How to Find a Wedding Videographer: The Ultimate Guide

Introduction

So you want to hire a wedding videographer.

Great decision!

Your wedding day is a once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

Having a wedding video, whether it’s a 3-minute highlight video or a full-length feature film, is something that will let you relive the day for years and decades to come.

(If you’re on the fence about hiring a videographer, I recommend checking out this article about 50 reasons why you should hire one.)

But — there’s a problem.

There are so many videographers out there.

And with so many choices, it can be difficult to know where to begin.

Where’s the best place to find a videographer? How do I know what to look for?

You’ve come to the right place.

It doesn’t have to be hard.

Finding the perfect wedding videographer — sounds daunting, right?

If you’re caught up in the process of wedding planning, it might be one in many tasks that seem daunting for you.

But it doesn’t have to be!

If you follow the steps in this article - it’ll be easy.

Let’s break it down together — so you can find a videographer whose work you love and who will love working with you.

Let’s get you a beautiful wedding video that you can enjoy for the rest of your life.

Tip #1: Start Early

Here’s a fact: wedding videographers book up quickly.

Especially for 2023 weddings.

And ESPECIALLY if you’re getting married on a Saturday.

(If you’re on a weekday, that’ll give you some more flexibility. But still start early).

Thus, to give yourself the best possible chance of being able to hire your best find, you want to start early.

This will give you time to research, compare portfolios, and really find someone whose work you love.

It’ll also give you time to discuss your vision for your wedding video with them, introduce them to your planner and photographer, and start building those relationships early.

The more communication that happens up front, the better.

And the more you will all be on the same page.

What better time to start, than now?

Step 1: Start with a Style

When looking for the right wedding videographer — probably the biggest factor is their style.

What do I mean?

Well — do you envision a cinematic film that tells the story of your love, and is focused the most on you as a couple?

Maybe the video contains clips of you guys together on your honeymoon, or in the place where you got engaged.

It might feature voiceovers from one of you to the other.

That would be a storytelling style and approach.

On the other hand, maybe you don’t want anything staged or produced.

Maybe you are looking for something very natural, candid, and organic feeling. A video that captures the raw emotion of your wedding day.

As the events of the day unfold, you get to see it from the perspective and emotion of various people and angles throughout the video.

That’s a more documentary style video.

How to determine your style

So how you do get to know what style you want?

Simple - look at examples.

Start by simply searching for wedding videos on Youtube or Vimeo, and see what you like.

One tip is to start with examples of videos that you’ve seen before.

And don’t worry if they are not in your area. This stage of the process is just determining your style.

If you do this well, it should give you a better understanding of the types of styles and approaches that are out there.

And this in turn will help you narrow down your search later on.

By starting with a style, you can save yourself a lot of time. You can then just focus on videographers whose work aligns with the style you like best.

Step 2: Start looking!

Now it’s time to start looking at options. The fun part!

The first important decision you'll need to make is this: local vs nationwide.

If there’s a videographer you REALLY like, but isn’t local, would you be willing to pay a little extra for travel? (Assuming they offer this as an option)

And if you’re planning a destination wedding, this is probably necessary anyway, unless you’re familiar with the local vendors.

At the same time, though, hiring a local videographer has its benefits too.

They’ll be familiar with your area and may have shot at your venue or in a similar location nearby.

Additionally, you might be able to meet up with them in person before the wedding to get to know them and talk more about your video.

Where to find a videographer online

Ok - so where should you start your search?

Here are a few options.

My top pick: Vimeo.

Vimeo

Vimeo is a great spot to begin your search.

As a popular platform for videographers in general, many wedding videographers use Vimeo as a portfolio site anyway.

If you search for wedding videographers on Vimeo, you’ll find many — and with a wide range of styles and approaches.

Google My Business

Google is another good place to find wedding videographers.

Google is best if you are looking for someone local, because it allows you to search for those in your specific location.

Google is also very widely used, so it should give you many options from which to start your search.

Social Media

Social media is another great place to start your search!

And one of the most effective ways to find a wedding videographer on social media is to search for relevant hashtags.

Popular hashtags for wedding videography could be things like #weddingvideo, #weddingvideographer, and #weddingfilmmaker.

Instagram is the de-facto place to start, as almost every videographer is on it. It’s even used by many as their primary portfolio location.

Another great place to find more wedding videographers and their work is TikTok, since it’s video-based and many videographers are on it.

That’s where I’d recommend starting: Instagram and TikTok. You can use others, but the people you find will likely be on these platforms as well.

Online Wedding Directories

WeddingWire

One popular website is WeddingWire, an online marketplace that connects couples with wedding vendors in their area.

You can search and filter wedding videographers by location, price range, and style, and read reviews from previous brides.

TheKnot

Another popular resource is The Knot, which is owned by the same company as WeddingWire.

They offer pretty much the same service, but you might find a few videographers who are only on one and not the other.

Zola

Zola is another wedding-specific website is much newer. It’s got a fresh and trendy feel, and is a genuinely helpful site.

