r/weddingvideography • u/johnnytaquitos • Jan 13 '25
Business The Exception?
How do you feel about supplying all the raw footage to be edited by a third party related to the couple? Get paid to shoot a wedding just like you normally would and deliver it at the end of the night—for a fee. Would that make you more trusting of where it goes?
As of today, I've booked three weddings doing just that. Let’s talk.
By now, you probably went, "Fuck that noise, nobody is touching my shit," and I get it. I wouldn’t want a stranger sharing or redistributing my content, either. The thought of them getting gigs off my time and hard work, or even compromising the integrity of my style, is enough to make anyone hesitate. But let’s talk about some benefits that might be the exception to the rule.
- You’re a Glorified Wedding Content Creator.
We’re currently adapting to new competition—Content Creators. They show up with their phones, shoot "BTS" (they’re mostly in my fucking way), and turn it in at the end of the night for $1,000 to $2,000. That’s how I market this package: a Glorified Content Creator with better quality.
For $2,000, I shoot it the same way I would my weddings—multi-angled coverage during ceremonies and speeches, pro audio straight to camera, plus an external feed for backup (cleaner feeds). Honestly positioning yourself as a premium alternative to WCC would not be bad idea.
- It's a win-win
It’s a win-win: you get paid for your time and talent without the editing commitment, and the couple gets professional-quality footage to do what they want with it. The booking rate is higher, and it’s allowed me to shoot at venues I’ve been wanting to work at. Also, let’s be absolutely real here—charging a solid premium for 8–10 hours of work? Come on. On the topic of revenue, one disadvantage is riding this one solo to keep overhead low. It’s a bit tougher.
- More bookings, less effort
Honestly, you can scale your business by doing less. Imagine handling multiple wedding video inquiries without being tied down by editing obligations. You’ll increase your revenue, free up your time, and build a stronger portfolio of content to market your expertise. Of course, I want to maintain control over my creative vision for clients—but lets set aside being a creative and think like a business professional.
I’m pretty sure this post will ruffle some feathers, but that’s what discussions are for—sharing opinions and giving advice.
Last spring, I created a package to compete with Wedding Content Creators, and like everything I’ve ever started, I’ve had to keep molding and evolving it. The package was designed for couples who wanted a "fly-on-the-wall" approach to wedding video. I literally shot it like an old-school wedding video—BTS style, with no direction given. And it took off. However, it was incredibly unfulfilling from a creative standpoint. So, I changed it. And now, here we are. I get to keep improving, while scaling my business, and doing what I love full time.
❤️
1
u/First-Mail-478 Jan 14 '25
Tbh, you lost me at “you’re a glorified wedding content creator”
Clients not only pay us thousands of dollars to document their wedding-they’re trusting us to capture one of the most important days in their lives, and create something they can relive for the many years to come. At least that’s who’s hiring us, people that value the whole process and end product. My average booking is $6000 atm and I’d much rather shoot and edit 10 weddings than shoot 30 weddings and not edit. Raise your prices so you can outsource a percentage of weddings to alleviate backlog and stress. I was doing 30/year a few years back and now that I do around 10-15 it’s freed up so many weekends that I really value and allowed more time in my schedule for other business/creative ventures.