My 2nd favorite film of all time.

posted November 9, 2012 in About, Happenings

I confess: I was biased about choosing my favorite film of all time. And I’m equally biased on my second favorite film of all time: our honeymoon film.

I cherish these Super 8 mm moments Krista and I created in March. We recently got the film scans back (yes, film) from Kevin Von Qualen who lent us his camera to take along on our honeymoon on Maui. The perfected trio is complete: our engagement film, our wedding, and now this (view direct in Vimeo):

Not only did we manage to film each other in memorable locals, but we turned the camera on ourselves… shared with a waitress, a hotel room service attendant, a random pool goer, a resort guest, a bellman, and a fellow commercial photographer met along the trail. They all appreciated shooting actual film. Not digital. Old school, was right.

I really appreciated Kevin’s vision for this trio of films, something I would highly recommend for anyone considering it. Highly recommend. Watching the film brings back the raw emotion in a dream-like quality… the way memories should remain.

Keep in mind these are silent films. Part of Kevin’s art is pairing of the film to the soundtrack. Among favorite parts include perfect timing of visuals with song lyrics: at 1:20 “To find a lover in this life” {Krista pops up}, at 1:28 “Take her to the water”{view of ocean} and at 3:07 “Sets your eyes upon the Lord” {above the clouds on the volcano at Haleakala National Park filming rear view mirror reflection}. Simple Bliss.

Kevin entrusted us with his creative tool. He spent extra time showing me how to turn on the camera, load film, focus, check the batteries, and ensure all the proper auto settings were in the right place (read: idiot settings for me). The camera worked great and it is back home safe and sound.

Even Krista got giddy using the Super 8mm camera in 30 degree temps on crater at the top of Haleakala volcano in Maui:

If you are looking for a top notch cinema artist to document your wedding, choose Kevin Von Qualen. If you’d like to learn more about Kevin’s approach, I interviewed him in this blog post.