Camera settings tips for wedding videographers
Wedding videography is about capturing fleeting moments, raw emotions, and the unique atmosphere of a once-in-a-lifetime event. While storytelling and composition are paramount, mastering your camera settings is the technical foundation that allows your creativity to shine. Weddings are dynamic, fast-paced, and often involve challenging lighting conditions. Getting your settings right before the crucial moments happen is essential.
Here’s a breakdown of key camera settings and tips specifically for wedding videographers:
Frame Rate
Your frame rate determines the smoothness of motion and the potential for slow motion.
24fps (25fps EU): This is the standard for a "cinematic" look, mimicking traditional film. It's ideal for most of the wedding day, including speeches, vows, and general coverage where you want a natural, film-like feel.
30fps (25fps EU): Sometimes used for a slightly smoother, more "live" or broadcast TV feel. It can be a safe middle ground if unsure.
60fps (50fps EU): Excellent for capturing smooth motion during faster events like the first dance, walking down the aisle, or confetti tosses. More importantly, it allows you to slow the footage down by 50% (on a 30fps timeline) or ~40% (on a 24fps timeline) in post-production for beautiful, subtle slow motion.
120fps+ (100fps EU): Reserved for specific, impactful slow-motion shots – think champagne pop, bouquet toss, dramatic veil shots, or emotional reactions. Use sparingly as it often requires more light and generates larger files.
Tip: Decide your primary delivery frame rate (usually 24fps or 30fps) and shoot higher frame rates intentionally for slow motion segments. Consistency is key for the bulk of your footage.
Shutter Speed
The shutter speed should be set to double the frame rate for the best results. For instance, if you’re shooting at 25fps, set your shutter speed to 1/50. This setting provides natural motion blur, making the footage look more cinematic and less choppy. Make sure do use an ND filter for your outdoor shots, as it will allow you to maintain 1/50 even in bright environments.
The general rule is the 180-degree shutter rule: set your shutter speed to double your frame rate.
24fps: Shutter speed at 1/50th sec (closest standard setting).
30fps: Shutter speed at 1/60th sec.
60fps: Shutter speed at 1/125th sec.
120fps: Shutter speed at 1/250th sec.
This rule provides natural-looking motion blur. Deviating significantly can result in choppy (too fast shutter) or overly blurry (too slow shutter) footage.
For slow-motion shots at 60 fps, a shutter speed of 1/120 is appropriate. Adjusting the shutter speed ensures that your footage maintains the right amount of blur, preventing it from looking too sharp or jittery.
Exceptions:
Flicker: Artificial lighting (LEDs, fluorescents) can cause flicker at certain shutter speeds. You may need to adjust slightly (e.g., 1/60th instead of 1/50th in 60Hz regions, or 1/50th/1/100th in 50Hz regions) to eliminate it.
Creative Effect: Intentionally using a very fast shutter can create a hyper-real, stuttered look (rarely desired in weddings). A slow shutter ("shutter drag") can create dreamy motion trails.
Aperture
Aperture controls how much light enters the lens and dictates the depth of field (how much of the image is in focus).
Wide Apertures (f/1.4 - f/2.8):
Pros: Lets in lots of light (great for dark churches/receptions), creates a shallow depth of field (blurry background, subject pops). Ideal for isolating the couple, capturing details, and low-light situations.
Cons: Focus is critical – a slight movement can throw your subject out of focus. Less forgiving.
Mid-Range Apertures (f/4 - f/5.6):
Pros: Offers a good balance. Lets in decent light, provides a deeper depth of field ensuring more is in focus (useful for groups, walking shots, ceremony wide shots). More forgiving with focus.
Narrow Apertures (f/8+):
Pros: Deep depth of field, almost everything is sharp. Good for landscape-style establishing shots in bright light.
Cons: Requires a lot of light. Rarely used indoors at weddings unless using powerful video lights.
Tip: Start wider during prep and portraits (f/1.8-f/2.8), consider stopping down slightly for the ceremony aisle walk or groups (f/2.8-f/4), and adapt based on light and creative intent.
ISO
ISO determines the camera’s sensitivity to light. Keeping the ISO as low as possible (usually between 100-400) ensures minimal grain and noise in the footage. However, weddings often involve varying lighting conditions, from bright outdoor ceremonies to dimly lit receptions.
Modern cameras handle higher ISOs quite well, so don’t be afraid to increase the ISO when necessary. If you find yourself in a low-light situation, such as a candlelit dinner, an ISO of up to 1600 or even 3200 can be used without compromising too much on image quality. Always test your camera’s performance at different ISO levels to understand its capabilities and limitations.
White Balance
Accurate white balance is essential to ensure that colours are true to life. While auto white balance (AWB) can be convenient, it’s not always reliable, especially in changing lighting conditions. Setting the white balance manually allows for more consistent and accurate colour reproduction.
For outdoor shoots, a white balance of around 5600K (daylight) is typically appropriate.
For indoor settings, especially under tungsten lights, a white balance of 3200K is more suitable. Many cameras offer custom white balance settings, allowing you to fine-tune according to the specific lighting conditions.
Picture Profile
Choosing the right picture profile can significantly impact the final look of your video. Many wedding videographers prefer using flat picture profiles like S-Log or V-Log, which provide a wider dynamic range and greater flexibility in post-production. These profiles retain more detail in highlights and shadows, making colour grading easier and more effective.
However, if you’re not comfortable with extensive colour grading, using a standard or neutral picture profile can still yield excellent results. These profiles require less post-processing and can deliver vibrant, ready-to-share footage straight out of the camera.
Autofocus vs. Manual Focus
Modern cameras have impressive autofocus capabilities, but relying solely on autofocus can be risky during weddings, where unexpected movements and lighting changes are common. Using manual focus ensures that you have complete control over what is in focus, reducing the chances of the camera hunting for focus at critical moments.
If your camera has reliable autofocus tracking, use it sparingly and test it in advance to ensure it performs well in various scenarios. Combining autofocus for dynamic shots and manual focus for static or planned shots often yields the best results.
Stabilisation
Stabilisation is crucial for smooth, professional-looking footage. While many cameras offer in-body image stabilisation (IBIS), using additional stabilisation tools like gimbals or tripods is highly recommended. Handheld shots can add a personal, intimate feel, but overusing them can result in shaky footage that detracts from the viewing experience.
Gimbals are particularly useful for dynamic shots, such as following the couple or capturing sweeping venue shots. For static shots, a tripod ensures stability and allows you to focus on composition and framing.
Sound Settings
Clear audio is just as important as visual quality in wedding videos. Use external microphones, such as lavalier mics for the officiant and couple, and shotgun mics for ambient sound. Monitor audio levels throughout the event to avoid clipping or distortion.
Set your camera’s audio input levels manually, keeping them at a moderate level to capture clear, undistorted sound. Using an external audio recorder as a backup can also save you from potential audio issues during editing.
Backup and Redundancy
Finally, always have a backup plan. Use cameras with dual card slots and record simultaneously to both cards. This redundancy ensures that if one card fails, you still have a copy of the footage. Bring extra batteries, memory cards, and even an additional camera body to avoid any technical mishaps.
Conclusion
Mastering camera settings is about building technical proficiency so you can focus on capturing the story and emotion of the wedding day. These settings are interconnected – changing one often requires adjusting another. Start with these guidelines, experiment, understand why you're choosing each setting, and practice relentlessly. The goal is for these settings to become second nature, allowing you to react instinctively and capture those unforgettable moments beautifully.
