ASK & DISCUSS
INDEXBest way of recording sound on the fly
11 years ago - Rich Keeble
hello. We're looking at filming a doc/mockumentary about our Edinburgh fringe experience, both the show itself, and the semi-scripted 'behind the scenes' stuff. Because we'll be filming in a mixture of circumstances I'd like to make sure we have decent, consistent sound, at least of our dialogue. I'm thinking lapel mics going straight into a Zoom "handy" type recorder. I'd like to avoid radio mics. Is this possible/realistic do you think? I assume it might be cheaper to purchase rather than hire as well, as we'll need the gear for the 2 weeks we're up there. Any help much appreciated! cheers
Only members can post or respond to topics. LOGIN
Not a member of SP? JOIN or FIND OUT MORE
11 years ago - ANDY LEWIS
Some of the phone apps allow you to email the audio file. So you won't need to collect all the zoom digital recorders and extract the files every day.
Response from 11 years ago - ANDY LEWIS SHOW
11 years ago - Rich Keeble
thanks for your help guys! Yes Paddy I think we'll avoid radio mics, and Marlom we won't have anyone to boom so it's gonna have to be lapel mics. Andy - call me stupid, but how do you plug a mic into an iphone? That sounds like a good idea. I have a 5S but I'll probably be doing some filming on that. I have an old 4 though - would that work? cheers
Response from 11 years ago - Rich Keeble SHOW
11 years ago - Marlom Tander
Sound is a bitch, esp when you don't control the space. Been there with community media, got the gaps in the scalp where hair torn out :-)
I'd test, test, test.
E.g. hire the mics and go out and about talking in city streets, parks, coffee shops and bars both busy and quiet, places like the ones you expect to film in, and see what results you get.
Someone else wrote on SP about the shotgun cone of silence trick for noisy environments. Basically they pick up sound from front and rear, so if the rear is pointed up the only sound is from the front and so booming a shotgun above your actors can isolate their voices even in a crowded room. I've not used it though. But worth trying as could be good belt and braces back up in some scenes.
Response from 11 years ago - Marlom Tander SHOW
11 years ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin
Off-the-shelf radio mics won't be much use in a busy environment where everybody has the same kits on the same frequencies anyway! You may find you're recording a conversation and picking up someone else's set!
Response from 11 years ago - Paddy Robinson-Griffin SHOW
11 years ago - ANDY LEWIS
You may save yourself some money by putting audio recorder apps on smart phones, using a decent lapel mic of course. Please let me know if this works.
Response from 11 years ago - ANDY LEWIS SHOW