All The Equipment You Need To Be A Wedding Filmmaker In 2021
You can’t shoot a wedding without the right equipment! Keeping your kit lightweight and compact will make a world of difference at a wedding. You will want to keep everything on you at all times in order to make sure you’re not running back to your car to grab a lens that wasn’t in your bag. I said it earlier, but you really can’t afford to miss a shot on a wedding day!
Getting great imagery and perfect sound might sound impossible with a lightweight and compact kit, especially if you are used to working on larger productions, but believe me when I say it isn’t as difficult as you might think! It just requires a bit of creativity and the ability to troubleshoot in the field.
EQUIPMENT FOR WEDDING VIDEOGRAPHERS 2021
Cameras
When it comes to camera and lens choices I know that everyone has their own opinions on different systems and brands, either way, if you want to get into filming weddings you absolutely need to shoot on a DSLR or mirrorless camera. Expensive cinema cameras will slow you down and make you stand out on a wedding day and make everyone in the room feel very uncomfortable. If you want to get the nicest, most natural imagery you can then opting for a smaller camera will benefit you greatly.
Aside from choosing a small camera body here are some other factors to consider:
Good in low light for venues with bad lighting
In body stabilization
Possibility to shoot in 4K
Full-frame sensor for cleaner image
While all of these factors would be ideal in a camera, they aren’t essential to making your wedding films the best they can be. There is always a solution to every problem!
However, if I were to begin my wedding filmmaking career again and wanted a camera that fits all of the criteria above I would choose the Sony a7 iii as it is the perfect camera for the job, and even has a sensor size large enough to work for wedding photography too!
If I were on a tighter budget and still wanted to meet all of the criteria I would maybe choose a second hand Sony a7s ii as it is still a fantastic camera more than capable of filming a wedding!
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Lenses
This is another highly personal aspect of choosing a kit for wedding filmmaking, but it wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t mention it. Choosing the right lenses for the job will be critical in getting the best footage possible for your films. Regardless of what camera you choose you will want to try and save as much weight as possible with your lenses as they are easily the heaviest part of your whole setup.
For me, I use what I refer to as my ‘holy trinity’ of lenses. I use these lenses on literally every shoot I go to and they never leave my camera bag. Because you can never guarantee how good the lighting at a venue will be, I opted for lenses with a wide aperture to let as much light in when I’m in dark rooms.
My go-to lenses are as follows:
Between these three lenses I am covered for pretty much every eventuality! I will usually keep the 50mm or 70-200mm on my A cam and the 16-35mm on my B cam so I can quickly swap between focal lengths.
I would highly recommend that every wedding filmmaker have some kind of similar lens lineup in their kit ranging from wide-angle to longer focal length lenses as you never know when you will find yourself either at the back of a room and can’t get close enough to your subject, or way too cramped and can’t get far enough away.
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Audio
Now this is where things begin to get interesting! At a wedding, audio is so so soooo important and it is guaranteed to be the one thing you are going to stress about more than anything else on the day!! Why? Because it’s so easy for it to go wrong very quickly!
The two main points in a wedding day where the audio matters the most is during the ceremony and the speeches, the two times where you can’t intervene and stop everything if your equipment fails. That’s the exact reason you want to have multiple sources of audio to make sure that even if one source fails, you have more than one backup of it.
So where do you start with capturing great audio for your ceremony and speeches? It will mostly depend on a venue to venue basis, but that's exactly why you will have more than one type of recorder so you can tackle any situation that arises.
Before I tell you how to approach these situations I first need to introduce you to the equipment you will need. (I personally own all of this equipment in these exact numbers! I do everything I can to make sure I have the absolute best sources of audio I can!)
Budget Friendly -
4-5 x Sony TX650
Best Value for Quality -
4-5 x Zoom H1n or Tascam DR-10L
If you chose the Zoom H1n you will also need 3-4 Shure MVL/A Lav Mics
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Additional Gear For Professional Level Sound -
1 x Zoom H5
A whole heap of XLR cables and adapters
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So now that you have seen what you’re going to be using, it’s time I told you how to use it in the most effective way!
Regardless of whether you choose the cheaper or more expensive equipment I just listed, this is the best way to mic everything up for a wedding ceremony.
Start by putting your best microphone on your groom. In my case, this will always be my Tascam DR-10L but you can also easily use the Sony TX650. Try and position the microphone near the flower on the lapel of their blazer, this hides the mic from your shot and also makes it less noticeable for everyone else, meaning everybody feels more comfortable!
Next I will use another DR-10 on the podium where the readings will be taking place. I will usually wrap my lav mic around the microphone that is being used at the podium to help hide it.
After that I will find the officiant and pop a Sony TX650 on them. I use this because most officiants, regardless of whether it’s a church wedding, humanist ceremony, or local government officiant, don’t like having a larger recorder and lav mic attached to them. I’m not sure why, but that’s why I have the TX650’s, they’re small and nobody ever has a problem with them!!
