I am behind on my edits, so I will simply post our last shoot recap, and the promise that I will be returning to focus on the blog when the clients that are due their video before the holidays are satisfied. A video can look fantastic, but if it is always more enjoyable when delivered on time. So for those of you that are now due, and still awaiting, I thank you for your patience.
http://www.vimeo.com/16379650
Enjoy!
Monday, November 1, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Celebrating Lives Well Lived
I recently had the honor of creating a photo montage in celebration of an 80th birthday. I've had friends tell me that they see the family history work we do as being more valuable than the wedding movies. Now, I certainly see value in both, but I do agree that it is extremely important to gather the best images and stories of those we love and put them together in a comprehensive piece. Something to pass on, to those that would like to know their ancestors, but were too young to have known them personally.
I was also present at the party, to capture footage of the guest of honor enjoying his life with his close friends and family. Many of the guests asked me for my card. The interest in celebrating life with a montage was quite clear.
Our montages feel different than those created by others because we make sure that interviews are included... adding voice and character to the images moving across the screen. Here is the recent piece that showed last Tuesday.
http://www.vimeo.com/13633638
I was also present at the party, to capture footage of the guest of honor enjoying his life with his close friends and family. Many of the guests asked me for my card. The interest in celebrating life with a montage was quite clear.
Our montages feel different than those created by others because we make sure that interviews are included... adding voice and character to the images moving across the screen. Here is the recent piece that showed last Tuesday.
http://www.vimeo.com/13633638
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
I began writing the following about three weeks ago, but have been so busy that I never completed the post:
It is aproxamately 24 hours after I posted Melanie and Jerry on Vimeo. I announced to Melanie and Jerry that their recap was finished. Twelve hours later, there have been 59 views. While I aspire to even higher first day numbers, I have to marvel at the exposure that we are granted in today's media era.
When I first began editing in the trade, it was not unusual to expect that only half to a full dozen friends or family would ever see your wedding masterpiece. VHS. SVHS if you were lucky.
Today, after scanning in a new photo montage project, I resumed work on the recap for Tiffany and Marlon. Little did I know that after having already put in a light day of data organization I was about to go the distance on a recap. What do I mean by go the distance? Cut the ceremony, photo session and reception portions of the recap (the pre-ceremony was already done). First I had to sort through the footage and chose from the huge number of beautiful shots (Tiffany is absolutely stunning. Take your breath away gorgeous), then mess with pacing, and I usually color correct along the way. Several revision passes are then made until I'm satisfied with the look and flow. Next, we export the clip to Compressor, select an internet friendly codec, and export from Compressor to one of your media files a Quicktime movie.
While the clip has been cooking in Compressor, I've been writing this article. Compressor informs me that the clip will be ready for upload to Vimeo in a half hour. The upload to Vimeo has increased in speed over the past month, so this will be a very speedy process.
(the following was written today)
The advances in technology have indeed increased our prospective viewership, but as you can see from the above, it also increases the workload. Wedding videographers did not concern themselves with color correction in the 90s (some still don't). Our wedding video Fore Fathers simply white balanced when they entered a room and hoped for the best. We still white balance when we enter a room, but Final Cut Pro has made color correction "easy". This ads an extra day to any edit.
Luckily for this particular wedding videographer there is one thing that hasn't changed much over the years: Passion. I still find myself hunched over the computer late at night trying to pull feeling and energy out of images. I find myself immersed in the world of a couple. I want to show them what they want to see.
So I was able to share the Vimeo post with Tiffany and Marlon on July 15th, and now I share it with you.
http://www.vimeo.com/13353746
It is aproxamately 24 hours after I posted Melanie and Jerry on Vimeo. I announced to Melanie and Jerry that their recap was finished. Twelve hours later, there have been 59 views. While I aspire to even higher first day numbers, I have to marvel at the exposure that we are granted in today's media era.
When I first began editing in the trade, it was not unusual to expect that only half to a full dozen friends or family would ever see your wedding masterpiece. VHS. SVHS if you were lucky.
Today, after scanning in a new photo montage project, I resumed work on the recap for Tiffany and Marlon. Little did I know that after having already put in a light day of data organization I was about to go the distance on a recap. What do I mean by go the distance? Cut the ceremony, photo session and reception portions of the recap (the pre-ceremony was already done). First I had to sort through the footage and chose from the huge number of beautiful shots (Tiffany is absolutely stunning. Take your breath away gorgeous), then mess with pacing, and I usually color correct along the way. Several revision passes are then made until I'm satisfied with the look and flow. Next, we export the clip to Compressor, select an internet friendly codec, and export from Compressor to one of your media files a Quicktime movie.
While the clip has been cooking in Compressor, I've been writing this article. Compressor informs me that the clip will be ready for upload to Vimeo in a half hour. The upload to Vimeo has increased in speed over the past month, so this will be a very speedy process.
(the following was written today)
The advances in technology have indeed increased our prospective viewership, but as you can see from the above, it also increases the workload. Wedding videographers did not concern themselves with color correction in the 90s (some still don't). Our wedding video Fore Fathers simply white balanced when they entered a room and hoped for the best. We still white balance when we enter a room, but Final Cut Pro has made color correction "easy". This ads an extra day to any edit.
Luckily for this particular wedding videographer there is one thing that hasn't changed much over the years: Passion. I still find myself hunched over the computer late at night trying to pull feeling and energy out of images. I find myself immersed in the world of a couple. I want to show them what they want to see.
