Alternative to Clapperboard???

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pythonregius24

New member
Hello guys. Im a new film maker. Is there any alternative for a clapper slate to make syncing audio easy?

I am going to use FCP but i dont have the plural eyes to sync it automatically.

Thanks in advance.
 
Clap your hands, Hinge a couple of boards, get a cheap slate (much better than the first two, build a slate, get a friend to build a slate. I use to have a cloths pin nailed to a board for tight doc shoots, small and one hand operation. Get an app, though for the better ones you could buy a slate for the same price.
 
I started with the mini slate (still keep it in my kit) B&S acrylic slte

But now I use the DSLR Slate iPhone/iPad app. Having the sound is a must but the visuals are great, put in your shoot info, take #, and having the single frame white screen to match the sync sound makes getting multiple cams and separate audio all synced in FCP pretty easy, $10. And no matter what it's always with me on my phone. For outdoors (and even inside) the iPad version helps since the screen is larger for wider shoots. Clients love it, they think it's just magic. DSLR Slate
 
Just got my clapperboard today!! Wont go without it from now on. Used it today. Great tool! MUST HAVE!
 
Yeah, dumbslates are pretty cheap these days, and available at most dealers that deal with production audio.
 
Yes, there is something like this http://www.instructables.com/id/Synchronizer-Electronic-quotClapper-boardquot/
I've been using one like this for a while now. In situation like documentaries, double sound system and two cameras is very useful.
And off course when you're are on the go, and must be quickly.
Before every take the camera's aim at me and i get the mic (or lavalier) close to the clapper.
The only issue is to get a very strong buzzer.

But if you're in fictions (not documentary) go with a traditional clapboard.
Cheers
 
> Slating isn't just about synching, it also saves tons of time when organizing and editing.

For me it's about set morale and professionalism. People take each shot more seriously with a slate. It "snaps" them to attention. Also, clients are impressed.
 
pythonregius24 said:
yeah but what if theres a lot of ambient noise say im shooting outside.
Click to expand...

If there is so much noise that your microphone won't hear the clapsticks, then what exactly are you expecting to pick up with the microphone that will be useful for anything? Something is fundamentally wrong with the question (or the location).
 
I really like DSLR slate for the IPad and Movie Slate for the IPad. For about $20 you can do a whole lot more than you think. I use it for my Red and HPX-500 since I rarely use my DSLR, so don't be fooled by the name.
 
phudsontx said:
I really like DSLR slate for the IPad and Movie Slate for the IPad. For about $20 you can do a whole lot more than you think. I use it for my Red and HPX-500 since I rarely use my DSLR, so don't be fooled by the name.
Click to expand...

I looked at that, and will probably buy it... but I was wondering about the 'non-audio' feature of a color grid... now at first glance it may seem 'ok'... hey it's right there... but then it occurred to me that the colors are 'generated' and not
based on the light on the set being reflected by the iPad... so, exactly how does that help to calibrate color shifts due to light???
 
Any of these virtual slate companies making a sync cable yet? They are fine as a dumb slate, but saying they work as a master clock or are "jam" capable is incredibly misleading.
 
Well, no, not misleading if it actually does the job... and that's what PureBlend's MovieSlate claims.
http://www.pureblendsoftware.com/movieslate3

It says it can input or output LTC timecode to sync to.

And here's a BNC to iPhone/iPad cable, that's designed specifically for this software and includes the appropriate 22dB attenuator.
http://www.kvconnection.com/product-p/km-iphone-bnc-a22.htm

Seems like it's possible that you could have a real timecode generator in the phone/ipad and send out real timecode to your audio recorder and cameras... and it says it can jam it, so if you have a true TC input device like a timecode audio recorder, maybe it would work? You couldn't continuously jam to an AF100 or HMC150, but you could use the LTC to send timecode from the camera to the slate, and then go from there...

The cable says it has the attenuator to bring the camera's line-level signal down to mic level; I don't know if it would work in reverse?

Somebody has to try this out and tell us how it works. I think it's $20 for the app, then $50 for the timecode input/output module, then $25 for the cable, so all told, less than $100 for a real jammable timecode slate system... I wonder how accurate it is and what kind of drift there is throughout a shoot day?
 
Now I'm interested. I have iSlate, but last I heard they weren't supporting jam-sync output. Might be time to switch apps! Just to note - you must purchase an additional $49.99 "module" from PureBlend to get the jam-sync function to work. So, for $100 (third-party attenuated cable included), you've got a master clock TC slate that will output TC to your compatible devices.
 
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