Finally I will position my remaining microphones near any musicians and also near a speaker in the ceremony room. This is to make sure I get clear audio of the music that’s played and also to act as a final backup in case all of my other sources of audio fail.
Not every wedding is the same, so not all weddings will have all aspects of the ceremony I mentioned above. That said though, if you have at the very least 5 of the Sony TX650’s you will be more than well on your way to being able to cover 95% of the situations a ceremony will throw at you.
Having more audio equipment than you need will give you the flexibility to tackle unexpected situations, like there not being a podium for ceremony readings. In instances like that I will find the people giving the readings before the ceremony starts and mic them up with a TX650 and use my Zoom H1n’s with a lav mic for the groom and officiant. The key to making it a success is to have microphones to spare to make sure that nothing gets missed!
When it comes to getting the best audio for speeches, there are three main ways to tackle it.
The simplest method is to find out who will be delivering speeches before the day of the wedding and making a mental note of who they are on the day. Approach them before the speeches and individually mic them up with either a Zoom H1n and lav combo/Tascam DR-10L or the Sony TX650’s.
Another simple method is to use a TX650 or Rode Wireless GO on the venue’s own microphone with a custom made elastic microphone sleeve. For this you will need to buy some wide black elastic that you can sew together into a cylinder. I have made several of these in varying diameters to fit most microphones I come across. It’s really easy to slip over the venue’s microphone and slide my own mic inside that just before the speeches begin. Just be sure to check the venue staff are okay with it first!
The final method is the most involved and the most technical to pull off. It definitely gives the best results though. For venues that use wireless microphones, you can use your Sennheiser G4 receiver to tap into the frequency of their mic and essentially record the audio direct from their microphone! However, for venues that use wired microphones, you will need to check with the venue staff in advance if you can take a look at their sound desk to try to get a line out from it. In most cases, you should be able to take an XLR cable and get a direct line out that runs into your field recorder; though occasionally you may need to use a splitter cable to get a clean signal too. I would only recommend using this method if you are reaaallllyyy confident you know what you’re doing, as a lot of venues don’t even know how their own sound system works. If something goes wrong it will be on you to fix it!
Aside from the ceremony and speeches, you will also want to try to capture other audio throughout the day to incorporate into your films. Whether it’s guests congratulating the couple, an intimate moment between a bride and her parents, or anything in between, you will want to make sure that you can capture what is said in those moments in a higher quality than the audio from your cameras onboard mic!
That’s why I would highly recommend every filmmaker to use a top-mounted shotgun mic. These are invaluable for capturing high quality audio, and when paired with a wind shield you can film in almost all conditions indoors and outdoors.
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Throughout my wedding filmmaking career I have seen almost every type of audio situation there is when it comes to ceremonies and speeches. Really the only solid advice I can give you is to make sure you have multiple microphones for every possible situation. The more flexible you can be and the more backups you have the less stressed you will be if one of your sources fail mid-recording.
Bags
Remember earlier when I said that it’s important to make sure you have everything you need for the day close by in case you need it? Well this is the moment that you discover just how I manage to keep (almost) everything on me for the duration of the wedding day.
Having a good quality and spacious bag means you can pack as much gear into it as possible, all while being confident it can take the weight of everything inside it.
Just like cameras and lenses, choosing the right camera bag for you will likely be a really personal decision. Though just because it’s a highly nuanced choice for everyone doesn’t mean I can’t give you pointers on what to look for and what I’ve found works best for me and my style of filmmaking!
For me, there are four main criteria I am looking for in a camera bag for weddings, and here they are in order of importance:
Plenty of room and dividers to compartmentalise equipment
Very easy and fast access to all pockets and compartments
Great build quality to support weight
Blends in with the surroundings of a wedding
Using these four points really helped me narrow down exactly what it was I wanted in a camera bag for weddings.
What I found worked best for me was using a sling or over the shoulder style bag as it meant I had instant access to all of my lenses, batteries and audio gear at a moments notice. Over the years I’ve changed what kind of shoulder bag I’ve used as my equipment grew in weight and size I know exactly what worked and what didn’t for me.
At the moment I absolutely love using my ONA Union Street messenger bag as it has more than enough space and pockets for me to bring along my two cameras, three lenses, batteries, cards and 95% of my audio equipment all in one bag! It’s definitely a pretty packed bag but it is more than up to the task!
Before I took the leap into using ONA bags, as they are quite pricey, I used a ThinkTank Retrospective 30 as it performed in the exact same way and had plenty of space to fit all of my equipment into as well. The only drawback for me with this bag was the use of velcro in the bag. It may not seem like a big deal, but I didn’t enjoy needing to get something from my bag in the middle of the ceremony or speeches as the velcro would make noise. To you, this might not be an issue but it’s definitely something to consider!