Just like the other sites, Zola provides a range of other wedding vendors, including photographers, florists, caterers and more.

Carats and Cake

Carats and Cake is another vendor site, with a curated list of vendors.

The site says it will help you "Be on the Cutting Edge of Wedding Trends, Tips, and Resources," and it aims to help couples stay up-to-date on the latest industry developments and find the perfect vendors for their big day.

WeddingPlanner.co.uk

Another directory site, for UK weddings. The site has dozens of videographers to choose from, view portfolio, and contact.

Some more wedding sites and directory sites you can visit include:

• Weddingbee
• OneWed
• A Practical Wedding
• Green Wedding Shoes
• Wedding Chicks
• Thumbtack
• Yelp

These websites have a wide range of vendors listed, but often include many talented videographers. They can be good to help broaden your search and find those you might not have found elsewhere.

Step 3: Make your Shortlist

This step is pretty easy. As you go about Step 2 where you’re researching various videographers - just write down and make a note of your favorites.

To narrow down your list, here are a few factors you can keep in mind:

• Style of their portfolio: Definitely the most important factor. You should LOVE their portfolio. As in, maybe even getting emotional while watching a video of complete strangers.
• Location: Are they local? If not, consider their location, if they’re willing to travel, and if so, how far. And if you are planning a destination wedding, you may want to find someone who specializes in destination weddings.
• Reviews: You can read reviews from previous clients to get an idea of the videographer's level of professionalism and customer satisfaction. Look for reviews that mention the quality of the final product, the videographer's responsiveness, and their ability to capture the key moments of the wedding day.

These factors should help you narrow down your options and create a shortlist of those who meet your criteria.

This will make it easier to compare your options in the next step!

Step 4: Talk to Candidates

Ok - now you’ve made your shortlist!

Now it’s time to reach out to the candidates and start some conversations.

What to Talk About

Here are some things to consider and ask about when talking to potential videographers:

1. Your Venue

• If you’ve already chosen your wedding venue, ask the videographer if they’ve shot at your venue or are familiar with it.
• If they have, they might have a portfolio piece they can show you as an example!
• It’s also great for the videographer if they’re already familiar with the lighting and setup of your venue.

2. What you’re looking for

Talk through what you’re looking for: What style you like, what you have in mind for your video, what other videos you’ve watched and liked, etc.

Do you want a feature-length film, a highlight film, a social media teaser, or all 3?

Every videographer will have different packages and options - talk through these and discuss what you are looking for too.

By communicating this kind of stuff upfront, in the initial call, you can ensure that the videographer is on the same page and able to provide what you’re looking for.

3. Your Vision

Communicating your vision to your wedding videographer is so important. Don’t overlook this part.

You need to clearly express what you are imagining for your wedding film — even if that’s just through a few samples.

This will help your videographer understand what you are looking for, so there isn’t any misunderstanding later on.

Here are a few tips for this:

• Discuss your timeline! By far my #1 tip. If you have a timeline ready, even just a draft, this will make it easy to talk through the various options with your videographer. And it will help them share and recommend specific things for you. As someone who’s shot dozens of weddings, your videographer will have experience and input to help you talk through the best ways to integrate filming into your schedule. This will help them plan their coverage details better, too.
• Share your inspiration. Share photos, videos, or other examples of the types of films that you like. This can help your videographer get a sense of your style and preferences and give them a starting point for discussing your vision.
• Be specific. The more specific you can be, the better!
• Communicate your budget. If you do have a specific budget, make sure to communicate it with your videographer so you are both on the same page.

4. Details and specific moments

Share with the videographer your ideas for your wedding video. What details you want captured, and what shots you absolutely must have. Are there any specific moments you have planned that you want captured? This is a good time to discuss them.

5. Do they offer photography too?

If you are also looking for a wedding photographer, you may want to discuss this too. This can be really convenient, because it’s one less vendor you have to talk to and communicate with, and the photo+video team will already be accustomed to working together, which means they can coordinate more easily and not get in each other’s way.

6. Questions

Come prepared with any specific questions you might have too. It’s always good to ask about their approach to wedding videography, how they go about the day, and what parts of the day they enjoy the most. I also always like to ask why they got into videography and what they love most about it.

Also make sure to confirm and discuss their process for booking and finalizing the contract.

Also - ask if they have any questions for you!

Step 5: Hire!

At this point, you should now have met at least one videographer whose style you love, whose packages you resonate with, and whom you can envision spending your special day with you!

Now it’s just a matter of the booking and onboarding process.

Congratulations - we just went from no-idea-where-to-start, to found the perfect person to capture and document your special day!

Conclusion

Finding the right videographer is such an important step in wedding planning - and one that is so often overlooked.

It truly is worth taking the extra time to research, plan, talk to people, and find the one who is the right fit for you.

Whatever style you’re looking for, you’re sure to find a wedding videographer who can capture your special day in a way that you will treasure for years to come.

And if you like our style, please reach out - I’d love to chat about documenting your special day for you.