Bill Davis
Forum Replies Created
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I’ll add my voice to Ty’s.
Not ONLY is it important to monitor in mono to get a heads up regarding comb filtering and other unwanted to-mic summing issues, but I’d argue that unless you have an exhibition contract IN HAND that guarantees this will be heard in actual movie theaters – the best strategy is to mix you’re entire damn movie in MONO. Period.
Mono (one audio track produced with proper time/phase relationships and subsequently dubbed to any and all audio tracks your distribution media has available.
I could fund a nice trip to Europe if I had a few bucks for every time I’ve seen someone take a tape or DVD into an exhibition setting – only to discover that said playback venue had audio wired poorly – taking just left. or just right. or summing right and left badly out of phase.
Mono audio is the MOST BULLETPROOF To play back.
That’s probably why 99% of the large concerts you’ll ever attend are mixed to MONO.
Why risk phase problems when you don’t have to.
My 2 cents anyway.
(Proudly producing corporate videos for more than 20 years and delivered every single damn one of them in mono and NEVER had a tape or disc shoved into a machine and had part of the sound missing – thank heavens.)
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Hop over to the Markertek web site and search on Anchor-Audio/PB-30.
It would be a big step up over RS stuff.
I’d also absolutely go with the wireless (hands free) option. You’ll be glad you did.
That should be fine for a room the size you’re working in.
Also, remember to position the speaker unit between you and your audience – well in front of your position – in order to avoid feedback.
Good luck.
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If the budget is tight, another approach would be to build a super-sized softbox over the entire ring.
The way I understand it, there’s no fixed size for a boxing ring. 16×16, up to 20×20 are typical. So this assumes 16×16.
I’d start with a 16′ x 16′ box built out of 2×6 lumber with evenly spaced joists and stringers to start. Rig that to the roof/ceiling with chain. Then go to Home Depot and buy a whole bunch of cheap two or four lamp fluorescent fixtures and suspend them from the box in close rows over the entire surface of the ring. Lamp them with decent “full spectrum” modern tubes. These, in turn would be suspended from the wood box and positioned so they’re 6″ to 1′ above a large expanse of translucent white fabric. I’d probably build a 20×20 frame from 1×4 and stretch the fabric around it, then use more chain to suspend the fabric frame from the light support frame. Contact Rose Brand for bulk fabric, or if you don’t have time – just sacrifice a bunch of old-style white parachutes and use that) What you want is an even, shadowless wash of illumination that comes at the fighters from every direction so that both can see equally well, and the illumination level is consistent from any and every direction. That way both the fighters and the audience can see perfectly no matter what angle they’re positioned at around the ring.
Then use your other lights to do the walkup and corners, gobos and whatever.
That’s what I’d do if I wanted to keep things affordable, anyway.
FWIW
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YES! Precisely! What TY said.
This is what all of us who’ve been doing audio for video for decades are trying to tell everyone here. Over and over and over and over again.
While it’s possible for a truely GREAT artist to paint a satisfying painting using nothing but one BLUE magic marker – extremely few do so.
Similarly, any audio professional I’ve ever worked with would probably prefer to go on a shoot without their PANTS rather than to go out to any important video shoot with ONE shotgun mic.
Personally, I’m not happy on a set unless I’m carrying AT LEAST the following.
2 “sensitive” wired lavs.
2 “general (less sensitive) wired lavs.
2 wireless body packs with receivers.
2 lavs that match the wired “sensitive” mics.
2 lavs that better match the “general” mics.
1 lav that’s super small for circumstances when a hidden mic is necessary.
1 boom-ready shotgun.
1 stick-stye lnterview mic.Back at the office my mic closet has IN ADDITION to these – 2 boom style aerobic type head-worn mics with adaptors for XLR or the body packs.
4 more stick mics for panel interview rigs.
2 PZM boundary mics.
3 large diaphragm dynamic mics for recording LOUD stuff like races and concerts.
2 high quality large diaphragm condenser mics for doing Voiceover work.
3 camera mountable medium or short shotgun mics.
And half a dozen other mics I’ve used for special purposes at various times in my career for specific tasks.Does this mean that all these mics are REQUIRED for doing audio for video? Heck no. This is the stuff you accumulate along the way as you learn to solve real world issues related to audio recording.
Other folks will have other needs and other solutions.
The point is that if there was a simple “buy this mic and you can do audio for video” Don’t you think that ALL of us who make a living doing this stuff would just save ourself all the hassles and buy that and move along with our careers?
We would – in a heartbeat – trust me.