If you don’t like the idea of either of these bags then you could also definitely check out Peak Design’s Everyday Messenger as I have seen plenty of photographers and videographers use it. Alternatively, if you are looking for a sling bag that is much more budget friendly, then you might want to check out lesser-known camera bag manufacturers like Kattee’s Vintage Style Canvas Camera Bag.
When it comes to the final 5% of my equipment that doesn’t fit in my main camera bag, I have those in hard cases like this one for my remaining audio gear, or I just pack it into my old camera bags I don’t use as often.
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Stabilisation
Most modern day cameras and lenses have really incredible stabilization built into them but don’t rely on that to save your footage from wobbles and shakes. The more points of contact you can give your camera the better and more professional your footage will look. In that same vein, you also shouldn’t rely on constantly filming in high frame rates to slow your footage down while editing. I’ve already written about why I don’t like shooting in slow motion so I will spare you another lecture, but just know that a 3-5 minute wedding film of nothing but slow-mo shots won’t have the same feeling of professionalism as a wedding film shot at 25fps that took more care in its framing and lighting.
Before I go off topic any further, let’s get into the good stuff!
When it comes to stabilising your footage at a live event like a wedding, you don’t want to be slowed down by having to constantly pick up a tripod, set the height, level the tripod head and find your framing before shooting. Enter the monopod! These bits of kit are perfect for giving almost all of the stabilisation as a tripod, without sacrificing any of the mobility.
My Manfrotto Monopod was the first bit of kit I bought when I decided to make filmmaking my career, and it has come with me on almost every shoot and travelled with me across the world. To say I love this thing is an understatement!
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If you’ve followed my advice from before and have chosen to bring two cameras to a wedding for multiple angles during ceremonies and speeches, then you will need to bring at least two tripods for them. The good news is that you only really need to buy one good quality tripod to use with your A Cam, as you can pop your B Cam on a cheaper tripod with a wider angle to act as a safety shot.
For your more expensive video tripod, I would choose something like the Manfrotto MVK500 Series of tripods, as they are sturdy, lightweight for a tripod in this price range and also fairly priced for the quality your receive. That said, if you have the budget for it and want a nicer quality tripod then I would choose a Sachtler Ace XL Tripod because the stability and quality of the tripod are second to none and you will probably never need another tripod ever again.
Thankfully, your second tripod doesn’t need to be as eye-wateringly expensive as those two. For your B Cam you can choose just about any travel tripod, as you will most likely just ‘set it and forget it’. So that’s why I would recommend choosing something like the Neewer Travel Tripod for your second camera.
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The way that I film weddings means that my monopod and tripods are the only stabilisation I bring with me, however, I know that a lot of other wedding filmmakers love to use gimbals. If you are a newcomer to weddings and filmmaking in general then I would recommend staying away from using gimbals as they just complicate the day. You will have to take time out of filming guests and the couple in order to balance your gimbal perfectly, and believe me when I say that I speak from experience that your couple would much rather have footage of their guests and family than a handful of gimbal shots of a room or them walking together.
If you are still dead set on getting a gimbal though then I would recommend either a Glidecam or a DJI RSC2, just don’t say I didn’t warn you when you can’t be bothered bringing it out during the wedding day!
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Lighting
Really? Lighting? At a wedding?? Yes actually! Weddings differ from country to country, region to region, couple to couple, so you can never be sure of how a venue will look, especially at night time or in the long dark winter months.
It took me a really long time to bite the bullet and buy a light to bring along to weddings but ever since I did I have never looked back. In the UK and Ireland, where most of my weddings take place, it varies wildly as to whether a venue or a band will have good lighting for a dance floor or whatever is happening for the evening entertainment. I once ended up shooting a couple’s first dance in complete darkness because the venue and band didn’t have any dance floor lights. The photographer had set up flashes around the dancefloor and got great photos but I ended up with really noisy and muddy looking footage. That’s when I knew something had to change.
Thankfully it doesn’t take much to fix this problem! In fact, all you need is one light!
As with all the gear I use at weddings I like to try and keep it as lightweight and as small as possible, that’s why I would recommend picking up the Godox S30 or Came Boltzen B30 LED spotlights. They both can run off a single Sony NP-F battery, meaning you aren’t stuck looking for a power source, and they both give out very similar qualities of light.
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My personal preference would be the Godox as it’s very similar to the Aperture LS Mini 20D’s that I use, but the Came Boltzen is just as capable!
I will use this single light source to flood the dance floor as a backlight and then shoot towards it for the couple’s first dance. It’s absolutely incredible to see the difference a single, focused source of light can make to your dance footage. Using a spotlight like this allows you to cut through any coloured lights a band might bring for the dance floor, add shape and shadow to the people dancing and in the worst case scenario even allow you to save what would have been a completely dark dance floor, in short, no matter the situation it elevates the whole look!