Filming at Knowsley Hall
Light & Composition
In my last blog post I talked about the Granduer that is Knowsley Hall in Prescott. In this Blog I will talk about the Wedding Film that we produced for Laura & Chris. As mentioned in my last blog I always try to capture something of the venue and location that the couple have chosen to celebrate their marriage. I do this because it is for good reason that they have chosen a particular venue.
Taking in the Vista
The thing that struck me about Knowsley Hall was the magnificent views from the huge windows out to the grounds so in the wedding film you will see a few shots of the camera shifting focus from the background to the foreground- the room looking out the window to grounds and gardens outside. The bridal suite a grand old room with high ceilings and big windows was perfect for what I had in mind which was to ask the make-up artist and hair dresser if they wouldn’t mind me switching off the lights for 10 minutes or so while I got some artistic shots of the bride and bridesmaids getting their makeup done with nothing but natural light coming in.
Photography & Videography Diferrences
In photography & videography we often insist that all pictures and video be ‘properly exposed’ in other words peoples faces fully exposed. However in an effort to create mood and a truly cinematic film it’s often good practice to get some shots of people in more dark surrounding only partially exposed and use only natural light and shadows to create intrigue as the viewer is having to work a little harder to make out what’s happening. This may seem counter intuitive to many videographers but if you watch classic old movies that drew you into the film with cinematography rather than effects you’ll see they master the use of lighting and composition.
A Perfect Setting
With Chris & Laura’s Wedding Film being shot at Knowsley Hall this was the perfect setting to use these techniques. Yes it’s a gamble because if you don’t get this right you could end up with footage that is not usable- a videographers nightmare! So I would suggest that you do need to make sure you get enough other footage of correctly exposed faces to balance the darker more moody shots- always get more footage than you need to give yourself room in the edit to make choices, one of the biggest mistakes I made early on is that I didn’t get enough footage and then if what I had got wasn’t top quality I would be stuck! So give yourself an insurance policy- get lots of footage!
Light & Shadows
When I headed downstairs after getting the Bridal prep shots I was looking to meet up with chris to grab a short interview- you can see this interview in the film. I struggled to find him but while I was in the ceremony room I notice the partial drawn curtain were only letting in a little light and as a result cast some beautiful looking shadows on the floor just by the chairs- I immediately grabbed the camera stuck on the 85mm prime lens and grabbed a couple of seconds footage of those patterns and shadows- the result? It really added mood and feeling to the film and presented Knowsley Hall in the Grandeur that it deserves! If you would like to see the Highlight version of this film you can see it here:
Picture kindly supplied by L&L Photography