So I was able to share the Vimeo post with Tiffany and Marlon on July 15th, and now I share it with you.
http://www.vimeo.com/13353746
Melanie and Jerry at Full Moon in Big Indian, NY
At Full Moon Resort in Big Indian, New York, weddings are done in a unique fashion. It is a three day event, each day provides something new for the guests of the resort, but every day provides beautiful views and a sense of calm. On the first day of shooting I asked Henry Moon (owner and operator) if there was anything special he would like for me to capture to help promote Full Moon. He said, "well anything you did for us would be very different than what you would do for Melanie, so just focus on the personal shots you need for her."
Henry, what you just told me is probably the best plug for Full Moon one could ask for. Each wedding held on these grounds is a tailored, personal experience. It's about the personality of the couple.
The full length version of Melanie and Jerry's wedding will be very different than anything I've ever done as well. Melanie's prime concern was to capture EVERYBODY. She had family in from California, and Florida. And beyond that, she understood that our movies have the power to preserve the memories of these friends and family during a very happy time in their lives.
View the recap here:
http://vimeo.com/13320005
I'll post it directly in this page later... but to be honest the quality is WAY better with the Vimeo upload.
Henry, what you just told me is probably the best plug for Full Moon one could ask for. Each wedding held on these grounds is a tailored, personal experience. It's about the personality of the couple.
The full length version of Melanie and Jerry's wedding will be very different than anything I've ever done as well. Melanie's prime concern was to capture EVERYBODY. She had family in from California, and Florida. And beyond that, she understood that our movies have the power to preserve the memories of these friends and family during a very happy time in their lives.
View the recap here:
http://vimeo.com/13320005
I'll post it directly in this page later... but to be honest the quality is WAY better with the Vimeo upload.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
This past weekend Reaching Roots went to the Walkill Golf Club to capture the wedding of Sara and Aaron. The grounds and staff were lovely.
The officiant declaired, "Sara and Aaron have chosen the short form." No more than four minutes later, we were done. Short form ceremony indeed! Even with the limited time, Gary and I got some amazing shots.
What stood out at this wedding? The sense of style. Both Sara, and her brother, Phil had style. Her dress took my breath away. Now, I've seen a lot of dresses. When Sara put this dress on I was stunned, it too me a full second to remember to hit record.
Visit
http://www.vimeo.com/12736768
for a clearer picture.
The officiant declaired, "Sara and Aaron have chosen the short form." No more than four minutes later, we were done. Short form ceremony indeed! Even with the limited time, Gary and I got some amazing shots.
What stood out at this wedding? The sense of style. Both Sara, and her brother, Phil had style. Her dress took my breath away. Now, I've seen a lot of dresses. When Sara put this dress on I was stunned, it too me a full second to remember to hit record.
Visit
http://www.vimeo.com/12736768
for a clearer picture.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Larissa & Robert
On May 30th, 2010 Larissa and Robert were married at the Glen Island Harbor club in New Rochelle, NY. While I was in New Jersey shooting another wedding for my company, Reaching Roots Studios. Chris and Cory delivered some stunning images. Here is a recap cut without having viewed all of the footage. I look forward to creating the final edit. I started cutting to Stevie Wonder, "Don't you worry 'bout a Thing" but simply wasn't feeling it.
Together we are Invincible.
What a great sentiment. Most of the lyrics in this song speak to the incredible bond between a loving couple. Strength is gained from knowing that there is an amazing person out there, doing everything they can for the good of the bond you share.
http://www.vimeo.com/12447996
Together we are Invincible.
What a great sentiment. Most of the lyrics in this song speak to the incredible bond between a loving couple. Strength is gained from knowing that there is an amazing person out there, doing everything they can for the good of the bond you share.
http://www.vimeo.com/12447996
Sunday, May 2, 2010
Learning from Masters
Two days ago I had lunch with with an old friend and collaborator. Ricky once shared office space with with my old boss Robert DePalma of Roma Video. I hadn't seen Ricky in probably eight years and while a lot has changed for him, one thing remains the same: he is a master of photography.
Had his first wedding of the season yesterday. My first will be on May 30th. As we chatted about the growth of our businesses, Ricky suddenly got wide eyed, "oh man, I know it's a step down, but I could really use an assistant tomorrow." Why not? Right? Why not spend the day learning from a true visual master. Ricky and I have completely different styles as one can easily see. So my thinking was, why not learn as much as I can and bring some new flavors to my upcoming season.
Ricky has already posted some of the highlights from yesterday's wedding, and I highly recommend checking them out. Tracy and Angelo... you have some lovely images to remember what was truly a fantastic day.
http://www.rickyrestiano.com/blog.html
Had his first wedding of the season yesterday. My first will be on May 30th. As we chatted about the growth of our businesses, Ricky suddenly got wide eyed, "oh man, I know it's a step down, but I could really use an assistant tomorrow." Why not? Right? Why not spend the day learning from a true visual master. Ricky and I have completely different styles as one can easily see. So my thinking was, why not learn as much as I can and bring some new flavors to my upcoming season.
Ricky has already posted some of the highlights from yesterday's wedding, and I highly recommend checking them out. Tracy and Angelo... you have some lovely images to remember what was truly a fantastic day.
http://www.rickyrestiano.com/blog.html
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