Free guide
Planning your day for a beautiful film
Most of what makes a wedding film beautiful is decided long before anyone picks up a camera: when the light is soft, whether the vows can be heard, and which moments you made room for. This is what we tell every couple we work with, free for anyone planning a wedding.
Part one
Build your timeline around the light
About an hour before sunset the light turns low, warm and soft. It flatters everyone and it is the light most of our favorite frames are shot in. It does not last long, so it is worth planning for.
- Give portraits 15 to 20 minutes. That is enough for the two of you, without disappearing from your own cocktail hour.
- Spring and summer: sunset often lands during cocktails or dinner, so a short slip-away outside is easy.
- Fall and winter: the sun can set before the ceremony ends. A first look lets you do portraits in daylight and enjoy the evening.
- Do not skip last light. For about half an hour after sunset the sky goes soft and blue. Five minutes outside in it makes for one of the quietest, most cinematic moments of the night.
Every couple who writes to us gets a personal film plan with the exact golden hour, sunset and last light for their date and venue. Tell us your date and we will send yours.
Part two
Sound is half the film
The moments people rewatch are the ones they can hear: the vows, a father’s toast, a best friend losing it halfway through a speech. Good audio takes a little planning.
- Keep the ceremony close. Ask your officiant to stand near you and speak toward you, not only toward the guests. If you are reading your own vows, hold the card low so your voice carries.
- Every toast goes through the microphone. Even in a small room, even for the shy speaker. It is the difference between hearing a speech in your film and only seeing it.
- Tell your DJ or band about us. A clean feed from their sound board is the best audio a toast can have.
- Ask for an unplugged ceremony. A gentle note on the program or from your officiant keeps phones down, the aisle clear, and real faces in the film.
Part three
The moments couples wish they had filmed
When couples watch their film a year later, these are the moments they tell us they are glad they planned for, or wish they had:
- Letters or a gift exchange before the ceremony. Read aloud, they become the narration of the whole film.
- Grandparents. A minute with each of them, on camera, means more every year.
- Your parents’ faces during the vows and the first dance, not only yours.
- Traditions like the hora, a tea ceremony or a family dance. Tell us the order so we are in the right place.
- A private last dance after the room clears, or the exit with sparklers, bubbles or the whole crowd.
Part four
Make room for the people filming it
- Share your timeline two weeks out, even a rough one. We plan positions and lenses around it.
- Name one point person who is not you: a planner, a coordinator or a calm friend, to answer questions on the day.
- Introduce your photographer and filmmaker before the day. When they plan together, nobody blocks anybody.
- Take five minutes alone right after the ceremony. It is the most honest footage of the day, and you will want that moment anyway.
Part five
How much coverage do you need?
A simple way to think about it:
One filmmaker tells your story beautifully for most weddings under 150 guests. Two catch both sides of every moment: your faces and your guests’ reactions at the same time. See our collections for what each one includes.