“I’ll just take the summer off,” said no self-respecting wedding filmmaker or photographer ever. I did say, “2020 will be the year I work less and spend more time with my family!”—but I didn’t actually mean for it to be taken so literally.

After relocating from the UK to Wengen, a tiny Swiss ski and hiking resort in the Jungfrau Region of the Swiss Alps, almost four years ago, I’d been establishing myself as a luxury destination wedding filmmaker. My mind is drifting between Malibu and Sorrento in Italy, Lake Magorie in Switzerland, the South of France and New York—just some of the wedding locations where I filmed in 2019, and some of those already commissioned for 2020 under my business, Story Of Your Day. My efforts were finally starting to pay off and I was at last being recognized as “one of Europe’s leading female wedding videographers.” I was even featured right here in Rangefinder alongside two amazing U.S.-based filmmakers, in an article called ‘The Future of Filmmaking is Female’ (read the online version here).

The promo video for Story of Your Day.

2020 had been touted to be the biggest year in weddings; the year has a nice symmetrical ring to it, don’t you think? It denotes perfect vision. It just sounds right. Rolls off the tongue. But it has developed into being a year with hardly any weddings to capture at all.

A recent favorite video of mine.

My corporate promotions company has suffered, too. Under The Story Creatives, I had corporate commissions, with travel and tourism companies all over Switzerland, simply called off overnight. And my annual appearance at the UK Photography/Video Show was cancelled at the last minute. Later, I had to do the same, letting down the expectant and excited attendees of my videography workshop in London.

[Read the 9 ways to keep your photo business afloat.]

Working locally in a bar or restaurant or hotel wasn’t an option. Apart from the fact that Wengen isn’t very “open” right now, I am yet to master German, let alone Schweizerdeutsch, the Swiss-German dialect with more regional versions than Swiss cheese varieties.

I had to think laterally: What could I do to keep me sane and keep me earning? I needed to do something that, in essence, could achieve a balance of family life, personal gratification and business success.

I briefly looked at my bucket list of things I’d always wanted to do:

“Run a marathon.” Not in these mountains!  

“Write a book.” That sounds like too much work.

“Run a successful business.” Oh, wait…

But one thing I’d wanted to do was write an online course, sharing my videography skills and expertise with others.  In this year of incredible uncertainty, I decided to bring my Evolve Videography Training online: into the locked-down homes, studios and offices of wedding videographers. I am passionate about inspiring and empowering others. Given the difficult times we’re all facing, I had to bring this vision into reality.

The promo video for my Evolve Videography Training course.

I set to work, but I also had something else on my mind.  Not only did I not know anything about actually writing an online course but, putting myself in the shoes of other videographers, I couldn’t think of anything worse than being a slave to a “death by Powerpoint” class. So, I had to come up with a plan to make it different.

I signed up for Jeanine Blackwell’s “7 Steps to Creating and Launching Your Online Course,” on online course to learn about writing an online course (of course I did)! It was a worthwhile investment, both of my time and money, because it taught me how to structure, write and produce an effective and engaging online course and how to share my skills, experience and expertise.  In effect, I was on a learning curve, too.

By June 1, The Wedding Film Academy for Female Filmmakers was online. I had three weeks of modules completely in the bag, with the other four modules all planned but not written or recorded (who doesn’t like a bit of pressure?). It’s immersive and hands-on and enables filmmakers to improve their filmmaking and storytelling skills, upgrade their packages and pricing, promote themselves in a highly competitive market, and gain confidence with access to my knowledge, skills and industry insight.

Those on the course feel part of a proper training program rather than just a viewer. In every module, “students” are expected to take part with tasks and homework and then be accountable in the Facebook group community, as well as attend regular webinar sessions so we could chat and have coffee, or, in my case, a large glass of vino.

Being a Women Who Photo & Film ambassador meant the obvious choice was for me to launch the first course with women in mind, but I hate to leave anyone out and am mindful of exclusion, so I’ve succumbed to demands to open up another course welcoming all on board. The Film Academy for Wedding Videographers is up and in full swing.

Lockdown has been tough, the last four months hard to deal with, but it’s been good to have a focus. Get yourself one—they’re completely free of charge.

Regrets? I have a few. I sometimes think that if I’d known what I was getting myself into, I would have never have started it. There’s a saying: Don’t let perfection get in the way of progress. I’m a Capricorn, a perfectionist, so that took all of my energy.  I’ve worked harder in the last few months than I have in a long time, and my reward now is to take the rest of the summer off with my family—with a small caveat: It depends what else comes up!

How Photographers and Videographers Are Branching Out in Different Ways During the Pandemic

Photographer → Baker
Ryan Browne Photography

I’ve worked with Ryan Browne on several occasions at weddings, and I always found it fascinating that as well as being an awesome wedding photographer, he’s also a highly respected sports photographer. 

