Deliver the wedding film to the couple

You finish the grade on Tuesday, three days after the ceremony. The couple wants the wedding film on a phone before the weekend, and you deliver it as a page they open in a browser. momentake publishes this article for wedding videographers who hand the film to the couple after the edit.

Monday belongs to the selects. Tuesday belongs to the picture and the sound. Wednesday is the day you put the film where the couple can tap it. They are home from the weekend, or they sit on a train with a weak signal. You leave the exports on the desk until you upload them. They need a link on the phone.

You name the gallery with both names and the ceremony date. An example title is Mara and Owen, 3 October. The couple picks that line out of a chat full of hotel photos. The parents pick it out on Thursday, when a sibling asks for the film a second time.

The week you hand the film over

You block Wednesday for the handoff. The morning is the export, the middle of the day is the upload, and the evening is two messages, link then password. You tell the couple that Wednesday evening is the moment. They can leave the chat alone until then.

The couple watches the highlight first. The ceremony master is there for the vows, the speeches, and a parent who wants the whole arc. You place the short film first in the gallery. The first tap is the film they can finish at the table.

An example pair of files

Treat these sizes as an example from one wedding. The ceremony master is about 18 GB. The highlight is about 4 GB. Add the originals and you get 22 GB.

Free includes 20 GB. This example pair does not fit on Free if you keep both files. Basic includes 300 GB. Both files fit on Basic, and a later wedding can sit beside them in the same library. Read the steps for a file of this size in the guide to sending large wedding video files.

You export MP4 or MOV. H.264 or HEVC is the compatible pair of codecs. You keep the highlight as its own file. The couple watches it without scrubbing through the ceremony master to find the first dance.

The page the couple opens

You send a gallery link. The couple opens it in the browser. They do not create an account. Your logo shows in the header on Free, Basic, Pro, and Max. The film plays on the page. You deliver the picture with no watermark on the video.

On Free the couple watches at 1080p. On Basic, Pro, and Max the couple watches at 4K. You choose the plan from the size of the originals and from the quality you want on their phone. A parent on a laptop and a cousin on a phone open the same link.

The couple's mother screenshots the header, because your name is on that screen. Read the white-label gallery guide for the header, the footer, and a domain of your own.

You open the gallery in a private window before the send. You type the password. You play a few seconds of the highlight. You confirm the second film is the ceremony master. You confirm the logo is the file you uploaded under Settings, then Brand. One sitting catches a wrong cut.

A gallery for both films

You build a gallery when the couple should meet both films on one page. You set the title. You add a cover from the exit of the ceremony, a frame they recognize in a thumbnail. You place the highlight above the ceremony master.

You create a public file link when one person needs a single download. An uncle with a laptop may want the highlight as a file he can keep. You set the expiry at 7 days, 30 days, or with no end date. You put a password on that link. You turn the download on for that link. The gallery stays the watch page for the couple and the parents.

• A gallery holds the films the couple watches on the page.
• A file link points at one original, with its own password and its own download switch.

You can place one original in more than one gallery. The highlight can live on the couple's page and on a shorter page for the wedding party. momentake counts that original once in My files. You name the downloads so they read well if the switch is on. Example names are Mara-Owen-Highlight.mp4 and Mara-Owen-Ceremony.mp4.

The password and the parents

You set the gallery password in the gallery settings. The couple types it once. After that the page opens. You send the link in the first message. You send the password in the second. A forwarded link travels without the password when you keep the password out of the first bubble.

You pick a password the couple can read aloud. A long random string breaks when a parent types it from a phone call. An example is the venue name plus the year of the wedding. You say it once on the call, and you leave it written in the second message for the person who missed the call.

The parents ask for the film in the same week. You send them the same two messages you sent the couple. They open the same page, with the same cover and the same two films. Two households get two chats and one gallery. You do not upload a third copy of the master for the second household.

You have a second path when the parents want a different title. You create another gallery, name it for them, and add the same two files. The 22 GB in the example stays 22 GB. Two galleries do not copy the originals into a second charge against the quota.

You turn downloads off on the parents' gallery when you want them to watch on the page. You turn downloads on when they asked for a copy on a laptop. The switch is in the gallery settings. A file link has its own switch, so the uncle's download can stay on while the gallery download stays off.

From the export to the link

1. You export the ceremony master and the highlight as MP4 or MOV, using H.264 or HEVC.
2. You upload each file. The cap is 30 GB per file. The example master at about 18 GB fits under that cap. You export a version under 30 GB when the cut is larger than the cap.
3. You let momentake transcode the files. The couple can watch the original in the player while that work runs, so the first open plays the master you uploaded.
4. You create the gallery, add the title and the cover, set the password, and set the download switch.
5. You copy the public link, message the couple, and message the parents, then ask the couple to keep the note easy to find in the family chat.

You mention the transcode in the note if you send the link the same afternoon you uploaded. The couple can watch the original while momentake builds the stream. They wait for the stream if they want lighter playback on a phone. You tell them the player is showing the original until that stream is ready.

A one-off package is a different shape. The WeTransfer comparison describes a send built for a single handoff. You use that shape for a rush cut on Sunday night. The gallery is the page you leave for Wednesday, and the page the parents reopen next month.

A folder link is a different shape. You set a Saturday folder next to a gallery page in Drive folder or a client gallery.

Quota, the plan, and the life of the link

momentake counts original files toward the quota. Transcoded streams stay outside that count. In the example you add 18 GB and 4 GB, and you store 22 GB. The couple watches a stream on the phone. momentake counts the masters in the quota.

Free costs $0. It includes 20 GB, 3 galleries, and 1080p streaming. Your logo is on that plan. You connect a custom domain on Pro and on Max.

Basic costs $6.99 per month. It includes 300 GB and 4K streaming. Pro costs $12.99 per month. It includes 1 TB, 4K streaming, and a custom domain. Max costs $29.99 per month. It includes 3 TB, 4K streaming, and a custom domain. Basic, Pro, and Max include unlimited galleries.

The example pair needs more than 20 GB. You start a 14-day trial of a paid plan. momentake does not ask for a card on that trial. You look up plan limits and the quota rule in the FAQ.

Drive stores files against a Google account, a different pool from this quota. You compare the two pools in the Google Drive comparison.

You cancel under Settings, then Plans and Billing. You keep the paid plan until the end of the period you paid. The couple keeps watching through that date. After the paid period you enter a 14-day grace. The couple opens the links during those 14 days. momentake blocks new uploads in that window. If you do not renew, momentake removes the files and the galleries, and the couple cannot open the link.

A delivery platform does four jobs: storage, transcoding, the page, and access control. Read what a video delivery platform does for weddings for that split.

The two messages on Wednesday

You write a short note. The first message carries the gallery link, the title, and the order of the films, highlight first. The second message carries the password. You tell them the film plays in the browser. You tell them whether the download is on.

You send the pair on Wednesday evening. The couple opens the highlight on a phone before sleep. The parents open the same page after dinner and type the password from the second message. On Thursday a sibling uses the link the couple forwarded, and asks for the password in the family chat.