How much should a professional wedding videographer cost in Northern Ireland
The short answer when I’m asked “how much should a wedding videographer cost in Northern Ireland”, is often: ‘you get what you pay for’.
Contents
Introduction
How I value wedding videography
Wedding Videography VS Wedding Photography
Let’s talk numbers
Summary
Introduction
Creative industries are often blighted when it comes to what videographers should charge, and wedding videography is no different to commercial videography.
If I hire a builder to build a wall on my driveway then he gives me a set price for how many days he will work, and the cost of materials. As a customer I can justify his breakdown and the cost between builders doesn’t fluctuate half as much as wedding videographers.
I’ve seen offers for wedding videography across Northern Ireland, England and Ireland for as little as £399.
Wedding videographers at this price point are more like the center aisle in Lidyl - you might pick up and absolute bargain, but the product probably won't blow your socks off.
Some wedding videographers out there aren’t gifted or experienced at what they do (just like in every other job market).
If my builder operated at the level of skill of some of the cheaper wedding videographers then my new driveway wall would blow down in a light breeze.
I’m not hating on those who are trying to make it - we all start somewhere.
Wedding videography makes up part of your wedding budget. I’ve written about the rising cost of weddings, which goes into some of the other expenses for your big day.
2. How I value Wedding Videography
For 3 years I built my experience of filming weddings by working for other wedding videographers across England, Northern Ireland and Ireland.
I’ve shot city centre Belfast, rural Derbyshire and country house luxury weddings, all before filming weddings under my own name.
My value is based on:
My experience
The equipment that I use
The edits that I provide
3. Wedding Videography VS Wedding Photography
I don't particularly want to be that guy who compares wedding photography to wedding videography, but I'm going to anyway…
If someone stands in front of my shot then I've lost it. Moving to reshoot an action just doesn’t work in wedding videography. I’m constantly filming, so my shots can be easily spoiled - hence why most established wedding videographers film as a team. Ideally I'll not only have a second shooter, but also a dedicated drone operator for specific shots for the final wedding film edit, and a third static camera shooting video from a different perspective.
This tries to mitigate that person who inevitably steps in my way.
Wedding photographers are somewhat more nimble than wedding videographers.
I’ve compared wedding videographers and wedding photographers at length here. Wedding photographers can zoom through or move past obstacles to get the static shots. They can edit out certain blemishes that spoil the shot.
When it comes to editing, a film takes me at least 5 days solid. It can be a hard grind. Wedding photographers often take 2 days to edit a full wedding. I’ve explored this more when writing about the reasons behind longer waits for wedding films.
This is why I question why many wedding videographers charge less than most wedding photographers.
A comparison is often made between commercial videography and wedding videography in terms of rates being charged.
Commercial videographers don’t deal with clients the way wedding videographers do, they don't direct their own shoots, but more importantly; wedding videographers can't dictate the movement of the day - they can't ask a bride and groom to have their first kiss again.
Wedding videographers can’t light ceremonies and are often constrained by the venue layout and angles, unlike commercial videographers - hence why the rate for wedding videography is slightly higher than that of commercial videography.
4. Let’s talk numbers.
I’m between £1200 and £5000 for a collection of wedding videos. My top package is for destination weddings over a number of days.
When someone pays me, I make it worth my while to give them the best service that I possibly can.
Each wedding couple is treated with the respect, courtesy and effort of the last one.
I manage to avoid burnout through the season by taking regular breaks and still love my job. I work with videographers and photographers who are the same. I’m lucky that weddings energise me and fill me with passion.
What’s not to like about joining two people on the most important day of their life and capturing it in an artistic way that they can cherish forever?
Most wedding videographers that I work with feel that they don't charge enough.
The average wedding photographer in Northern Ireland charges around £2000 per wedding. That’s accounting for the ‘bargain bucket' cut price wedding videographers - the ones that don’t email you back a year after your big day.
For more of my research on the rising cost of weddings take a look at this article, and take a look at Hitched.com for their thoughts on the price of a wedding videographer.
5. Summary
Personally I think wedding videographers aren’t charging enough.
In a creative industry it’s tempting to keep your rates low and take as much work as possible- but these videographers often burn themselves out and lose their passion for the job - hence my reluctance to put a number on the title of this blog post!
For a little more information be sure to take a look at this post on how much a wedding videographer costs by Emmanuel Films.
There are some great wedding videographers out there, and you might be able to pickup a bargain if you shop around. Just make sure that you chat to some of their previous wedding couples - this can really show you what the person is like after your wedding - which is probably the most important time.
Thanks for reading.
Interested in commissioning me for your wedding videography?
I cover Northern Ireland, Ireland, England and destination weddings - splitting my time between Northern Ireland and Tenerife. Just get in touch today and I’d like to hear all about your big day.
Adam White
Wedding Cinematographer
