Guest Blog by Josiah Blizzard, half of the wedding photography & videography duo, Josiah & Steph Photography

With social platforms like Tik Tok on the rise and YouTube being one of the largest sources for information, it’s clear that video isn’t taking a backseat any time soon. In fact, video content is valued now more than ever before. Video has the power to immerse you in a moment because it doesn’t rely on just one sensory technique as a photography does, but rather utilizes both sight and sound getting your message across in a more powerful way. So what are a few ways you can use video in your business? Let’s talk about them below.

Tik Tok

You might already be saying, “all the kids are on Tik Tok, so why should I be? They’re not going to book any weddings from me. They’re not my ideal client.” Don’t be so quick to dismiss that my friend. Actually, Tik Tok is the fastest growing social platform alive today. They have over 800 Million active users with 41% of it’s user base aged between 16 and 24 years old. Those young adults will eventually move into the next phase of life and start getting married and having kids. Since they are such a visual demographic, we should 100% be marketing to them. Don’t wait for them to come back to Facebook and Instagram ‘cause it’s not gonna’ happen.

Instead, follow your demographic. You can create videos on Tik Tok using the built in platform, but you can also create videos outside of Tik Tok using your DSLR or other camera and editing in Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut X, or even basic video editing platforms like iMovie. But isn’t the content on Tik Tok all dancing videos? Not at all! There are so many cool and creative videos on the platform. Some of them are dance videos, but many creators are sharing photos, videos, portfolio work and connecting to their followers by offering up some free education or giving them value. There’s a ton of ways to specifically share your wedding photography portfolio and expertise on Tik Tok, but I’ll leave all of those ideas up for you to discover. I just want to point out that Tik Tok is the place to be right now and if you wait much longer, you’ll end up joining with the rest of the wedding photography industry. Get a jump start, friend!

Behind The Scenes

Ever watch someone photograph a wedding behind the scenes? Katelyn James has built an entire membership site for this exact thing. It’s a huge part of her business and it allows her to teach other photographers how to deal with situations on the wedding day. This is something we’re doing in our own business to help educate other photographers. Our videos are simply shot with a GoPro mounted to the top of my DSLR. After the wedding, the clips get edited together and uploaded to YouTube for other photographers to learn from my experiences. You can watch a few by clicking here. 

This is a great way to start getting into the photography education space, but let’s say that you don’t want to educate other photographers or you’re not in a place where you’re quite ready for that in your business. Does recording behind the scenes videos at weddings and sessions benefit you? I still think that it could, yes. What if you recorded a behind the scenes video on an engagement session to show clients and potential clients how you work, so they know exactly what to expect with you? What if you had someone create a promo video for your business that utilized footage from behind the scenes to help elevate your brand and show that couples can be comfortable in front of camera? This is something I did for Renee a while back and I hope she would agree that it’s helped elevate her brand.

Know what you can then do with all that content? Put it on Tik Tok! It’s prime content that people want to watch and consume. Toss some final photo edits from that behind the scenes session and you got a great little video that’ll help you advertise to new clients. 

Sell More Product

Video has a massive advantage over photo and that is it doesn’t capture just a split second of time, but instead, captures the movement of the scene in real time. Better yet, because of the psychology of editing, the way the clips are arranged together will automatically evoke a specific type of feeling. Alfred Hitchcock, you know, the master of suspense behind films like “Psycho,” “Vertigo,” and one of my all time favorites, “Rear Window,” used this to his advantage and you can actually watch a short video on this technique dubbed The Kuleshov Effect by clicking here. Sure, the example he gives isn’t based around the idea of weddings or photography, but the concept is the same, nonetheless.

We project our feelings on to the image we’re seeing based on how they’re cut together. Use this to your advantage. Want to sell more albums and help your clients see the value in ordering an album? Start with emotion. People don’t make purchasing decisions based on logic, but instead, on emotion. So film a quick video of an album being taken out of the box, and then another shot if it being opened, followed by a few clips of hands flipping through the pages. Then show the couple smiling at the images. Then cut back to the album and them flipping through.

Focus on the Emotions

Now here’s the kicker. Cut to the same couple, but they’re much older this time. They’ve now been married for 50 years and are still looking through that same album. I mean, c’mon, that’s a powerful idea that will emphasize the importance of albums and printing your images. I would bet that someone purchases an album after watching that video. Want to take it up a notch and make it even more emotional? Cut back to the album a third time and then cut back to just the man sitting there alone flipping through his album. The audience will immediately think that his wife has passed on and he’s remembering a milestone in his life through this album. That’s the power of video. Use it to your advantage. If you end up making that video, I’d love to see it. Send me a link by emailing me at hello@josiahandsteph.com

Client Communication

The fourth and final way that I think you could use video in your business is by utilizing it in your workflow. Maybe you send your new client a thank you message after they inquire or book you. You could also sent them out at specific points of the process to give them some updates, education, and value. Why do this? It makes your brand more personal. They’re getting a face to face with you without having to physically be with you (very helpful during COVID). This will make your business and brand more of a personal brand. Plus, your clients will appreciate the value you’re providing and the experience of working with you. They booked you for you after all.

Those are just some of the ways you can start utilizing video in your business. There are a million and one ways you can create, and distribute video and so I encourage you to start learning how to shoot and edit videos. Some of these things can be learned through YouTube, but in case you want to go to one person, I’m currently developing a mini course all about the basics of shooting and editing video. If you want to get on the waitlist and hear more information about it when it’s ready, you can sign up at the link below. I’d love to help you start your journey with video and take your business to the next level!

Josiah is one half of the wedding photography & videography duo, Josiah & Steph Photography. He is also an educator in the wedding photography industry. And, he who runs a membership program for wedding photographers to help take their business to the next level. You can find more information on his membership by clicking here.