Boom Technique Questions

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dwnsthballer

Well-known member
Hey all,

I'm a newbie to audio and booming, but I'm expanding my knowledge of the craft of...well just about ever aspect of television/film.

I just purchased an Oktava and I'm getting ready to purchase the rest of my equipment, but I wanted to know a few things.

1) Internal or external cabled boom? Which is the easiest to work with? I read some say it's better to get an external so you can avoid cable slap, while others say internal is the way to go.

2) Say I do go external, how do I properly have the cable position from the end of the mic on down? (wrapped around the pole or dangling?)

3) Well I don't really have a three, but if any of you guys have any booming tips, such as how to hold it and proper methods of catching audio. I'd greatly appreciate it. I've read through many threads on this forum and just thought I'd come out and get one last confirmation before I empty my wallet again.

Thanks again guys!

P.S. Also, I'm going straight into the DVX from my Oktava for the time being. Is that a big no no or can I get away with that for now?
 
sorry cant tech people swimming by email .
find soundman or booman to show you proper work.

thirst lesson - point betwen the mouth and the midle of the cheast .


another one - if you are shooting how can you boom ? or are you some mutant from total recall ?:-)
 
You'd be amazed at all I can do at once (without using my mutant powers). In every production I've made, I've been the:

Director
Writer
Producer
Audio Guy
Lighting Guy
Camera Operator
Editor

All at the same time. I'm a man who wears many hats (because I don't have money to pay anybody else to wear them lol). Plus, I'm thinking of letting some of my friends have their hand at shooting so they can get some experience and I can focus on other things.

Oh yeah, and to answer your question, I figured if I couldn't get someone to shoot for me, I'd stick the camera on a tripod, find my boom position (with head phones of course), turn the monitor towards me and block the actors so that they stay within the shot. For moving shots, I'd just have to get a friend to help me out.

Thanks for the tip. ;)
 
wish you luck , if you would look for help booming , look for drummer or good dancer , the legs work and rhythm feel is something you cant teach , all the others stuff is less important ( except that height and stupidity, and descent memory for lines )
 
dwnsthballer said:
You'd be amazed at all I can do at once (without using my mutant powers). In every production I've made, I've been the:

Director
Writer
Producer
Audio Guy
Lighting Guy
Camera Operator
Editor

All at the same time. I'm a man who wears many hats (because I don't have money to pay anybody else to wear them lol). Plus, I'm thinking of letting some of my friends have their hand at shooting so they can get some experience and I can focus on other things.

Oh yeah, and to answer your question, I figured if I couldn't get someone to shoot for me, I'd stick the camera on a tripod, find my boom position (with head phones of course), turn the monitor towards me and block the actors so that they stay within the shot. For moving shots, I'd just have to get a friend to help me out.

Thanks for the tip. ;)
Click to expand...

Wow, you're like one of those performance guys on the street that wear those multi-instrument contraptions. A one man band, huh? I used to DP, direct, and operate the camera back in school. I always had some of the other actors(my friends) that weren't in the scene operate the boom. It worked pretty well, though sometimes, the boom would be a little too far away...
 
I won't get into interior or exterior poles. I use an exterior and have never used anything else. Yes, you can plug the Octava into your camera. You have to turn Mic Power (48v) "ON" to supply phantom power to the mic.
You haven't mentined other issues that need to be considered among them shock mounting your Octava. What you ned if you shoot outside. But do a search here and yo willfind lots of good info .But you really should consider doing an intern stage on set with a pro or some other scheme. Good luck!
 
Thanks guys.

My actors (also my friends) help me out time to time if I'm in the scene or I have to do something else for the scene (one time I had to wave a large piece of fabric behind an artist while my friend taped). They're pretty good at learning things fast.

I'm going to purchase KSSM shock mount, Baby Ball Gag, Wind Jammer and a K-Tek internal coiled cable as far as the other accessories.

I'd love to shadow an audio person, but here in Greensboro, N.C., there isn't much production going on that involves using booms. I've been to a lot of the production companies here and they all just use wireless lav systems (I'm sure there's one that doesn't, but it's hidden).

Most of my work is short films, with very few outdoor scenes. I've been reading about locking elbows and all that, but I just wanted to see if there was anything else I should know. I'm going to spend a lot of time learning and practicing (much like I did with my glidecam).
 
Find the balancing point. Whether you are using a broomstick or a carbon fiber boom find that point near the middle of the boom that that when held with one hand it almost balances itself. Then you can use your back hand with the lightest touch to pivot up and down left and right. It is amazing at how light the thing seems when you find that point. For the really long extensions I have taped weight to the rear of the boom to counter the boom length. Much like weighing a jib or crane. You wont need much. Also build a bit of upper body strength. After a long day the extra shoulder muscle can never hurt.
 
