Before you decide which videographer you want to hire for your big day, make sure to ask these key questions.

1. Are you available on my wedding date?
2. How many years of wedding filming experience do you have? How many weddings do you film per year?
3. Do you have any references that I can call?
4. Do you have liability insurance?
5. Have you worked in my ceremony and reception locations before? If not, will you visit the site in advance?
6. Are you scheduled to shoot any other weddings on the weekend of my wedding date? Will you be the videographer that is shooting on the day of my wedding?
7. Do you have any assistants that you will be using during my wedding? What does your assistant do? If your assistant will be helping with shooting a part of the wedding, can I view samples of his footage?
8. Have you ever worked with my photographer? (Note: the photographer and videographer will have to work well and very closely together, in order to skillfully capture all the special moments of your wedding. It is important that they meet before your wedding day to discuss shooting formats, techniques, and styles.)
9. What is your attire on the wedding day?
10. Do you require meals on the wedding day?
11. What is the back up plan, should you fall ill or another emergency arise on my wedding day?
12. In case of gear failure, will you be bringing backup equipment?

1. What are your rates? Do you offer any packages? (Note: videographers generally charge a flat rate that is based upon the number of shooting hours; some videographers may offer packages that include other services, such as same-day editing or having a second shooter.)
2. How many hours of shooting time and raw footage does your package include?
3. How many discs of what length does the final video include? How much do additional disks cost?
4. Does the package include a shorter highlights video?
5. Will you be arriving early to film the pre-wedding moments, such as the "getting ready" process or when formal photos are taken? Will there be an additional charge?
6. Are there any other additional costs that I should be aware of?
7. How much is the deposit? When is the balance due?
8. What are your rates for overtime?
9. What is your policy on cancellation and refunds?
10. Who will own the copyright to the final wedding video?

1. What is your shooting style? More cinematic, documentary, or a mix of both?
2. Can we see your work samples of other weddings that are similar in style to ours?
3. Do you have experience with shooting indoors and outdoors, by candlelight and twilight?
4. What kind of equipment do you use and are they portable?
5. How many cameras will you be using to film during the ceremony and reception?
6. Will you be using additional lights while shooting during the reception? If so, can you guarantee that the lighting will not be intrusive? Is it possible to dim the additional lighting?
7. How do you handle sound? Do you mike the bride and groom? (Note: if the microphone is more than three feet away from you, the sound will not be heard on the video.)
8. When can you confirm your set up location and microphone placements?
9. Do you accept and work with a shot list?
10. How do you transition between scenes?
11. What is your process for backing up the footage immediately after the wedding?
12. How long do you typically take to edit and finalize a wedding video?
13. Can you explain your editing process? Who does the editing? Can we see work samples of the person in charge of the editing?
14. After we see the edited film for the first time, is it possible to make any changes?
15. Can I keep the raw footage?
16. Does the final video use dialogue from the wedding day or is it more of a music video?
17. Can I be involved in the actual editing process of the video? How will you be handling music? Can you lay music over some scenes? Do I get to choose the background music used in the video?
18. Can you add titles to the video?
19. Will it be possible to also incorporate baby photos or honeymoon photos into the video?
20. In what format will my final video be? Will there be a way to share videos online?
21. Will the video be watermarked or have a videographer's logo?