P.S. Yes, that WFM near me is quite impressive.

And to answer your question: Most try and change their style to get the ‘big bucks’ client. But what they don’t understand is that people with refined taste can spot a fake or a mimic. You have to recognize and embrace your own stylistic point of view and let that be what draws the clients to you. If the type of client you’re looking for keeps turning you down, that should send a clear message that you’re not meeting their expectations either in price, talent or technique.

@Tim: thanks for the thoughtful and introspective comment.

To tell a very personal, engaging and entertaining story about a couple’s proclamation of commitment in a live, unrehearsed environment, takes a very high level of skills. It is not being done all that much because it is so involved and so intense to pull off.

The wedding “documentary” is played off like it is somehow just raw footage cleaned up and slapped onto a disc. For arguments sake, you could say anyone video taping anything is documenting, but that is a far cry from a well crafted, beautifully told story with drama, emotion, intrigue, and an actual story line. All of this is basically captured and edited from one single event in time or also including events leading up or beyond that date. That is extremely difficult to do well!

Wedding cinematography, IMHO, needs to go inwardly where the heart of the event lives. It dwells in the relationships, and the core values of the couples and there friends and family. It’s in their stories. Those stories are just as big a part of the wedding as the wedding itself. The outward beauty is all around, but the inward beauty exists in very profound and meaningful ways.

Fake or uber “stylized video can come across as superficial.Focused on the outward but never penetrating to the heart. Some like that style, but I can see how the “whole foods” clientele would gravitate towards wanting there sacred event captured truthfully and in an unprocessed manner.

Maybe this has more to do with mental health? People see the value in being reminded of the meaningful subjects in life. People will pay more for this because, ultimately, they now that well documented memories are key in knowing who you were, who you are, and what you will become. They see that value in providing these memories to the next generation. not just pretty slowed down images, but real stories that will speak for them long after they are dead and gone.

Tim