When a loved one passes away, it can be hard to know how to deal with the grief. There are many aspects of life that need to be considered after losing someone close, and what's left behind is often not enough. One popular way for friends and family members to say goodbye is through a celebration of life video at memorial services. Such videos play an important role in these ceremonies when friends and family gather together to pay tribute to the person they lost, reminiscing on all the memories they cherished about them.

In this blog post I will be discussing how Xpression Video Productions produces high-end emotional tribute videos such as a celebration of life and why they are so important for memorial services.

1. Why might you want a Celebration of Life video for your memorial service?

There are many reasons why you might want a celebration of life video for your memorial service. They can provide an opportunity for friends and family to share memories of the deceased, celebrate their life and accomplishments, and give thanks for the time they had together. A well-made tribute video can also be a very powerful way to help mourners deal with the grieving process. While you are mourning, it may be rough to try and organize a celebration of life event, and even more so having to go through all the trouble to find the best funeral videography service in Toronto, but with some help from your closest and loving friends or family, you will find the assistance and courage to move forward with the planning. It's certainly daunting task but it can be a very healing experience in the long run.

It's okay to celebrate life while mourning the loss

There is no shame in hiring a funeral videographer to capture a memorial service. And perhaps this is why there is a disconnect correlation between celebrating a life and having a professional funeral videography service to capture it. Many individuals are afraid and concerned about the thoughts of others, especially if they consider displaying a large show or hiring vendors such as a funeral videographer. Some people feel that a celebration of life is a gloomy occasion for everyone to come together and reflect, while others believe it's an opportunity to expand on their life and show off a more cheerful program that better reflects their life and achievements. Whatever the outcome, we believe that a celebration of life is an event with equal significance to film on video as any other.

2. How to choose the right videographer to create your tribute video?

When you are grieving the loss of someone you love, it's hard to even think about planning for their memorial event or perhaps have time to sit down with friends and family members who can help organize everything. But there is one aspect that should be taken care of without any doubt and that is to choose the best funeral videographer.

What to look for in a videographer specializing in funeral videos

If you are looking for a professional funeral video production company, there are some important things to look out for when hiring a pro to film something special about your loved one's life and legacy. The most important aspect when choosing a memorial video expert is their experience with producing videos of this caliber. An emotional video of this nature requires great deal of attention to detail and a lot of experience in dealing with proper etiquette. And this is where we come in. We have developed our filming abilities to tell emotional stories after coming from a wedding videography background. Our trained team of Toronto videographers recognize the importance of capturing a moment and tying it to a reaction. When researching for a videographer in Toronto, it's essential to look at their portfolios and carefully get a real feel of the emotion it delivers. Don't just dwell on the special effects that it offers because that will only become a distraction and take away from the real focus. A properly produced tribute video will tell a story that you can watch over and over again, feel the emotions as they were felt at the time of the event.

Hire a funeral videography service near you

A great place to start looking for a funeral videography service is within your niche of friends and of course the internet. A Google search for a local funeral videography service near you will certainly get the ball rolling. You have a lot on your mind, and hiring a funeral videographer should not be so difficult. Make it simple and quick for yourself! Google is definitely a great start. While you are at it, look at their reviews and funeral tribute video samples. If at all possible, avoid any email communication, as this will require extra effort during an urgent time of need and delay the video planning process. Give them a call instead and discuss your idea and need for a memorial video. A professional video production company such as ours, will take your call and listen. We'll take great care of you in an orderly, trouble-free way. We recognize how tough it is for you, and we'll do everything we can to organize your memorial video in a timely and meaningful manner. And finally another thing to have in mind when choosing someone who can provide great funeral videography services is pricing. The last thing you need now after having lost someone dear would be unnecessary funeral videography costs. Keep it simple and spend on the areas you feel will help console matters.

3. The different types of tribute videos that are available

So, you've chosen a professional videographer to record your loved one's life celebration and now you're wondering what kind of video is appropriate for a memorial service and keepsake. Yet you are unsure of the types of videos available to you. What do you do? Well, this is where we also come in and offer you some peace of mind. And hopefully, by this time, you have had the chance to read this before any of the circumstantial instances have taken place. Having read this before hand will prepare you at best when the time comes to decide on the type of celebration of life video.

