Here is your guide to ensuring perfect audio for your wedding or event.
Capturing the speeches, wedding ceremony, and music is not always thought of as a priority for many brides and grooms during the planning process. However, audio is just as important as the images. Watching a video of your wedding ceremony would be disappointing if you cannot hear anything.With the help of Eric Blomberg, Logistics Coordinator at Alchemy Concert Systems we have laid out a few of the most important details to consider when planning out Audio/Visual needs for your wedding.
Why should I hire a professional for audio/visual?
Hiring someone with technical knowledge and experience working weddings in the Aspen area is important. The details that go into planning the specifics for audio/visual can be complex. Having someone with experience in this area will ensure your wedding will run smoothly and that your vision will be executed flawlessly.
“When planning a wedding we obviously believe that hiring a professional AV company such as ourselves to operate the AV of a wedding is very important. This is the most important day of the Bride & Groom’s lives and hiring us to provide the audio and visual aspect of a wedding guarantees a professional and beautiful outcome that will not only be memorable for the Bride and Groom but also to all that attend the wedding.” (Eric Blomberg, ACS)
What can an Audio/Visual company (such as Alchemy Concert Systems) help me with?
A professional AV can assist with many logistic details, including design, implementation and operation. No matter your budget or needs, a professional will help everything go smoothly.
Eric shares, “We have done everything from high-dollar elaborate weddings where we have used every piece of equipment that we own to events that have a smaller budget where we have made due with a few speakers and some lights and still managed to make it look fantastic.”
What do I need to consider regarding audio/visual for different aspects of the wedding?
The Ceremony: Everyone wants to hear the bride and groom during the ceremony. With no microphone, no matter how intimate your wedding is, even the loudest voice will be hard to hear and even harder to capture on camera. Wearing wireless microphones is important for anyone speaking during the ceremony. This can include the officiant, readers, and the bride and groom. As the bride will have no place to wear a microphone, the groom can wear one to pick up both of their voices.
It is important to have loud, clear voices for the video recording. One thing to consider is having the sound turn off from the Groom’s microphone after the “I Do’s” and before the first kiss. You won’t want to hear smooching on the wedding video!
If you have readers during your ceremony have them wear a wireless microphone, and then turn it on when it is their turn to speak. Another option would be to use a hand held microphone and have it ready where they will be standing.
Music: Hearing the sounds from your band or DJ is obviously important. For a live band make sure that people will be able to hear it. Always make sure your DJ/Band has tested their sound systems and equipment. Make sure microphones are working and that the speakers are positioned properly for the best sound. Having a backup in case of equipment problems is always a great idea.
If you are choosing to “DIY” the music, using a smartphone/MP3 device a professional technician can help you set up sound systems.
The Reception: There are many factors to consider for the reception portion of your wedding. If you are having toasts, you will need to plan on having microphones. Speakers will also need to set up in the areas where you want music. If you are choosing to show a slideshow with pictures or a video you will need to have sound and a screen set up for viewing.
Outdoor Weddings: Outdoor weddings can offer a challenge for wedding audio. With outdoor weddings comes background noise and wind. If you are in a public place, keep in mind that there could be young kids running or yelling, barking dogs, cars, birds, people talking etc. Make sure that even if there may be background noise that your sound system will allow all of your guests to hear what is going on.
Remote Locations: If you are getting married in a remote location or even a backyard wedding, one thing to consider is how to get enough power for the sound system, lights, DJ, etc. Make sure to plan for this, because without power the event will not run smoothly. Many times people may try to simply use the power from their home, but this can overload the system and cause safety issues, fire risk, and power failure.
Having a generator can help provide the power needed. However, many generators can be extremely loud, not exactly the sound you want to hear during the silence of the first kiss! A professional can help you with solutions that are perfect for weddings. They will have options for generators that can power up everything you need, but are quieter. Eric adds, “By hiring us the Bride and Groom will have no reason to worry about any issues regarding the AV portion of their special day; even if any issues occur we are quick, quiet and extremely competent making them relatively unnoticeable or concealing them all together.”
Venue Restrictions: Make sure to ask your venue manager what sound restrictions there are for your venue. There could be specifics including power supply, sound amplification, time restrictions (i.e. no music after 11pm), etc.
“An important aspect to consider when hiring us would definitely be location and timing. Due to the mountainous region that we live in some venues are definitely more difficult than others for us to work in. We will work together with the planner or Bride and Groom to make their dream reality however we need to. But certain venues have electricity constraints that make it more difficult and therefore sometimes more expensive to operate in.” (Eric Blomberg, ACS)
Hiring a professional AV company to help with these aspects of your wedding will help your wedding run smoothly. No matter if your wedding is large or small, high cost or low cost, indoor or outdoor, utilizing the skills of a professional AV will provide peace of mind. You will beautifully capture the most important parts of your wedding, (the vows, toasts, guest messages, dancing, music….) and be able to relive your day over and over again with a video that has captured the sounds and memories of your day.