Pros and cons?

Here's a post i made on the Videolifestyle.com forum about wedding videography and certain rates.

Just thought i'd post it up here so that people can have an insight as to what goes on behind the curtains of "discounts" "freebies" and "freelancers".

This is in relation to the pricing rates that seems to have no regulation here in Singapore.

" In fact, it's the videographer's choice to set the prices.

Sometimes at prices above 2k, the company would provide 2 cam setups, which is ok imo. However, the pricing and number of cams does not equate to quality.

"Competition" has always been "intense" if you wish to put it that way. However, i think that it's not the pros that should be fighting amongst each other. Its very sad to see pros stooping to low levels and trying to enhance their own image and reputation via unorthodox methods.

In actual fact, the arena is wide enough for all of us. Enough customers to keep all the pros happy. Rather, we should be doing our best and providing quality work at reasonable prices. In a nutshell, to prove that we are and have the capability to differentiate ourselves from the "Freelancer" "Hobbyist" category, those that charge $600 as opposed to us who are above the $1k category. There are alot of freelancers producing wedding videos, some good, some bad. More bad, in my opinion, as many lack the neccessary fundamentals through good training. A very good example is Fabian Lim, he's had the proper training and look where he is today.

Some see weddings as a stepping stone to more galmourous outfits like TV production or filmmaking. Hard to beat that sentiment but in my opinion, wedding / event videography is a multi-disciplinary approach and i think it's a different cake from mainstream TV production. Those who've tried both sides should understand what i am saying. Both have their own merits and ultimately, it's what cake you choose. "

All in all, what i am saying is that everyone, from the production people to the customer, have to see what's being offered in front of their eyes and decide if that quality is worth the cost. I think that many are still being clouded by cheap marketing tactics and overall perception. These can't be helped, the only way is for us as professionals to improve our quality and abilities.

That way, our work will speak for us.