The wedding season of 2022-2023 is extremely hot – hundreds of filmmakers struggle with their backlogs. And even those who always shoot and edit films themselves now have no choice but to hire video editor or editing team for working together.

We know and understand how uncomfortable it can be to delegate one of the core processes to someone else. We also know many stories from videographers who hired the wrong guys and lost money and time re-editing after them from scratch. So, Bride&Groom.video decided to come up with a handy checklist in order to help you hire an editing partner you can build a mutually profitable long-term relationship with.

1. Check their portfolio

Everyone shows their best examples, so you’ll see the maximal technical level of editing they can do. You can pay attention to shot selection, color grading, sound design, music choice, etc.

When you choose a wedding video editor/editing company that shows you the best skill set and experience for creating wedding films, you can be sure that your video will also get everything it deserves, and not just what is available. A passionate team will always offer creative solutions that will meet your expectations.

2. Read reviews

Ask for testimonials from other clients. Be sure they are real. To do this, you can check links to social media or websites of the clients who left reviews. Don’t hesitate to contact them and ask for a referral.

3. What questions do they ask?

Listen to questions your potential editor will ask. A good editor will definitely ask you to show YOUR examples of films and then discuss your preferences regarding ways of telling stories, preferred music genres, adding or not adding vows and speeches, technical requirements like fps and bitrate, etc.

4. Find out timelines

Receive clear timelines and be sure they suit you. Professional video editors know how much time it will take them to edit your films. They will also add one or two days for safety. Underpromise — overdeliver, is the immortal motto in all kinds of business.

5. Number of revisions

Agree on the number of revisions that are included in the cost. Some corrections after the first view are a normal process and you don’t have to worry about it. Thus, the editor can understand and replicate your style better. Find out more about our process of fitting the client’s style here.

However, be afraid of working with those editors who don’t limit the number of rounds of corrections and the time when corrections can be done. It can flag that they are new to the market and were not beaten by their destiny yet.

Usually, editors include two rounds of corrections – one round from the videographer and another from the newlyweds, and limit warranty time to 1-3 months.

6. Editing software

Discuss what software the editor will use. Industry standards are Adobe Premiere Pro, Final Cut, and DaVinci Resolve. Of course, the ones who use the software you use yourself if you need to edit should be given priority.

7. Data export and project files

Be sure you’ll receive the project file together with the mp4 output in the end. This way you’ll be able to apply tiny tweaks yourself anytime in the future. For example, adding start and final shots or logo when uploading films to your corporate Facebook page or website.

8. Music

Licenses matter (link to the article). Ask your editor if they have subscriptions to licensed music libraries. If they don’t have a license for Musicbed, Soundstripe, Audiio, Artlist or Track Club, they’ll probably find some copy-right free, not the greatest songs. Or even worse, they’ll use not-licensed tracks that may bring you to a lawsuit.

To make the music choice easier, we have created a list of 35 songs for wedding films that is definitely worth your attention.

9. LUTs

Agree on whether you need any color correction or color grading. Well, at least your editors should know the difference. If you have some LUTs you’d like to use, don’t hesitate to share them with your editing partner.

10. Convenient workflow

Prepare a list of questions and ask all of them. Be sure that all the steps of the working process are convenient for you. How can you send footage? What cloud storage do they use? How do they deliver films? and so on.

11. Communication and involvement

Just start chatting and see what questions they ask, how easy the communication is and what your gut feeling says. It’s almost never wrong.

Best Option: Hire a Wedding Video Editing Company

We hope you are now fully armed and ready to find your best online editing partner.

And we’ll be happy to become the one for you. Fill in our contact form under this post, or drop us a line at [email protected], and our outsource video editing service will help you save your time and shoot more weddings this season.