[Dan Shaw]

Yeah it’s looking to be that handheld is just not a great option. This leads me to think that an actual video camera is better for handheld shooting compared to a DSLR. I have a video tripod and have been using that with a little handheld mixed in and that is looking a lot better. I already have a lot invested into a DSLR and lenses so a dedicated video camera is going to have to wait.

Thanks for everyones input!

[Dan Shaw]

Jo – At first I pushed the board members to practice good mic technique. That lasted for about an hour and then they went back to their old habits. It’s a ton more work, but what I have ended up doing is turning half of the mics off for the few board members that seem to not talk as much. This allows me to increase the volume without any feedback. I then have to stay alert and enable their mics when they do talk. As long as I don’t have all of the mics on at the same time it sounds fine. And while it takes more effort on my part, they do appreciate it. This meeting is only once per month. If it were a daily event I would look more into how I could reduce this feedback.

-Dan

[Dan Shaw]

Wow thank you Rich for taking the time to make that video. That helped a lot. I think I have now a good feel for the process and it’s time to dive in and give it a try. Thanks again!

[Dan Shaw]

Thanks for the Response Rich. So if I hear you correctly, it sounds like creating a multiclip and then timing all of the camera views is done first, then you go inside the multiclip to do any b-roll and further edits. I wish I could find a good video showing me this as I still don’t 100% understand.

Maybe using multiclip is overkill for what I want to do then. I am using two DSLR’s for my filming. They both have 12 minute max recoding times per file. I was under the assumption that I could have multiple clips in a multiclip and I think that is the case with final cut pro x.

For my situation I am recording a cooking segment. I have one camera as a wide shot on the talent and then another camera that is used for the close up shots. The talent will be making mistakes so we’ll be having multiple takes. When recording is done I then import all of my files and this is where I am confused. Let’s say I have 6 video clips from my DSLR’s and in those 6 clips are good takes and bad ones. Do I create my multiclip first with good and bad takes and then chop up the multiclip to edit out all of the bad stuff? Or do I edit each of those 6 clips first and then sync them together and create a multiclip when I have the good footage all set up.

I hope that makes sense. If I’m not then I think I will just dive into Final Cut Pro and see what comes of it. I was hoping to get a bit of a head start.

Thanks for your time.

[Dan Shaw]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. I do agree that having bad mic technique is most likely the biggest issue that I have. I have the board meeting tonight so I am going to talk with the board and remind them on how best to talk into the mic. It would be nice to just attach the mic’s onto their bodies so that they don’t have to talk into the mic on the table, so I might bring that up and give it a try.

Ty – To answer your questions, I have 1 wired mic for any community member to talk into, and 8 wireless mics for the board members. These wireless mics are plugged into small table mics that stand in front of each board member. The board is constantly talking throughout the night.

I am including a photo of the room, but the layout of the tables is not correct on this photo. The woman who you see there is facing the direction of how the board would be facing. You can also see one of the large speakers on the wall. Once the tables are set up it resembles a horse-shoe pattern.

[Dan Shaw]

Thanks Ken. I will take a look at what he has done. As stated above I am not too worried about the photography end of things and instead need opinions on the video side of things. But thanks anyway!

-Dan

[Dan Shaw]

Thanks Todd & Bill. That helps out a lot. Looks like I’ll just have to be creative and do some trial & error.

I appreciate your help.

[Dan Shaw]

Well that deserves a big “Duh” 🙂 Thanks Todd. That makes total sense!

[Dan Shaw]

Hi Todd – Can you help me better understand how I can position the pepper fresnel as my hair light? I was thinking about a c-stand with extension arm, but then what 5/8″ connector do you use to attached the light to the arm? I’m searching around, but not finding the right answer. Thank you!

-Dan

[Dan Shaw]

Ha! 🙂 The only reason I am shying away from a 3′ stand is that I am a 6’3″ guy and I want to light the white seamless for the top half of my body. So the lights need to get up there and light the top half of the background. What I need is a stand that goes from 3′-6′. 🙂

Thanks Todd!