But a good toolbox acknowledges that ONE HAMMER is inadequate for general purpose home repairs.
And, sorry, but I’ve got to say that one shogun mic is kinda inadequate for what you’re proposing.
Specifically, what if you end up in a hotel room with a noisy air conditioner – that shotgun mic might be a disaster. A lav, or even a head mounted mic placed at the corner of the mouth could improve the signal to noise ratio hugely and get you much better results.
What if you need to work outside and it’s windy? A stick mic with excellent handling noise rejection might take 1/3 the time to rig and capture serial interviews properly (like a zillion sports reporters have proved over the years!)
Audio is not today, nor will it ever be, a “buy this thing and you’re done” endeavor.
Sorry.
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Michael,
The sad truth is that this story isn’t about her.
It’s about you.
If it makes you feel better, I’d bet that nearly all of us working in the business today have something like this in the past.
It’s kinda a right of passage. It teaches you things. The difficulty of working for “friends.” The need to have things in writing. The need to get sensible deposits UP FRONT to protect yourself.
The bad news is that it’s gonna put some toxic spill in your relationship with your friend. He may understand that his sister acts like this – but it’s his sister.
Personally, I’d show up on the girls doorstep and after reminding her that by planing this game she’s DAMAGED her reputation and that has real consequences in life, I’d tell her that I’m FORGIVING the debt and walking away.
That’s because I’ve learned that solid human relationships are central to a decent life and I understand that I can make more money easier than I can make more friends.
You may or may not salvage your relationship with the brother. That’s really secondary. What you WILL do is start your career on a foundation that values PEOPLE more than COIN, and I suspect that very attitude might turn out to be something that helps you a LOT more in the long run.
My 2 cents… YMMV.
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Anyone who flippantly asserts that a “Producer” is just a credit at the end of a work reserved for a boy/girlfriend/hanger on who contributed little and just wanted to bask in the glow of being associated with a work should read this.
The sad truth is that so few understand the painstaking work that goes into creating and distributing creative content.
This is a cautionary tale with the solid ring of truth to it.
And explains a bit of why everyone in this “golden age of cheap NLEs and digital camcorders” desires to make videos – but so very few have the discipline and skills to actually do so.
Nice story – well told.
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Do a search on “reasonable expectation of privacy”
Essentially, if you’re at a public event on public property, people attending likely have none. (Exceptions may apply – always consult a qualified legal professional to determine your potential liability)
But generally, at the public school little league game, feel free to pan the crowd.
If you’re at a ticketed event on private property – like a concert – even if it’s open to the public, it gets dicier. This is why events sometimes print a presumptive release on their tickets and sometimes post public notices that taping is going on and that if you attend, you’re agreeing to waive your privacy rights for that event.
One reason you often see blurred faces in videos is that the subject of the video might be something that could cast an innocent bystander in an unfavorable light. For example, if a non-customer happens to be leaning on the wall outside an adult bookstore – or is leaving a restaurant where the crew of some CHEATERS like program is shooting on a public street, someone could argue that showing their likeness in that context implies that they’re participants – so out comes the blur filter.
The bottom line is that anyone can sue anyone for anything. So learning how to protect yourself from the threat of litigation is not only smart – it’s often worth spending money to do properly.
YMMV.
Good luck.
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Since you technically asked for general knowledge…
Did you know that the term “lav” descends from French King Louis IV’s quite infamous mistress, Mme LaVallier? – the term was originally the designation for a big old JEWEL that Louis gave her on a neck chain. The name followed the form of stuff geometrically hung just like the original big lavillier mics uses on TV by cats like Dave Garroway on the original TODAY show.
At some point, LaVallier (la Val’ yay) became todays lav-o-lier.
Just something to kill time with the next time you’re wiring someone – or not…
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Plus, make darn sure he’s not planning to pay you in Linden Dollars!!!!
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This would be even funnier if it wasn’t so rooted in reality!
My proposed adds:
Dummy shall also supply, without reimbursement, all recording tapes, discs, and/or digital storage consumables including but not limited to batteries, stage and/or gaffers tape, plus provide location client seating, sun coverage (tents), sunblock (SPF 40 minimum) as well as provide ample craft services for cast, crew, executives; specifically including but not limited to parents, in-laws, boy/girl friends, out-of-state relatives, and anyone else the Client chooses to attempt to impress by inviting to the set.
Finally, if said video project achieves any measure of success, the client – regardless of how diligently they worked to sabotage, undermine, or prevent the successful completion of the project – reserves the irrevocable right to refer to the resulting work as “MY video” irrespective of how little they actually contributed to the successful completion of same.