We offer you these types of celebration of life videos:

Tribute Videos

There really is no set structure to tribute videos. They are essentially that as the name implies. You can have a tribute video made into a slideshow or a movie feature. Sometimes, it's an event that you held in honour of your loved one and you just want a highlight video to recap those moments. There really isn't a wrong way to go about it, or a set of limitations to how to honor a loved one’s life.

Here is a sample of a Celebration of Life event that we had the honour to capture and highlight for the late Ann Weissengruber.

Slideshow tributes are just as equally effective as any other video. A slideshow tribute is a montage of photos set to music. This type of video is perfect for those who want to remember their loved one through pictures, captions and music. We allow up to 60 pictures and as many captions as you wish, accompanied with your desired soundtrack of your choice. However, we always prefer to use our very own licensed music. You are always welcome to check out the music directory at The Music Bed and select the soundtrack you like. We will make sure to accommodate you.

Here is a sample of a tribute slideshow we put together to commemorate the late Ross McArthur.

Biography Tribute Videos

A biography tribute is a video that tells the story of a person's life. This type of video can be very long or short, depending on how much content there is to cover. Usually, we produce a biography tribute video for someone who had an extensive life experience and influenced many people along the way. These include interviews, pictures and complimenting video inserts and soundtracks to tell the story. They are well produced and usually created to showcase at the memorial service. And not to worry, we will structure out the video plan for you and prepare all your speakers to be interviewed before the shoot. We are just as meticulous about pre-production as we are on the actual shoot day.

Funeral Videography Service

A funeral video is meant to commemorate the deceased and console those who are left behind. It can be religious or non-religious, but usually has a much solemn feel to it. Funeral videos highlight the key moments of the day. The coverage usually consists of the day's events from beginning to end starting at the funeral home, service and the burial. It's a recap video that touches on the real emotions of the day and not just the facts. Our funeral video packages are customizable. You may choose to have full day or half day coverage. We find with most families that they prefer to have a recollection of the full day tied in nicely to music in a 3 to 5 minute highlight video. We actually have samples of this type of video and out of respect for the family, we don’t share them publicly. However, we can send them to you privately upon request.

Live Streaming Videos

This is, without a doubt, one of the most practical reasons to capture your celebration of life on video. A live stream of the event can be accessed by anyone who was not able to attend the service in person. This is also a great way for distant family and friends to feel as if they were there with you. Our live streaming services are reliable and offer many incentives which keep your viewers engaged and interactive.

4. Tips for sharing your tribute video with family and friends

When it comes to sharing these types of videos with family and friends, we have a few tips. First, make sure you have a copy of the video that is saved in a safe place. You may want to consider backing it up to a cloud platform so its saved and preserved for future playback technologies.

The Memorial Service

The best time to share these videos is at the actual memorial service. Your video will have a lot of appeal and tug at the heartstrings of those in attendance.

Social Media

This is probably the second best option to share your videos. Not only is it a great way to share the video with family who may not be able to physically attend, but it’s also a wonderful memory that can be watched over and over anytime and at any place. If you choose to share your video on social media, make sure the privacy settings are set to allow only those that you approve to view it. After the celebration of life videos are complete, you can send them out via email with an attached link to the video or the actual video itself. We recommend using WeTransfer to send out lengthy high-quality videos. This will ensure the videos are not compressed and preserved for optimal playback.

Memorial Pages

Another great outlet to share your video is your loved one's social memorial page. These are often self made websites or funeral home memorial pages that share information and memories of your loved one. These pages often allow for guests to write personable messages about them. Many times friends and family are also able to comment on the shared video, which is a great feature for them.

The tribute video is an opportunity for friends and family members who were impacted positively by your loved one, to share their stories with others. It also lets those left behind hear new conversations from people whose lives they've touched in a meaningful way; this can help heal wounds during difficult times without having any additional pressure on top of everything else going on.

We know that the loss of a loved one is difficult and can be overwhelming. It’s our goal to help you find peace by creating an emotional, reflective tribute video for your memorial service. If you haven't already done so, we recommend reaching out to us today to learn more about how we can provide this specialized service in partnership with your funeral home. Call us at (416) 320-9001 and speak directly with one of our specialists who will walk through everything from start to finish including pricing and package options. They'll also answer any questions you may have along the way so don't hesitate!

A Tribute Video: How We Can Help With A Celebration of Life