Written By Melissa Reardon
Photographs By Lucy Cuneo
A transplant from Virginia, Weston “Wes” McAfee vividly remembers the first time he saw his future bride-to-be. Charleston native Dana Elaine...
Browse through clips from local wedding videographers and you’ll notice they play out more like mini-movies complete with mod soundtracks than the laborious Big Day films of decades past. And why not? Our backyard’s swaying Spanish moss, and the stunning coastal vistas here offer up ridiculously picturesque milieus. Plus, as more and more couples are sharing their weddings via YouTube, Vimeo, and Facebook—and hitting play on their smartphones and iPads to do so—it only makes sense the demand for something more current would hit.
Mount Pleasant’s Film Anywhere Productions (FAP) offers video save-the-dates—short films starring the couple that subtly announce their wedding date (picture a pair strolling the beach, writing the date into the sand). Sent via e-mail, they save paper, as well as the cost of postage. On a similar note, James Island-based amelia + dan photography creates “love story” shorts—a mix of still photos, video, and voiceover set to custom scores by local composer Nick Jenkins. In each, the couple describes their relationship—how they met and details like their favorite qualities about their other half. “Hearing them actually talk about their love for each other is really powerful,” says Dan Hale of amelia + dan.
Another cool option is the same-day editing service, in which your videographer shoots and edits a short wedding film on-site to play at the end of your reception. For James Island bride Lisa Abernathy, the day-of showing brought her 2011 nuptials to an exciting finale. And when she posted it online, the reaction was palpable. “Even strangers commented that our video looks like something they’d see on TV,” she says.
In addition to these novel offerings, full-length videos (lasting anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes) are still a popular choice. Videographers have modernized those, too, with cinematography-style camera angles and lighting.
Lisa says watching (and re-watching) her video helped her process the milestone. “I could let the details slowly trickle in,” she says. A perk, Brent notes, that will carry on. “Twenty-five years down the road, a bride can pull up her wedding video, and in seconds be taken back to that happy day.”
Lisa and Seth - Save the Date from Film Anywhere Productions on Vimeo.
Lisa & Seth - A Wadmalaw Wedding from Film Anywhere Productions on Vimeo.
Document Your Nuptials
Wedding video packages vary in coverage and price, ranging here in the Lowcountry from $600 for a “love story” short to $2,500 and up for full-day coverage.
• amelia + dan
(843) 801-2790, www.AmeliaAndDan.com
• Film Anywhere Productions
(843) 608-9037, www.FilmAnywhereProductions.com
• Hart to Heart Media
(843) 278-2667, www.HartToHeartMedia.com
• King Street Studios
(843) 628-5515, www.KingStreetStudios.com
• Production Design Associates
(843) 554-3466, www.PDAStage.com
Illustration by Malina Omut
