Videographer or Not?

Posted Friday, August 31, 2007 7:16 AM

Hmm, I've been mulling over this issue for a few days now and have been meaning to put my thoughts onto this blog....darn website maintenance issues.  When Alfred and I first started planning, we were more concerned about finding a good photographer than anything else, so we were willing to spend a little more on that and not worry about videography.  That was until I saw videographer websites and the cool, nay, awesome work that could be done. 

Boulevard Video Productions really caught my eye, but unfortunately, packages start at $4K (and go as high as $9K, not including additional a la carte items!), but if outstanding, motion-picture quality footage of your special day is a top priority, go on and check them out!

I've also looked at Walter Pawluk and he also does great work.  I love the samples on his site: the jazzy music selections, the editing.  His packages start at $2300 (6 hrs) and go to about $3100 (10 hrs).  Of course the downside is that with a Chinese wedding, being the full day affairs that they are, I don't want to worry about going over a certain amount of time.

Then I saw Firefly Videography, which offers pretty decent coverage for a more reasonable pricetag.  Young Lee's packages start at $1220 and go to $1720.  He also offers a selection of add-ons (extra time, photo montage, etc).  The editing isn't as professional looking (in one of the samples, I saw swooping movement by the cameraman as s/he went from one part of the reception to another), but I have seen a lot worse.

This is only the tip of the iceberg.  I've looked on weddingbee (of course), HereComesTheGuide, and ProjectWedding.  There are so many people out there!

So back to my musing.  Do I even need a videographer or do I want one because I read about people finding the perfect videographer and being all exuberant about it??  On one hand, I hear/read about brides who say they were glad they had one because the day went by in a blur.  On the other hand, do I really think I'll watch the DVD on a regular basis.  I hardly watch movie DVDs I like more than 2 or 3 times.  I liken my situation I was often faced with back in college:

On marching band road trips, I would wonder if I should pack a reader or some textbook with me.  In the end, I'd pack it even though on some (most) occasions, I didn't touch the thing.  It was like a security blanket, a good deed point.  If I had enough sense to pack it, that must count for something, right?

Though packing some binded paper and deciding whether or not to shell out $2K+ on a wedding checklist item seem to be very different things :P.  Alfred says he doesn't want one and says it without hesitation, but I still have this on my mind...