also think part of it was that this couple was very reserved and wasn't expressing emotion very well (especially the groom). As an example, we ask them to make a funny face at each other at one point and the groom couldn't do it because he was too self-concious. It was a challenging shoot to say the least.

I checked out that link and I think that was a great example of a fusion video. It's not quite what I'm shooting for at the moment, but it's a great example of how fusion can be done. I think my next one will be a step or two up. Thanks for the honest feedback, Yang!

[Jason Robinson]

The only thing that interrupted the flow of the piece for me was the photographer asking for a smile, since that was the only time we heard a voice besides the music.

Other than that, great looks, lots of smooth movements. Would be nice to have heard more ambient audio, but like you mentioned if the couple is very reserved, you can't "make" the audio work.

[Susanto Widjaja]

That was great! really enjoyed that!

I'm a steadicam freak so I'm loving it :)

the only thing that I'd comment is probably too much kissing (which I sometimes have too when directing quickly) :P

Well done!

Santo

[Aaron Mayberry]

The shot where your wife says "now give her a kiss" seemed to linger on a bit too long.

Otherwise, a great video :)

[Oleg Kalyan]

Travis, overall really enjoyed the piece, lively and dynamic, ( yet a bit too much kissing to my taste :)
few points on editing, mostly type of shots/ camera / movement, as imho suggestions..

0.12 camera movement clock wise on a glide, on 0.13 counter movement on similar focal lengths, couple placement, position, coming out from Photographer's back, (your beautiful wife) going to a different direction looks a bit like a jump cut.

on photographs presented on screen few times they go to one direction, then to opposite...
I find it distracting from building a visual, emotional flow.

0.23 and 0.24 looks like a jump cut of similar shots on action, "business", what they do..

going to 0.28 looks again like a jump cut, couple position in relation to the wall changes somewhat yet not too much to justify this cut..

1.00 can see you a bit.. Hello :) it's fine I think its a reportage piece after all.

I guess cutting to similar photos OK, may look a bit like a jump cut, possibly to choose a different placement, accents on photos like you've done later in promo?

Overall a great promo, probably more so for your wife!
Congrats again on a joint venture!

[Travis Cossel]

Originally Posted by Jason Robinson

The only thing that interrupted the flow of the piece for me was the photographer asking for a smile, since that was the only time we heard a voice besides the music.

Other than that, great looks, lots of smooth movements. Would be nice to have heard more ambient audio, but like you mentioned if the couple is very reserved, you can't "make" the audio work.

I was wondering about that shot. This couple was indeed a very quiet and camera-shy couple, so the shoot was a challenge. I don't think the groom said more than 5 words.

The reason I used that shot is I liked how it set up the still image that came right after it. But yeah, I see how it's odd to hear only the photog's voice.

[Travis Cossel]

Originally Posted by Susanto Widjaja

That was great! really enjoyed that!

I'm a steadicam freak so I'm loving it :)

the only thing that I'd comment is probably too much kissing (which I sometimes have too when directing quickly) :P

Well done!

Santo

Thanks Santo! I'm in total agreement with the kissing. The thing was, this is an engagement photoshoot first and foremost, and the photog needs to have quite a few kissing shots for them to choose from later. Next time, though, I'll be directing a bit more so I can get some different looks. Thanks for the comments!

[Travis Cossel]

Originally Posted by Aaron Mayberry

The shot where your wife says "now give her a kiss" seemed to linger on a bit too long.

Otherwise, a great video :)

Agreed, Aaron. The original cut had the ambient audio dragging even longer, but I cut that out. I should have probably cut into that shot sooner, so you could hear her and see her go to get the shot, and leave out the initial shooting part. Good call.

[Travis Cossel]

Originally Posted by Oleg Kalyan

Travis, overall really enjoyed the piece, lively and dynamic, ( yet a bit too much kissing to my taste :)
few points on editing, mostly type of shots/ camera / movement, as imho suggestions..

0.12 camera movement clock wise on a glide, on 0.13 counter movement on similar focal lengths, couple placement, position, coming out from Photographer's back, (your beautiful wife) going to a different direction looks a bit like a jump cut.

on photographs presented on screen few times they go to one direction, then to opposite...
I find it distracting from building a visual, emotional flow.

0.23 and 0.24 looks like a jump cut of similar shots on action, "business", what they do..

going to 0.28 looks again like a jump cut, couple position in relation to the wall changes somewhat yet not too much to justify this cut..

1.00 can see you a bit.. Hello :) it's fine I think its a reportage piece after all.

I guess cutting to similar photos OK, may look a bit like a jump cut, possibly to choose a different placement, accents on photos like you've done later in promo?

Overall a great promo, probably more so for your wife!
Congrats again on a joint venture!

Thanks for the detailed comments. A number of the issues you mentioned will be solved next time by having a wider selection of non-gliding shots to choose from.

Regarding the kissing, I just responded to this in another reply .. but on top of that response I will mention again that this couple was VERY camera-shy .. and usually if you get the couple kissing they will loosen up. It just never really happened with these guys.

It is indeed a decent promo for the wife! I want the next one to have a better focus on the couple, and less on the photography session ... but at the same time, I'm doing these for free right now for any couple that books both of us .. so I don't mind keeping it semi-promotional. d;-)

Thanks for watching and the for the excellent comments!

[Joel Campos]

Great job Travis! I'm with you and truly believe that these types of shoots really depend on the energy, personality and patience of the couple. Keep up the great work!