07/31/2020
I was talking to a friend today and it really made me realize that most people don't know what goes into the background work of what a photographer or videographer has to do to create that perfect photo or video for you.
The last post I posted here was a video I finished for a beautiful couple on their wedding day. I shot creative shots the entire wedding trying to gather always more than enough footage so I have lots to work with in the editing process. Then there is the process of going through ALL the clips you took and narrowing down the good, the bad and the ugly! This can take hours and hours of work.
After you finally finish looking at all of this and your eyes are crossed and you are hyped up on caffeine, you need to (if you have not done this already) figure out the song that would suit the feel your are trying to create for your video. This is fun, but time consuming. I finally found a beautiful song and then realized it was about someone dying! ( not the best choice for a wedding!)
Finally editing all the footage to the music, on the beat, at the right timing, with fluid motion, is key to making your work look professional and have a great reaction from your clients. This last wedding was held in a Aero museum that cast a yellow shade over everything adding more time for Color correction to match the rest of the video clips. This last step could take days and days to finish. So the hours spent working on your project are minimal when you are with your photographer but are extensive behind the scenes.
Still photos are the same as we have to edit our baby snot and drool, your lunch in your teeth, teenage pimples and your extra 10 lbs that you would like us to "smooth out" ( I get it, I always want that done!)
Sometimes it is our choice to do extra work too. I have a good example, I had a really fun shoot last week and one of the photos I wanted to keep but I had one of the ladies not smiling in one and then in the other shot the other young lady had her eyes closed. Can anyone say HEAD SWAP!? Yes, this is what I had to do or discard all together. I have put the two photos and the final head swap below. I thought you may find this interesting.
So when you think about what you get with your photos, it is a whole lot more work than just snap and send. We care about you and your memories. This is why we do what we do.