But when it comes to being flexible, well, he’s your man. When all his work stopped, he took a job at a bakery.

“I first worked in a bakery when I was 17,” he told me. “ I had never imagined I would ever be doing it again, but when it was announced that we were going into lockdown, I realized that all my work would quickly stop. Rather than sitting on my backside and moaning about the situation, I decided to do something about it.  I was back in the bakery within seven days, and earning again.”

[Check out how photographers are pivoting amid the global pandemic.]

He’s going to keep on working there, even though some of his sporting contracts have slowly started again. “When you have a family, you have to support them in whatever way you can,” he says. “Although I have been a pro photographer since 1997, at the end of the day, it’s a job. I love being a photographer, but during this difficult time, pride cannot come into it.”

Photographer → Craftsperson
Claire Penn (a Rangefinder 30 Rising Star of 2014)

Claire Penn has taken a different path and dealt with the last few months in a unique way—she may just have found herself another career path to complement her existing photography business.

“During the first four-to-six weeks of lockdown,” she says, “I was in a state of shock.  I cried a lot. I drank a lot of wine.” In order to stay sane, she bought a jigsaw and a macramé kit to give herself something to do and take her mind off everything.

[Read about what photographers are discovering as creative motivation during stay-at-home orders.]

She got the bug for macramé, bought a how-to book, made a few pieces and shared them on her personal Instagram. It wasn’t long before people were commissioning her to make them.  She now has her own online shop for her new business, Knot & Twig.

“Macramé has given me an outlet for my creativity and given me some of my drive back when I thought nothing could!” she told me.

Suffice it to say, the jigsaw she bought is still in the box.

Videographer → Inventor
Reece Iveson Videography

Look out for a new product on the market from Reece Iveson, who has been designing ND filters during the pandemic. “I’m not someone who can sit through Netflix boxsets all day,” he confesses. “I’d prefer to be working towards something.”

[Discover the ways that photographers are prioritizing work and creative projects amid the pandemic.]

He has always wanted to design something, Iveson told me, and as a professional filmmaker, he had realized that perfecting the image in-camera beats trying to improve it in post, hands down. “This is exactly what the filter does, as well as being perfect for creative portrait shots, long exposure shots and so much more,” he says. “If the venture is successful, then this lockdown will be even more memorable!”  

The ND filters are in production already, so watch this space.

8 Things You Can Do to Keep Your Business Growing During the Pandemic

1. Perfect or finesse your skills.

Now is the time to invest in you and your business. I can guarantee that 2021 will be busy with all those postponements from this year, so my advice is to look at what areas of your business need work. Filming, editing, workflow, marketing, branding—the time to do this is now so you’re ready for next year.

2. Think about where your current skill set might be developed out of wedding filmmaking.

Have you ever considered corporate work or promos? Perhaps suppliers near you are looking for branding films. Reach out to them and see if you can make them a promotional film. This works especially in areas where lockdown is easing but weddings are still not viable for videography.

3. Make a new offer.

Consider offering a bespoke service that normally wouldn’t work for you but at the moment would give you an income stream. While weddings are now permitted with limited guests, have you considered offering a streaming service or a limited service just for filming the ceremony so that clients can share part of their days with friends and family?

4. Revisit existing clients.

Contact clients from weddings you’ve filmed and offer them additional upgrades to what they have commissioned already. Perhaps they’d like their ceremony or speeches in full, a FOMO edit, or even just their raw footage. This is all work you can do in the comfort of your locked-down home!

5. Stay motivated and fit for work.

I am hearing all the time from photographers and videographers who are petrified about returning to weddings because they feel out of practice. Pick up your camera, stay motivated and shoot anything you can. This is also why an online course is perfect; it keeps you practicing your skills.

6. Reach out and network.

Have you considered doing some styled shoots? Perhaps you didn’t have the time before or you don’t want to do anything for free. This is probably the only time that I would consider a styled shoot. I highly recommend it so you can pick up your camera again, get to filming and make new connections for the future.

7. Learn a new skill.

I have many students on my course coming into videography from photography. One student used to be a family photographer specializing in studio shoots with newborns. Now she wants to film instead, and she has found that all of her clients are interested. While she learns and perfects her new skills with me, she’s doing discounted offers to build her portfolio.

8. Get interested in something else.

Even if you don’t fancy staying within the wedding industry or learning a new skill within it, think about other passions and projects you could follow that could complement any return to work, or be something completely new for your future.

Be safe, and stay motivated.

(This article is a tribute to Harry the Hound, 2003-2020.
I couldn’t have made it through lockdown without him.)

Emma Wilson is an audiovisual storyteller and the Creative Director at Story of Your Day, an internationally renowned, luxury wedding and event film brand. She also runs corporate production company, The Story Creatives.