Nicola & Adrian - St. Peters, Clerkenwell - 22nd Sept 2007

This was possibly the most stunning churches we have filmed at. It was St. Peters Italian Chruch in Clerkenwell, London and my vocabulary would not do it justice. If you are ever in the area pop in just to see how stunning buildings can sometimes be inside. As with all London Weddings prior preparation is key. Logisitcs are always difficult there as moving kit into and out of the church, and then transferring it to the venue along with London's notrious parking problems always present us with challenges and why for us two camera operators are essential and the reason we charge a premium for London Weddings.

The groom did not want to wear the small Sony Broadcast radio microphone so we put this on the altar, with the fathers permission, and still got great audio, but not from our preferred pickup point, the groom. Again, overcoming these small but ever present challenges are all part of a cameramans life and why experience is the key to capturing your day. The ceremony itself was like being in a family enviroment and was without pomp and circumstance, just a young gifted italian priest welcoming everyone into his beautiful church. I don't think anyone could ask for more from a place to make a lifelong promise to one-another.

The reception was held at the Royal Institute of Architects. Again, the building was amazing with stylish lighting, excellent audio set up and 1st class staff. Whenever we edit a film there is always something that would have made it our best which we werent allowed or able to get, in this case the grooms audio feed, but whilst it was still good audio from our Sennheiser ME66 Gun Mics on the Camera, when you are used to the sound from the two Sony Broadcast radio mic's we use you can't help wishing you could use them all the time. Again, we always respect the wishes of all our clients as everyone is different and has their own tastes and comfort levels.

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Kenny & Kate - Long Sutton, Hampshire - 1st September 2007

I always say if you want good weather, book your wedding for September. It seems to be the new August just like Thursday is the new Friday and Black is the new White. Well on this occasion I was wrong as it was overcast on what was forecast to be a lovely day. The first thing you do on the morning of any shoot is look of the window. Today looked ominous, but I prayed it would not rain as the reception was in a Marquee and the Bride walking to church!

On this occasion Cold Oak was providing the video as well as photography so we were at the house promptly on time and everyone was already finished getting ready! The vicar in this case insisted now no photos in the church whatsoever. That was the Bad News. Good news was she seemed happy for us to stand exactly where we wanted with the camera. Strange ideas they have sometimes, but on all these days they are the boss!

The groom drove a beautiful Aston Martin lent to him by pain of death by his new father in law. We had real fun photographing them in front of the school gates where they both met and where the Bride lived next to and then it was up to the Marquee for afternoon tea.

We use a steadicam for much of the motion shots and in this video you can see the pan around the Bride & Groom on their first dance using the excellent but expensive piece of kit!

Phillipa & Steve - Wentworth Golf Club - 25th August 2007

Unfortunately, the vicar in this particular church did not allow filming of any kind, or even the sound recording of the vows so we were restricted to footage after the ceremony. As we arrived towards the end of the ceremony to capture the outside of the church and get set up we could hear Ave Maria being sung by a truly angelic vocalist. We were both gutted we weren't allowed to capture it. With every wedding there are obstacles to your filming and with experience you learn where they are and how to tackle them. In this case filming was just not allowed and we of course always have to respect the wishes of not only the Bride & Groom but all official involved in the day.

Afterwards, the reception was held at Wentworth Golf Club which was a truly stunning place to film. The weather was perfect and the bride and groom took golf buggies and messed around Wenworth for 30 minutes. The Breakfast room looked like a state banqueting hall and throughout the day we just kept rolling. The band 'Fun Monkies' played well into the wee hours. For us the lighting and sound were perfect and we came away with probably one of our best films. The icing on the cake would have been the ceremony, but you cant win them all!

When capturing the first dance and during the dancing with the band we used a Camera 'Top Light' in this case a PAG C6 to minimise the amoint of 'Gain' we have to use with degrades the quality of your film. In the final few scenes when Steve spins Phillipa around we are using our Steadicam rig for ultra smooth camera movments with the second camera lighting. The Showreel was encoded using a high contrast Black & White 'crunch'.

