LJ Design/Video

The Maid of Honor

Hello again

After writing about the best man duties last week it got me to thinking about what the Maid of Honor duties include.

It is a great honor to be chosen for this duty. It means after much thought the bride has picked her best friend to help her with all the planning that has to be done. It also means a lot of responsibility for you. Are you up for it? Well only you can answer that question. With that responsibility will come some costs and some time. But think of all the fun you will have helping her pick out her dress and planning the parties. By all means though if you are not up to it tell her. Many friendships have suffered because a friend was too scared to say, “Sorry, I love you but I can’t.”

As always there are a ton of web sites that can help you. I found one in particular that pretty much sums it all up. Take a look at The Knot. It has a lot of good tips for the bride as well as all the attendants in the wedding party.

Next week I will be off scouting some interesting wedding and honeymoon destinations.

See you when get back

The Best Man

Hello all

My job is to be behind the camera filming all you beautiful brides and handsome grooms. Well yesterday I stepped in front of the camera to be best man to a very good friend of mine.

It's interesting how different the world looks on that side of the camera and it got me to thinking. Just what are the duties and obligations of the best man. Your supposed to be there for the groom. Make sure he shows up. Give him a bachelor party. We know all this. But what other duties are there. Check out this best man site for more on the duties and responsibilities.

But one of my biggest concerns was what was I going to say at the toast. I have known both the bride and groom for many years so there were a lot of stories I could have shared but that would have just bored everyone. And of course we all want to be witty. So I started looking on the Internet and found some web sites that gave me a lot of good ideas on how to do the toast properly.

Someone once said, Being asked to be the best man is like kissing the Queen. It's a great honor but no one wants to do it. Well I'm here to say that it was a great honor and with a little preparation you will not only deliver a good speech but will have a great time doing it.

So here are some tips for you potential best men to help you get through the toast.

1. The wedding toast should be around 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Practice your speech.
3. Don't drink to much before the speech.
4. Speak from the heart.
5. Take your time. Don't mumble or rush your speech.
6. Smile and make eye contact.
7. Start with a joke. But be careful of off color jokes in mixed company.
8. Introduce yourself. Not everyone may know you.
9. Don't be ashamed if you get emotional. Heck. Real men cry too.
10. Congratulate the couple.

And above all have fun.

Friedman Event Center

Hello all

In my travels around the county filming weddings and events I have a great opportunity to see a lot of different places. One such place could be considered a hidden treasure. Called the Friedman Event Center it is tucked away in North East Santa Rosa close to Howarth Park which for any of you that aren't familiar with the area is a beautiful hilly park right in the heart of the city. If you like hiking, biking, or just walking around the lake with your favorite gal Howarth Park is a lovely place to be.

If you are still looking for a place to celebrate your wedding, reception or even a corporate event Friedman Center is a place you should look into. It has plenty of room for a large or small wedding or event with tons of parking. There is also an outside patio that would be a great place to hold a wedding ceremony.

Chris Parr-Feldman is the Director of Public Relations and would be glad to talk to you about your plans and give you a tour of the center. Check out the web site and give her a call.

On another note

I had an opportunity to film some of the Tour of California Stage 1 bike race on Monday. I was out on Hwy 1 north of Bodega Bay filming the bikers as they turned up the hilly Coleman Valley rd. on their way to Occidental and a Santa Rosa finish. Quite a spectacle with 144 riders all grouped into the pack. For all the waiting and anticipation it only took 15 seconds for all of them to zoom by. I think the most interesting part of all this though was the continuous stream of support cars, race officials and police that followed them. The line of cars seemed to never end.

Just one more reason to come to Sonoma County for your wedding plans.

See you next week

So what is this Videography thing?

Hello all

Video taping started many years ago and has continued to improve over the years. We have come a long way in a short period of time from the early days of large bulky cameras with tape decks attached and fair to poor image quality to the more non-intrusive compact cameras with incredible image and sound quality. Plus the sophisticated editing systems that allow us to be as creative as we like.

So what does this all mean to you?

It means your wedding video will be something you will want to view over and over again. Show to your friends and family and pass down for a lifetime of cherished memories.

But before this can all happen you need to ask a few questions.

• How do I find the right videographer?
• How long is my wedding film going to be?
• Is my videographer going to be non-intrusive?
• How do I know if my videographer is a professional?

These are all legitimate questions and you shouldn't be afraid to ask them.

So how do you find the right videographer? There are many ways.

• Talk to your friends and family.
• Look on the Internet. There are a lot of sites that can give you good information including The Knot and Google searches.
• Talk to the other vendors you are involved with. They are a good source for referrals.
• Check out  bridal magazines.
• If you are using an event planner ask them for a referral. They are a very good source.

