Wedding Video Without a VideographerA studio-edited camcorder kit. From $729.

When to hire a videographer. When to choose The Kit.

We’re a wedding videography studio that also makes a DIY kit. We’re not pretending one is a replacement for the other. They’re different products, for different couples, on different budgets.

A note: a hired Shutter & Sound commission starts at $2,900 in most cities and runs through $4,600 for our feature tier. The Kit starts at $729. The same editors, the same studio — two different deliverables for two different days.

STRAIGHT TALK

The Kit is not for every couple.

If any of these are true for your wedding, hire a videographer instead. We’d rather you book the right product than the cheaper one.

• —The ceremony is in low light or candle-light, and the audio of the vows is the most important shot of the day.
• —You want a curated, music-led short film with broadcast-clean audio of the vows and toasts. Friends with a Handycam can’t deliver that.
• —None of your friends will commit to running a camera for the day — even with our printed shot list and 12 button labels.
• —You want a multi-camera ceremony with synchronised cuts of the kiss from three angles. That’s a hired-crew job.

See Wedding Films instead →

How it works.

Six steps. From the order to the delivery.

1. I.

   Choose your kit

   One screen. No discovery call, no deposit, no waiting. Pick a kit, pick your wedding date, agree to the rental terms — three pages, plain English — and you're booked.

2. II.

   The box arrives

   UPS, about two days before the wedding. A Sony Handycam, three pre-charged batteries, a 512 GB card, your printed shot list, and a typed welcome letter from our studio.

3. III.

   Hand it to a cousin

   Bridesmaids. Groomsmen. The cousin who notices everything. Up to sixteen hours of 4K — anyone can use it.

4. IV.

   Drop it back at UPS

   Within seventy-two hours of the last toast. Original box, prepaid label inside. That's the entire return logistics.

5. V.

   The cut begins

   Two to three weeks in, every raw clip returns to you — in chronological order, just as it was filmed. The edit starts the same week.

6. VI.

   The film arrives

   Five to seven weeks from your wedding. A three-to-seven minute personal film, scored, colour-graded, hand-cut by the same editors who cut our feature commissions.

Six honest answers.

1. 01.

   QUESTION

   Is hiring a wedding videographer worth the cost?

   ANSWER

   Sometimes — and we say that as a wedding videography studio. If your venue is dim, you care deeply about ceremony audio (broadcast lavalier mics on the officiant + groom), or you want a curated, music-led short film, hire a videographer. The ceremony you only get one chance to record well, and a good crew is worth $4,000–$9,000 for that single hour. The Kit is the right answer for couples who want documentary-feel coverage of the whole weekend — the rehearsal, the speeches, the dance floor — captured by friends who already know them, edited by our studio. Different products, different couples.

2. 02.

   QUESTION

   What's the difference between hiring a videographer and renting a camera?

   ANSWER

   A hired wedding videographer brings 1–3 trained camera operators, broadcast-grade audio (lavalier mics, shotgun mics, audio recorders on the officiant + groom + DJ), low-light cinema lenses, and a curatorial eye that decides what to show and what to cut. They produce a polished, music-led 5–15 minute film. The Kit is one or two friend-operated 4K camcorders, captured candidly across the weekend, then cut by our editors into a documentary-style short film. The Kit costs $729–$1,249 — a real alternative when budget or vibe leans documentary, not when you need broadcast audio of the vows.

3. 03.

   QUESTION

   Is this the same studio that makes the cinematic commission films?

   ANSWER

   Yes. The Kit is the budget-conscious counterpart to Shutter & Sound's full commissions. Same editors, same colour palette, same music supervision — just filmed by your people instead of ours.

4. 04.

   QUESTION

   Do I need video experience to use it?

   ANSWER

   None. The Handycam has clear, plain-English labels on every button. A two-minute test run the day before is all anyone needs. Most of our couples hand it to a cousin with an iPhone-camera instinct and the footage looks beautiful.

5. 05.

   QUESTION

   When will I receive the edited film?

   ANSWER

   Organised raw footage, two to three weeks after the wedding. Edited film, five to seven weeks after the wedding. Same editing cadence as our commissions.

6. 06.

   QUESTION

   What if the camera breaks or is lost?

   ANSWER

   While the Kit is in your possession, you're responsible for it — same as any rental. Real talk: drops happen, drinks spill, things get loaded into Ubers. At checkout we offer an optional Damage Waiver ($59) that caps your out-of-pocket at a flat $250 deductible for accidental damage and loss — Shutter & Sound absorbs everything above that. Without the waiver, the card on file may be charged for repair (up to $700 typical) or replacement value (the camera is ~$1,400) per our rental agreement. Transit damage on the way to or from you is on us.

7. 07.

   QUESTION

   Can I upgrade to a full commission later?

   ANSWER

   Yes. The Kit credit applies in full toward any Shutter & Sound commission upgrade. The raw footage you capture stays with you either way.

8. 08.

   QUESTION

   How does shipping work?

   ANSWER

   UPS, prepaid in both directions. Kit arrives about two days before the wedding — enough time to charge batteries, format the SD card, and run a test recording without the gear sitting around your living room for a week. You drop it back at any UPS counter within seventy-two hours of your last toast, by the end of your rental window.