MC> Have you ever run into the problem of recording some washed out video or
MC> some other problem during a critical modment of the wedding?  If so, How
MC> do
MC> you get around those?   I have heard of people getting sued for their
MC> work
MC> not seeming professional enough.  Scary.
I have been in the wedding / Bar & Bat Mitzvah video business for more than
12 years, both for myself and for another video company in town.  There is
NOTHING easy about this business, as it is a retail business.  Retail
customers are some of the fussiest and unknowledgeable.  This is where your
contract comes in.  Your contract MUST be written to protect your interests.
If you are serious about getting into the business, you should have a lawyer
draw up your contracts (the fine print), or if you cannot afford one, obtain
the contract of a large company near you and copy it (very carefully).  You
should also afford yourself some insurance.  The type of insurance you
should have, covers your clients (if someone should trip over one of your
wires), your equipment (breakage or theft), and most importantly, law suits
for blown jobs.  YES people do sue for fowled jobs, and no matter how
careful you are to cover your butt in your fine print, there is always the
chance of losing such a case.  A wedding is a once in a lifetime event, and
if you have one of those difficult clients, you are not going to make them
happy no matter how you try.  Personlly, the longer I do wedding work,
the more I dispise it.
On the flip side, I really enjoy making their once in a lifetime event come
to life on tape for them.  It is really a self gratifying job when you deal
with reasonable customers (most of them).  Since I have been at this for so
long, I consider myself quite good at what I do, so most of my customers are
very happy.
In terms of bad light conditions, your customers should understand that
there are times where lighting and such are beyond your control.  Sometimes
you can help poorly lit situations with TBC-ing, but this will only take you
but so far.
I would suggest that you think long and hard about entering retail video
production, as there are very many people doing this now.  In fact, the
business has eroded to the point where anyone with a camcorder and a few
bucks for advertising can call themselves a pro, and this has an effect on
the professional market.  You would be wise to check into the industrial
video service as an option.  These customers KNOW what they want, how much
to expect to pay and what the limitations of the medium are.  You can't beat
that!!
Good luck at whatever you decide to do. . .
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Ocean Township New Jersey
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