If you’ve watched my previous two wedding cinematography vlogs, you’re probably aware that they are on the technical side. I’ve covered topics like bit-rates, color depth, picture profiles, and battery life for both the Sony A7Sii and FS5. Both are amazing cameras that I was more than happy to review and share with other wedding cinematographers. If you are looking to switch or upgrade to these cameras, I would highly recommend watching both of those vlogs.

Now, I would like to take a step back from the technical side of things, and share something that, in my opinion, has a far greater effect on how you can create great wedding films. Wedding days at their core are about relationships. The bride and groom’s relationship, the parents of bride and groom and their relationship with their children, the minister’s relationship with the couple, and many more as these two families connect on the wedding day. Let’s talk about another relationship that will affect you, the cinematographer, even more than all others on the wedding day, your relationship with the photographer.

For years, I would go show up to a wedding with no knowledge of who the photographer is, much less anything about them. All I knew is that the bride and groom had apparently hired them. Now I’m a relatively friendly guy so we would usually hit it off and work well together, but it was always a strange experience. See, weddings are unlike other 9-5 cubicle jobs where you work with the same people for long periods until they or you eventually quit or get fired. With weddings, we work with a different co-worker every week! Would you go to work without getting to know your co-workers? No! Then why would you film a wedding without getting to know the photographer beforehand?

In this video, I share an amazing tip that I learned from my friend Alex Maldonado that will help you instantly hit it off with any wedding photographer. When he first showed this tip to me it completely blew my mind. And if you’re a wedding photographer, this works for you too!

Remember, everyone wins when the wedding cinematographer and photographer get along. There is a free flow of creative ideas, both of your portfolios get amazing visuals that look better, and the bride and groom get better film and photos. It’s a win all around.

I hope this vlog helped you learn something about wedding cinematography that you didn’t know before. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to get in touch.