Our filmmaking Philosophy

Our philosophy is simple. We want to make amazing wedding films for the coolest people on Earth. We want our films to be the highest quality possible. The issue is sometimes getting the best quality comes at a price of taking away from the moment, from your guests, from your big day. It’s our goal to find the right balance of amazing quality and remaining unobtrusive. We want to add to your day. Not take away from it! Below we’re going to talk about some of the ways we approach filmmaking and some things you can do to help ensure your film will be awesome.

Here is how it all comes together + How you can help

Audio

It’s impossible to understate how important audio is to our films. The spoken words throughout your day (ceremony, letters, toasts, etc) are the soul of your wedding film. We’re endlessly working on techniques to capture the best audio in the most unobtrusive ways. Typically this is done by micing up important people during key moments and plugging into sound systems when available. For card readings, we’ll mic up whoever is reading. For ceremonies, we’ll mic up whoever is wearing a suit, the officiant, and any podiums. We try our hardest to not have to mic up the bride’s dress. So no worries there!

Ways you can help with audio!

• The biggest way you can help with audio is by talking to your officiant and letting them know you’d LOVE for them to where a mic. If we can’t mic the officiant, it’s possible that none of their spoken words during the ceremony will be usable for the film.

Lighting

Light is so important for videos and photos. For most of the day we can rely on natural light. Besides creative shots the only time we will HAVE TO USE LIGHTS is during the reception. The reason our dance footage looks amazing is because of the lights we use. But we will light your reception in a way that blends in with the scenery and we will only use just enough light to get the effect we need. Once we get enough shots (usually entrances, first dances, toasts, and a dance set or two) we’ll take the lights down. It’s important to note that these lights will not interfere with any lighting your DJ or Venue is setting up.

Ways you can help with lighting!

• The biggest way you can help with lighting is by understanding why we’re using it. Every now and then we’ll come across a DJ or Band that is unfriendly to lighting. They want your reception as dark as possible. We totally understand why. But we can’t create the films you’re hiring us to create without using the lighting. We’re team players though. That’s why we try to get what we need then take the lighting down as soon as possible.

Directing

When it comes to directing and posing we are very hands-off. We’re going to defer to your photographer for most of that. The only thing we like to do is make sure you’re in great lighting and in front of clean backdrops (we will take care of that). From there we can let the moments happen organically! During the creative sessions, we have a couple of moving shots we like to get. But we can get 99% of what we need without having to direct or do anything different than what your photographer is doing! This is probably why so many photographers recommend us.

Ways you can help with directing!

• Just have fun and act like we’re not there! We’ll let you know if we need anything specific.

The Editing Process

Throughout our adventures with you, we’re going to learn your vibe as a couple. We also have a form we send out that helps us dial in your style and vibe as much as possible before we shoot your wedding. We’re going to take all of that plus all of the amazing footage and audio we captured at your wedding and turn it into a beautiful wedding film! That being said here are a couple of ways you can get involved in the post-production process.

MUSIC

Music is so important to our films. There are a couple of ways we go about selecting the soundtrack for your film. First, we can pick the songs based on your vibe and what we think fits the story. Secondly, we’ll give you access to the music libraries we use and you can search for songs you love! We have a couple of other options which we can discuss on our call and will be addressed again right before your wedding.

What goes in the film

Do you have a say about what goes in the film? Yes! We have a killer way for you to have input into what goes into your film, what songs we use, etc.

The team

As of now, we only go on one adventure a day. Our teams are always made up of two videographers. I will be your lead videographer and one of our amazing second shooters will be there as well. We have a close circle of second shooters (all of whom are lead shooters on their own weddings) who will be assigned to your wedding closer to the wedding date.

Attire

Our dress code changes depending on the time of year. We walk the line between dressing as professional as possible while remaining as functional as possible. Weddings are a fast paced environment, which in our weddings sometimes means getting on the ground, climbing, hiking, getting wet, etc. For that reason you’re not going to see us in suits or tuxedos. We generally where dress pants and dress shirts. But on occasion may wear dress pants and polos for the warmer months.

Day Of Interactions

Although our style is to fade into the background and film things as they happen organically. We also wear many hats the day of your wedding. Our team is there to be your friend, your cheerleader, to crack terrible jokes to make you laugh, and to just have great time with you. We’re going to keep everything light, fun, and stress free. This is not about us. This is about you and your amazing day!

If you have questions feel free to reach out! We can’t wait to go on this adventure with you!
- Michael Hook