10 Reasons Brides Might Not Hire a Videographer, and Why They Are Wrong

Your wedding date is coming up.

As the big day approaches, you're starting to feel the excitement build. You've chosen the perfect venue, and you've found the perfect photographer.

And you're working with a talented wedding planner who is helping you bring all your dreams to life.

But you’re on the fence about a videographer.

The truth is, about 2/3 of brides hire a videographer. But many don’t, and there are many reasons why you might be on the fence.

Maybe you're worried about the cost, or maybe you just don't feel comfortable being on camera. Whatever your reasons — this article is for you.

In this post, we'll explore 10 reasons brides might not hire a videographer — and why you might want to reconsider them!

We'll look at the cost, the time and effort involved, and the personal preferences that factor into your decision. And we'll discuss why, in the end, a wedding video is almost always worth it.

So without further ado, let’s jump in:

Reason #1: The cost.

Definitely the #1 reason here. Wedding videography isn’t cheap, and often, it’s not prioritized as part of the budget.

But the venue isn’t cheap, the food probably isn’t cheap, and the photographer isn’t either. We pay for higher quality, and we pay for what we value. Wedding videography is the same.

Unlike the food, which is a cost — money spent, but gone after the wedding — a video is an investment.

The money you spend on having wedding video, just like the photographs — will give you a memory to have for the rest of your life.

So yes - videography is a significant expense. But is it worth it? 100%.

2. Some brides may prefer still photography.

Some brides simply prefer to prioritize still photography, and skip having a video of their wedding.

The truth is, videography provides a much more comprehensive and immersive experience — far more than photos can.

Why? A video captures not just the visual elements of a wedding, but also the sounds, the movements, and the emotions of the day.

A video can capture the bride’s and groom's vows, the speeches given by your friends and family, and the music and dancing at the reception. Photos can capture those too, but nothing like video can.

These elements add so much depth and context to the memories of your wedding.

And they help bring the event to life — so when you’re watching 20 years in the future, you’re still there, in the moment. I love still photographs, but they can’t do that.

3. Feeling self-conscious on camera

First off — this is completely normal. In fact, I’d say most brides feel at least some level of self-conscious when being photographed.

This is why it’s so important to choose a videographer whom you can relate to, connect with, and genuinely be friends with. The trust has to be there.

If the trust is there, you will be 1000% more comfortable in front of the camera.

4. Limited time or budget.

If you’re planning a small, intimate wedding with a limited budget, you might think it’s best to prioritize other expenses and forego videography.

But in my opinion — a small or intimate wedding is that much more of a reason to have a wedding video.

A romantic, beautiful wedding video with a compelling storyline will tell the story of a small wedding in an incredible way.

In addition, because the considerations for a smaller wedding are different, the photographer and videographer can often have more creative freedom to create something that is even more in line with your personal style and taste.

Also, with a smaller wedding, you and your spouse have more control over the details and the atmosphere of the event. So you can make the experience feel more personal and meaningful, and your wedding video will capture that intimacy and authenticity.

5. Limited space.

If the venue is small or the wedding is taking place in a location with limited space, it may be difficult to accommodate a videographer and their equipment.

6. Privacy concerns.

Often some guests may require additional privacy protection, and can’t be shown in the video. However, this isn’t a reason to not hire a videographer.

If you have guests for whom this is the case, and who shouldn’t be shown in the wedding video, you can simply communicate this to your videographer before the event.

If your videographer is aware of these restrictions, they can make appropriate arrangements to respect your guests' privacy.

7. Prioritizing other vendors

Some brides may decide to allocate their budget to other vendors they feel are more important.

This could include people such as a photographer, or a band or DJ.

But again, I think this goes back to cost vs. investment. If you consider how much of an investment videography is — I think it's definitely something you have to give priority to.

8. Worrying that a videographer may be intrusive at the wedding.

Again, this is a completely normal worry.

But fortunately, it’s also easily avoided.

Going back to point 3, it’s all about trust. If you find a videographer you can connect with, and genuinely trust - this will put you completely at ease.

You can even talk to the videographer to determine if their style is more documentary or journalistic. If this is the case, then they’ll naturally spend most of the day being discreet and unobtrusive.

And I think this goes without saying, but choose an experienced professional and experienced videographer: A good videographer will be able to capture the important moments of your wedding without being overly intrusive or noticeable.

To summarize, as with the other points here - careful planning and communication with your videographer will work wonders, and will minimize any potential discomfort or intrusiveness on the day of.

9. Lack of Availability.

During busy seasons, the best local videographers may be booked up, especially for popular dates.

This is probably the most unavoidable of all of the reasons in this article. If your wedding date is set, there’s not much you can do if your ideal videographer is booked up.

However, most videographers do have others they can recommend - some may even have a similar style as them. It definitely can help to ask videographers whose work you like, as well as other vendors such as your planner or venue.

10. Unsure about who to hire.

If you're unsure about which videographer to hire, that probably means you care a lot about quality — which is great when it comes to wedding videography.

Seriously, we love brides who care deeply about their video and value the craft.

There's two primary ways I recommend narrowing down options and deciding who to hire.

First, watch a bunch of wedding videos, and pick videographers whose style you like.

Decide what kind of style you like, and look for videographers who match that style.

Second, meet with potential videographers whose work you like. It's a great idea to meet with any vendor before hiring them, especially photographers and videographers. I'm always surprised at how few brides do this by default, and even more, how few vendors make it a practice!

It will help you so much to get a sense of your potential vendor's personality and style.

This will help you a lot to determine if you feel comfortable working with them and if their approach aligns with your creative and artistic vision for your day.

Conclusion

I get it — deciding whether or not to hire a videographer for your wedding can be difficult.

There are a myriad of reasons why you might be hesitant.

But there are, in my opinion, so many more compelling reasons as to why a wedding video is worth the investment.

If you'd like to read more of those, I put together this list of 50 of them.

I hope this post has been helpful for you. And whatever you decide - best of luck in your wedding planning journey!