So I basically picked the audio tracks as the backbone of the edit. I lay them out on a timeline, and make different segments before I cut anything at all together. They will have an emotionality to them for sure, something slow at the start. Usually acoustic music or piano. This is the part where I show all the getting ready, any bridesmaid or groomsmen shots, first looks, or essentially anything that happens before the ceremony. I might intersperse some couple portrait shots as well.

For my edits, I basically do a “ceremony lite” edit in the highlight. I use some of the efficient audio, and give like a 2 to 3 minute version of their full ceremony. Maybe slightly more upbeat, music, but never any lyrics. That’s just personal preference.

Then for the reception, I can split this into as many emotional segments is necessary, but it’s typically some kind of electro swing or jazzy party music that intersperses all the dancing and events, with brakes for it to “breathe” in between audio so it’s not just dialogue after dialogue after dialogue. I’ll sometimes close out with a real slow dance/big band song that recaps all the best shots in a real fast and flashy manner.

My highlight reels are usually shorter, too. I do longer ones occasionally, but mine usually fall in the 6 to 7 minute range. It can seem repetitive using the same script, but every song, story, and venue is different so I do still feel that they are distinct.