Video Cameras and your wedding.

When making your selection, for who will video tape your wedding, there are a couple important things to take into consideration. One is the video camera that will be at your wedding and/or reception. First, there is one important thing to keep in mind. The camera will NOT make your video better. It is the creativeness and the talent of the professional behind the camera and in the editing room that will. Someone can have the best cameras in the biz and yet have no clue how to work them. I call this the Uncle Buck Video. But that is for a different post.
That being said, there is some importance to the equipment being used. Most cameras that are being used by videographers are really a personal choice. A certain camera has a feature they like. It has a good display, better menu buttons, the camera is lighter, etc.. And it doesn't hurt to ask about the cameras being used. Ask why they chose that video camera? It might even help in your decision. Let me give you an example. We use smaller video cameras. Hand held. The reason for this, it makes us more mobile. I can come off a tripod faster and be in a better spot for a better shot. I can blend in better, hide among your guest during the cake cutting. And because the cameras are smaller we won't be blocking anyone's view of you. Others offer video cameras that are linked to a mobile editing truck so they can put together a video in time for the reception. While others offer video cameras that shot in HD (High Definition) offering great picture. (Assuming you have an HD TV). Again knowing why may help in the determining of who will be video taping your wedding, and may give you an idea that you were not originally thinking about.
When videographers talk about cameras, you are likely to hear "3ccd". I will break this down. A 3ccd video camera has 3 chips in it that capture Red, Yellow and Blue separate. This gives the most vivid color to the video, compared to a camera that only has 1ccd. They also perform better in low light situations. The 1ccd cameras capture Red, Yellow and Blue just on one chip in the camera. The 3ccd cameras are going to be the best you can get. But again this is not always the most important part. When looking at camera follow this advise if you can get video cameras with 3ccds do. Then move to the single ccd cameras. Do you best to stay away from the HI-8 and the VHS-C. You will be better off this way.
But again I can't stress this enough look for the person behind the camera before you look at the camera and the rest of the equipment.