How to achieve cinematic style wedding videography

Wedding videographers are becoming more and more common as video and filming technology become more commercially available. Whereas a photo can only capture 2D, still images of specific moments – and therefore usually have to be more choreographed or staged – a wedding video can give a much more ‘true’ sense of what being there was actually like.

As the technology improves, so too does the artistry and innovation around using it. New technology is constantly adding dimensions and ways of experiencing events like weddings, in which videographers can use cinematic style wedding videography to document the celebrations in a unique way.

What is cinematic style wedding videography?

There are a few different styles of wedding videography. The style you choose depends on what you feel will suit you and your wedding best. Many things influence this decision, such as the setting and aesthetic style of your wedding, right down to how you would prefer to look back on your special day.

Cinematic style wedding videography, on the other hand, is more of an attempt to create a video that you could imagine watching on the big screen. It uses a combination of different filming techniques and tools to thread an emotional narrative together. Making a wedding video cinematic involves the perfect balance between the technical aspects that make a video look like a piece of cinema, and getting the emotion of what is being captured across to the audience.

A cinematic style could be all things to all people and, whilst it can be difficult to define specifically, one thing’s for sure: when it’s done well, it can make a huge impact. For example, a journalistic style of wedding videos focuses more on the candid aspects of videography. Aside from conducting interviews and filming other inserts, when approaching videography in this way, a videographer is likely to stand on the sidelines for the most part and capture what’s happening around them.

How to achieve cinematic style wedding videography

Now you know what to expect when you go for cinematic style wedding videography on your special day, let’s look at a couple of the main ways that a videographer might try and achieve the style in your wedding video.

Camera movements and shot choices

One of the things that people think of when they think of cinematic shots that might appear in a high-budget Hollywood film is the smooth and sweeping camera shots that seek to take in a lot of the scene at once.

The use of establishing shots is also common. These are shots that show the exterior, establishing where the action is taking place. For example, an aerial shot outside of a church followed by an interior shot of a bride and groom at an altar begins to tell the story of what is happening, and where.

These kinds of long, sweeping exterior shots used to only be achievable with the use of a helicopter, meaning that only productions with budgets of hundreds of thousands of pounds would even consider attempting this feat. Read more about how we can help you achieve these shots on our page about using drones to film your event.

Post-production

Once the footage has been captured, the next important part of making a video look cinematic is all of the time, effort and technical know-how which goes into the post-production process.

Editing is a large, and often overlooked, part of how cinematic style wedding videography is fully realised – and not just when it comes to weddings, but with entertainment films as well.

It’s when you can add in all the elements that will really let the emotion of the moment shine through. This could involve anything from the use of emotional music and different lighting styles to colour grading and a mixture of different shot types and lengths. All of this film language draws heavily from tried-and-tested techniques used on the big screen.

Because of this, many argue that a wedding video made in a cinematic style has much more of an impact on viewers. It takes those beats that happen on the day and elevates them, making it easier to go back to the special day and relive those precious memories.

Using drones to achieve cinematic style wedding photography

We’ve established that the long, sweeping shots of exteriors, aerial videos showing unique angles of the action, and smooth, continuous movement of the camera are all aspects of cinematic videography. Luckily, there is a piece of modern technology that can achieve all of these and more – without having to break the bank and hire huge teams of people.

Drones, in the hands of a certified professional drone videographer, are able to capture cinematic footage that only used to be achievable with the use of expensive cameras, helicopters and restrictive shooting schedules.

By hiring a professional drone pilot who specialises in filming cinematic style wedding videography, you not only unlock these potential shots that can’t be achieved using other techniques, but you also ensure that you will get a high-quality video that will snap you back to memories of that special day for years to come.

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How to achieve cinematic style wedding videography

What is cinematic style wedding videography?

How to achieve cinematic style wedding videography

Camera movements and shot choices

Post-production

Using drones to achieve cinematic style wedding photography

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