My breath of life, my other half, my Cinderella // Two ceremonies, one wedding day, at the Joule Hotel in Dallas

When I was young, I didn’t like trying new things. I wore the same clothes, ate the same food, read a lot of books, and didn’t get out much. Thankfully this all changed around the time that I left for college, when I made a conscious decision to break out of my shell and attempt to be cool. Whether I was successful at being cool is debatable, but I did manage to make some friends and find a wife, so I consider that a win.

These days, I try to put myself in the position to try new things as often as possible. For example, when we go out on a date, my wife and I have a rule that we can’t go to the same restaurant twice. Another example: I create tutorial and review videos to help random strangers on the Internet.  I still do enjoy wearing the same clothes and reading though, so I guess everything hasn’t changed.

Now why am I telling you all about my awkward younger years? What does me trying new things have to do with Suneera and Amos’ wedding? Quick answer: Because their wedding was something new that I haven’t done before.

Two Ceremonies, Together

Longer answer: This wedding was a major step outside of my comfort zone. Instead of one wedding ceremony, I would be filming two. The first of which would be a traditional Indian ceremony, with all the outfits, music, and flower petals (so many flower petals!), that I had never experienced before. But due to my desire to try new things – and especially film new weddings – I was glad to do it.

Thankfully, Suneera and Amos were patient with me, as I learned all about Saris, Sherwanis, Garlands, and Talis. There was so much to keep track of, but throughout it all I was grateful for the chance to experience another culture’s traditions and ceremonies. Suneera and Amos, as you can see from the video, are such a sweet couple and I am glad I was able to film their wedding.

I learned a lot that day, and I’m looking forward to learning more in the future. So if you are planning a wedding and it looks like something that I haven’t filmed before, please get in touch. I would love to try something new.

Check out Suneera and Amos wedding highlight below:

A wedding cinematographer’s review of the DJI Ronin-M

In case you haven't been paying attention, there is a total revolution going on in the world of camera stabilization. For five of the past six years, I have used, loved, and traveled with the Glidecam HD-4000 to every wedding I have filmed. Now, with the advent electronic gimbal stabilizers such as the Movi and Ronin, it is looking more and more like the Steadicams and Glidecams of the world are becoming obsolete. Weights, muscles, and basic physics are being replaced by motors, algorithms, and computers. Okay, maybe not the muscles, electronic gimbals are plenty heavy too.

With the release of the DJI Ronin-M, I decided to jump onto the electronic gimbal train and buy one for myself. For the past few months I've been putting it through the paces, filming weddings and testing it in a variety of scenarios. I'm sure you're wondering, does it live up to the hype? Is my Glidecam now gathering dust in the corner? Do I now wish my tripod and monopod were electronic in some way too?

The face I make when using the Ronin-M
The face I make while using my Ronin-M

Like most things in life, the answer to these questions isn't a simple yes or no. In terms of simplicity and ease of use, the Ronin beats my Glidecam handily. But when it comes to setup time and my style of filming, I still prefer the Glidecam. In the review video above, I break down these pros and cons, as well as fully compare the Ronin-M to my Glidecam HD-4000. And like my previous reviews, I keep everything in the context of my experience using it to film weddings.

So if you are a wedding videographer, cinematographer, uncle Bob with a camera in the back of the church, or basically anyone else that wants to learn more about the Ronin-M, I hope this video is helpful to you.

Thanks for watching! Please let me know if you have any questions or comments about the review video or the camera. If I don’t know the answer, I will do my best to find it out for you.