How long should it typically take for a videographer to return the final product?
My sister got married two years ago, and it took almost 6 months for her videographer to return the video of her wedding. I want a videographer at my wedding, but I'm scared it'll take the same amount of time to come back. Is 6 months normal to wait for your wedding video?
Louisa P
Question Asked: 24/04/2017
Wedding Date: 4/04/2018
Most Helpful Response
Answered by: 24 Experts
Sort by:
(12) · Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast, servicing all of South East Queensland.
Posted: 26/06/2026
Six months is on the longer side, and I completely understand why that put a scare into you. The honest answer is that turnaround really does vary, and a lot of it comes down to how busy the studio is and whether the editing is being done in house or sent off somewhere. For us, every film is edited by our own team here, never outsourced or sent offshore, which means we keep control of the timeline and the result rather than waiting in someone else's queue.
What I'd say matters more than any single number is that you get a clear, written timeframe up front, ideally in your contract, so there are no surprises. Season plays a part too. Here in South East Queensland the spring and autumn months get really busy with weddings, so a film booked in October or March may sit a little longer in the edit queue than one in the quieter winter stretch. A good videographer will tell you honestly where your date falls.
One thing worth knowing is that many of us deliver in stages. You'll often get a short highlights film first, which is the one you'll share with everyone, followed by your longer feature film a bit later. That way you're reliving the day fairly soon while the full edit gets the time it deserves.
My practical tip: when you're meeting videographers, just ask straight out what their typical turnaround is, whether it's in the contract, and who actually does the editing. The answers to those three questions will tell you very quickly whether you're dealing with someone who'll have your film back to you in a reasonable timeframe.
It will vary from videographer to videographer. The most important thing is to get a solid commitment on the timeframe from them before you go ahead with them. We aim to have all videos back to you within two weeks of the wedding date.
(10) · Mornington-Peninsula, Melbourne, Yarra Valley, Surf Coast
Posted: 18/09/2017
That seems like an unusually lenghty amount of time. In the relm on 3-6 weeks would be the usual turnaround. It can also depend on the length of time that the wedding was filmed and if there was more than one camera being used.
If it was for 12+ hours, there can a lot of footage to go through and if you edit between two cameras, it can also take a bit longer.
Regards,
Clint
We feel that a couple is entitled to their video (and their prints, let's not exclude the Photographers!) as soon as they return from their honeymoon! That's, of course, a different amount of time for every couple, but whether it's two weeks or a month before they're back we feel that amount of time is perfectly reasonable.
Here at Studio Amori we see our edit usually finished within ten working days from the end of the Wedding, and we're super proud of our ability to meet those expectations nearly every time - but we'd be lying if we didn't occasionally encounter delays! Our most common delay is waiting for our Printer to deliver the Premium DVD Cases that we offer- but the key here is communication. We report updates to our couples whenever there are updates to report and we think anything less than that is poor practice!
I recommend giving the Videographer 1 to 2 months for editing. This way you will get the best out of your editing. I always give a wedding trailer 48 hours after the wedding so the couple can share it with there family and friends while waiting for the main edit to be done.
It shouldn't take longer than 6 weeks for a first look and 2 weeks after that for delivery of the final product.
Cheers,
Adrian.
adrianeppel@gmail.com
6 months is not normal at all. It should be in their terms and agreement on how long the video will take to be finished
At Parallax.Media its a turn around time of 4-8 weeks and that is above average on other Wedding Videography companies. The average is 8-12 weeks.
Hi Louisa, Every videographer is different and the time to get your wedding video can depend on how busy they are. I know some that take over a year. Discuss it with your videographer prior to booking, so you know and ask for it to be included in your contract. Our contract states you will have your video within 8 weeks of your wedding, usually it is about 6 weeks. Based on chats with other videographers in forums 3 months seems fairly typical.
Didn't find what you were looking for? Ask your own question and we'll have our experts answer it.
Ask a question
Hi Louisa,
6 months is a long time to wait and it will depend on the company you choose, what you agree to in the contract (and you should demand a contract!) and your expectations on the quality. At Wedding Movies you receive a short teaser within days of your wedding as we want you to have something immediate to share with your friends and family. Then once you have selected your music for your Full Length and Highlights version we take between 1 to 3 months to supply you an approval edit to review and sign off. It's important to note that we offer you a boutique service and all our edits are reviewed as part of our commitment to quality control and excellence prior to sending this to you for your comment and feedback. For an amazing result it's important to not rush the creative process and should you be working with an accredited Wedding Video company they should also keep you in a high level of communication before, during and after the wedding and have detailed documentation detailing the process.
Also I note that you are getting married in April 2018, so you should expect a faster turnaround as you are not getting married in the Christmas/New Year period which often has slightly longer turnaround times.
Kind Regards,
Ben Whimpey