Jayne & Chris - Holiday Inn, Borehamwood - 11th August 2007

This was one of those days where you could just switch the camera on, point it in the Bride/Grooms general direction and you'll get a great day. Both were so relaxed, friendly and a joy to work with. The venue had very limited picturesque features but Lee Walsh of Lee Walsh Photography was truly an artist when it came to dealing with the guests and everyone around him. I think this guy deserves a medal as I never seen anyone try to help out so much. He even drives guests home in his car afterwards!

Chris worked for a piano removal and sales company and got in a beautiful grand piano played by a leading voice and piano coach and Jayne's daughter sung to an enthralled audience. Talk about pressure!

The video messages we got that day are probably the most entertaining we have had to date. As you can see from the video, all smiles and loads of fun for us and the guests...did I say we have a great job??

Bridal Preparations - 11th August 2007

We were with both Lisa & Anthony all day and onto the carriages at night on a bespoke package. I always enjoy the bridal preparations as it gives us a chance to get to know the bride and become part of the day. Not only do we capture memorable and emotive footage we become a friendly face on the day for you which often disarms many couples and lets them relax and enjoy the day without worrying about us. Our style is reportage, that is, fly on the wall. Rarely do we ask you questions, shove a camera in your face and interview. That is of course unless you want to! We stand back and try to be another guest. If at the end of the night you say we barely noticed you then we have done our job (well one third of it as then comes the hard bit of editing it!)

Many say the cost of this seems high compared with other extras but the logistics of filming the bridal preparations are the primary reason for the cost and often it means cutting out a sequence from another portion of the disc in order to ensure the best possible quality footage. If there are two camera operators they both must travel. This then involves 2 extra man hours, extra editing, tapes and travel costs.

Lisa & Anthony - Church of St. Mary, Bocking

Sometimes it would seem whoever is looking down on us, deals us a good hand on occasion. This was one of theose days! On this one the weather was fantastic and a lovely Bride & Groom. We were with the Bride & Groom from preparation until carriages and got every last minute of the day. Very tiring, but well worth the effort..!




The vicar would not allow the 1st Camera in a suitable position at the front of the church so we were extremely limited on the shots we could get there but nonetheless we captured the ceremony well from the rear of the church, but just not where I would have liked to have been. As always our preferred position and that of the vicars almost always confilct. We want to be as close as comfortable, he rarely wants you in there at all so it is always a compromise and a fine line to tread. Once outside the Wedding Car broke down (it seems to happen a lot!) so extended photos were taken outside and we got some great reportage shots. Once a replacement car was sourced by the car company it was onto Channels Golf Club in Chelmsford.

We experimented with our 4m Jib which is a camera crane. You can see it with the shots of the 'resevoir dogs' style of the groom and groomsmen walking towards camera and the shot of the veranda panning up and right was were we used it. We found that the time taken to set up and operate the jib did not justify the limited shots we got. Plus once set up, it is virtually immobile. Whilst great, with two people required to set up and operate we did not feel it was a good use of the time and decided should the jib be required on another job, then a separate operator would be required for it.

When the sun started setting we went outside for some more photos and two white doves landed on a rooftop. One of those rare moments, the camera is rolling and something just happens in front of you, quite magical.

Lucy & Steve - Addington Palace - August 2007

Sometimes vicars/priests can seem to us to be there only to obstruct the filming of your day. On occasion they seem to just want to bend over backwards to help you and here was one such fellow. I never seen a priest seem so happy to marry a couple I had to include it in the showreel. We were told there were to be minimal photos at the church afterwards because it was not very conducive to photos and whilst it was not the most run down church we have seen in our time we still got some great shots on a lovely summers day. What we lost at the church we made up for at the reception in Addingtion Palace. The Red Arrows were displaying next door and one flew right over smoke on which we caught, which made our day!

Again the staff were superb and the friendly toastmaster gave us the running order and plenty of notice about each event making our lives a breeze. Some days it seems a shame to take the money, when the sun is out, the venue is stunning and people are all around to help you. If only it were always that simple! Again, on this video you can see the steadicam in action with the pans around the toastmaster, bride and groom and during the first dance. Notice the lack of jolting and shaking as we walk freely with camera creating dramatic and memorable footage.