OT: Wedding Videographers' Sound Needs?

RalphM wrote on 6/25/2007, 5:02 AM
We've run into a problem at my church with wedding videographers wanting feeds from the soundboard.

The typical scenario is that the videographer shows up 30 minutes before the wedding is to start and wants a feed. Most of our soundboard operators are not technically competent to know how to connect for an auxiliary feed. The result has sometimes been that the videographer starts bullying the operator into letting him make the connection ("or the video won't be any good"). The mess left behind is not fun to deal with on the following Sunday morning.

We will develop a policy to deal with this, and I want to set up a feed that will be readily available without the need to get into the back of the board.

To get to the real question:
What audio sources do videographers want? Our clergy use wireless lavs and we have spares that can be used if necessary to mic the groom, etc. We have extensive wired capabilities for soloists and readers. We also record to CD, but the videographers are reluctant to use that as a source.

So - you folks who do wedding videos professionally - what would you ask for? Also, those who operate the audio boards in your churches, what do you offer and what policies do you find to work well?

Thanks,

RalphM

Comments

DJPadre wrote on 6/25/2007, 5:21 AM
i dont ask for anything, in fact IMO its downright rude to make ANY demands of the church, let alone bully them.
If the video "wont be any god" without a feed, then these producers sre as hell (pardon teh pun) dont knwo what theyre doing.

its NOT up to you to appease their needs, its up to them to know what the hell theyre doing. In any case, they should be using their own lav mics, if not, that is their problem, not yours. can u imagine a 20metre XLR cable running across the Aisle? How about an XLR cable getting caught on the brides feet as she struggles to find her position to say her vows..

Cmon dude, its not your problem. As for these particular videographers, i woud actually TELL THEM that its not your problem and if they want a feed, they should have spoken to someone about that BEFORE the bloody wedding.
Youve got enough issues to dela with on your own let alone trying to deal with an incompetant videographer

Its morons like this that give the rest of us a bad name
RalphM wrote on 6/25/2007, 6:06 AM
DJPadre,

I concur with your observations. I've done a few weddings as a second cameraman, and we always remembered that we were guests being allowed to work for profit in the church.

However, the practicality is that the family of the bride or the groom are our fellow church members, and they are already stressed. I don't want to put them into the middle of a stand-off between audio and video providers.

Another potential issue is the possibility of the videographers wireless lavs being on the same frequency as those worn by the clergy. That is why I want to be able to offer our wireless units, and a wired feed.

And yes, the policy to be put in place will require them to contact us with any needs at least a week before the wedding.

Thanks,
RalphM
richard-courtney wrote on 6/25/2007, 6:45 AM
One problem for the sound guy is what levels for house sound does not always
mean best levels for a recording. So he/she must monitor 2 outputs.

The video guy does not want to use a CD? I would say thank you
for making one. He is too lazy to import the audio to a track? The video guy
should have at least a mic on the groom. If he only has an on camera mic
then your CD should be a blessing. Your church does charge for a sound tech,
right?

If you provide a feed ALWAYS use a Direct Box. Never let anyone plug into your
mixer. An active D-box powered from the video camera's phantom XLR is what
we use for weddings at my church. These are much cheaper than repairing your board.

Post the frequency of the officiant's wireless. You can always have more than
one receiver picking up the signal.

One example of a http://hq.phonic.com/home/files/24/db2--2257.pdfD- Box[/link]. Mount it on the wall and label it VIDEOGRAPHER FEED with an
arrow pointing to the XLR output jack.

jrazz wrote on 6/25/2007, 7:50 AM
Some of our local churches has put together a package to give to the bride/groom when they reserve the church. In that packet is a "list of house rules". A section deals with videographers and what is and is not allowed. One goes into detail about this and says that a copy of the recording will be made available to the videographer either in wav or cd form, but patching is not allowed.

On another note, I run the sound/recording at my church and I do the same there. I will make a copy available or allow them to tap into our lapel sennheiser frequency if all they want is the officiant.

j razz
JackW wrote on 6/25/2007, 11:27 AM
Very few wedding videographers of my acquaintance would think of relying on a house board for their audio. They bring their own wireless gear and mini-disc recorders, and mic as needed -- officiant, groom, speakers rostrums, etc. In our experience shooting theatrical events, even union board operators can screw up a feed from the board; if I did weddings I certainly wouldn't rely on volunteer board ops to get it right for me.

The direct box suggestion is excellent, and would save board operators a lot of hassle from videographers who do rely on the house system for their audio.

Jack

RalphM wrote on 6/25/2007, 2:15 PM
Thanks to all for the suggestions. We'll definitely get a Direct box mounted, may even have an unused one somewhere.

We don't charge the wedding for sound operators - the policy is that only members or their children can be married there, so we'd be charging our members for the services.

I have yet to be there myself for one of these pushy videographers, but I'm amazed they don't jump on the CD offer. When I do video of events in the church, I use the camera audio only as a way to synch up the CD (and as backup if a house mic drops out). The CD is such an easy way to assure good audio.

Thanks Again,

RalphM