And above all plan ahead. Videographers book up fast during the wedding season and it takes time to plan out your wedding schedule properly.

HD or Not HD

Hello Everyone

Our industry is going through yet another change. We as professionals are used to it and frankly expect it. But I have to wonder at times if it is a good thing or is it just a way for manufacturers to continue to make more money? But that is a topic for another time.

The bottom line is (HD) High-Definition systems are here, are getting better, and are getting more and more inexpensive each day. But what does that mean to you--the bride and the groom? Well, HD is just one more thing for you to have to think about when you make your decision on filming your wedding. There is no doubt the picture quality is going to blow you away. But, at what cost? And I guess that is the main question right now. Most videographers haven't made the switch yet. It is a new industry and equipment is still pretty expensive. But that's not even the point because if the demand is there we will keep up. As they say. "Build it and they will come".

But what you have to think about is how are you going to view it. And how are your friends and family going to view it. There is more to HD than just shooting it on a camera and delivering it to you. In order to view it in all its splendor you will have to first have an HD TV. Then you're going to have to have an HD player. I have talked to several people that have HD sets who weren't even aware that they weren't viewing HD programming. The demand just isn't there yet. It will come. I have no doubt about that. But the industry just hasn't jumped knee deep into it. Why? Because the demand just isn't there yet. And when they do you will see a market saturation.

Another thing to think about is how you are going to look on the new HD screen. If you have ever seen a close up of someone on HD you will know what I mean. If not, keep in mind that all the normal flaws that we all have are going to be more prominant on HD. Your makeup will have to be perfect. And as the day wears on will it be necessary to hire a makeup artist to follow you around?

When you start to make your decision on whether or not you are going to ask for it, just remember, what is the cost trade off going to be? Producing an HD film is still very expensive. If that's what you are looking for, then by all means go for it. You do deserve the best. But think about this. What is your wedding day all about? Is it about new technology or is it about the passion and romance you have dreamed about all your life.

On another note. I would like to mention another vendor I met at The Wedding Expo bridal show. Carolyn Cole-Schweizer owner of Henry's Flowers in Santa Rosa. I needed a floral decoration for my booth and she helped me pick the right one. They were beautiful. If you are looking for great service and great flowers check out her web site and give her a call.

See you next week.

The Wedding Expo

Hi all

Just back from a wonderful bridal show on Saturday, January 27th. We met a lot of wonderful brides and grooms who were asking many good questions about video. That's good news. I am so glad that people are really starting to see the importance of not only filming their wedding for themselves but as a piece of work that can be handed down for generations. How many times have you sat down and looked at a still picture of your grandparents or even great grandparents and wondered what they were really like? I know I have. With film when that happens to your children and great grandchildren they will be able to see what you were really like. Your personality, your joy of life. And that you were a pretty good dancer too.

I would also like to thank Cirkl and David Janowski of The Wedding Expo for their wonderful work in setting up one of the premier events in Sonoma County. It takes a lot of work to put a show like this on and your support continues to make it bigger and better each time. And if you're still looking for a place to have your event check out Ellington Hall .

I also met a lot of talented and friendly vendors including Jack Hecker of Jack Hecker Photography. Jack is not only a great photographer he is a good friend who I have had the pleasure of working with in the past. Jack's easy manner has always made a great and relaxed day for all of the wedding party.

I would also like to mention two DJ's I had the pleasure of talking to at the show. Music is such a big part of your wedding day. Check out Michael Luna at Michael's Music and Planet Entertainment.

There is one other interesting vendor that I talked to at the show called The Confident Bride. How many times have you had a camera pointed at you and you go into your shy mode? It seems like whenever that happens we all change. The Confident Bride teaches you how to tailor your walk, overcome your stage fright, improve your posture as well as many other things so that when you walk down the isle you WILL be a Confident Bride.

Thanks again to all the great people I had the pleasure of meeting and talking to.

Next week I'll talk about more of them and delve into the mysteries and misconceptions of HD--High Definition Video.

See you next week.

Excited Newbie Blogger

Hello all

Not quite sure what I'm doing yet or if I'm doing it correctly. So please be patient with me.

I am a 20-year wedding and event videographer that has recently become interested in the world of blogging due in part to the wonderful workshop I recently attended at The 4Ever Group's Video 07 conference in Jacksonville Florida.

What I hope to accomplish in future articles is to try and inform and educate brides on the power of video with tips on how to pick the right Videographer.

We are at a time where not only do we have the means to film and perserve your wedding day in ever increasing quality and beauty. But also have a lasting memory that can be handed down for generations to come. What better way for your children and grandchildren to look back at yours and their history.

Anyway. I'll keep this short for now until I can figure out what I'm doing.

Thanks for stopping by and I hope all of you will come back soon.