There is no such thing as an exterior or interior boompole. That is stupid. Aluminum or carbon, cabled or uncabled, coiled or straight, but no inside-outside.
 
mtsuskyman said:
There is no such thing as an exterior or interior boompole. That is stupid. Aluminum or carbon, cabled or uncabled, coiled or straight, but no inside-outside.
Click to expand...

dwnsthballer said:
1) Internal or external cabled boom? Which is the easiest to work with? I read some say it's better to get an external so you can avoid cable slap, while others say internal is the way to go.
Click to expand...

Chill man, they were using shorthand for the original question. Funny misunderstanding though :)

Cheers
 
mtsuskyman said:
There is no such thing as an exterior or interior boompole. That is stupid. Aluminum or carbon, cabled or uncabled, coiled or straight, but no inside-outside.
Click to expand...

You know what else is stupid? NOT realizing that EVERYONE ELSE in this thread knew and understood what I meant. The question was answered and clarified...relax.

Anyways, thanks for all the help guys. My stuff should all be here within the next week or so. I'm excited about it!

If I do decide to go with an UNCABLED boom, what do I do with the cable after it's hooked up to the microphone. Wrap it around the boom going towards the end or is there a proper technique?

Thanks for the tips tuttle! I'm going to spend a good amount of hours practicing with it.
 
Whew!

Whew!

mtsuskyman said:
There is no such thing as an exterior or interior boompole. That is stupid. Aluminum or carbon, cabled or uncabled, coiled or straight, but no inside-outside.
Click to expand...
Too much coffee dude......
 
mtsuskyman said:
There is no such thing as an exterior or interior boompole. That is stupid. Aluminum or carbon, cabled or uncabled, coiled or straight, but no inside-outside.
Click to expand...

Of course there is! I keep them in the same closet as my exterior and interior cameras:furious3:
 
If I do decide to go with an UNCABLED boom, what do I do with the cable after it's hooked up to the microphone. Wrap it around the boom going towards the end or is there a proper technique?
Click to expand...
Wrap it around so it won't dangle - because if it does as soon as it hits the boom you will hear it more or less loudly (depending on how well the fixture for your mic absorbs noises).

And teach one of your friends to hold the boom! If they don't have to operate an SQN simultaneously they should be able to do it perfectly in one hour (assuming they are able to listen closely).
A few years ago a friend and freelance cameraman trusted me to hold the boom and operate an SQN3 even I had told him I had only had operated a boom and sqn once before, for only two hours. In the car I learned we were shooting a piece for Germany's biggest private national tv station and I thought I was gonna die. However it all worked out, the whole thing was broadcast and the sound was all right.
So... trust your friends as well and you'll be able to do a better job with the camera!
 
Yeah, I asked some of them before I purchased it and they all said they'd be more than willing to learn, so I'll see how that holds up! Plus, I plan on using it for more than just my short films.

Thanks for the tip on the cable. It means a big price difference to me.
 
FBAS said:
Wrap it around so it won't dangle - because if it does as soon as it hits the boom you will hear it more or less loudly (depending on how well the fixture for your mic absorbs noises).

And teach one of your friends to hold the boom! If they don't have to operate an SQN simultaneously they should be able to do it perfectly in one hour (assuming they are able to listen closely).
A few years ago a friend and freelance cameraman trusted me to hold the boom and operate an SQN3 even I had told him I had only had operated a boom and sqn once before, for only two hours. In the car I learned we were shooting a piece for Germany's biggest private national tv station and I thought I was gonna die. However it all worked out, the whole thing was broadcast and the sound was all right.
So... trust your friends as well and you'll be able to do a better job with the camera!
Click to expand...

its only say something about your friend - very cheap or very stupid guy

yep i know quit few taxi drivers who worked for news agencies as "soundmixers". that only says something about the sound you get on news .

1 hour training - you will make millions when you will open the school .
 
its only say something about your friend - very cheap or very stupid guy

yep i know quit few taxi drivers who worked for news agencies as "soundmixers". that only says something about the sound you get on news .

1 hour training - you will make millions when you will open the school
Click to expand...
.

Sorry, I didn't want to offend the serious sound technicians - of course it's always better to have a real pro operating the mic. But better have an amateur operating the boom than doing it yourself PLUS the camera, right?

I don't intend to open a school ;)
I just think someone who isn't dumb can learn in one hour to hold a boom and point the mic to the person talking. That doesn't make them a sound pro, of course. They wouldn't know what mic to use in what situation and so on. I was only talking about "hold the boom, point the mic to the person who is talking, get as close as possible"

And you're totally right about the news, they always want it cheap and fast. My friend had two choices back then: get someone to do the job quick, or lose the job... plus I wasn't a total amateur at the time, I had already been working for local tv for a while, only I had not had a lot of experience with a sound boom and an SQN.
 
FBAS said:
"hold the boom, point the mic to the person who is talking, get as close as possible"
Click to expand...

And depending on your project and how discriminating you are when it comes to your audio, if the sound you get from that is "good enough" or you can't hear a difference, then go for it.

I love Sony's Blu-ray magazine ad. You can see the bottom of the ad at sony.com/bluray, but what you can't see is the girl holding the boom has it pointed perpendicular to the sound source. It took me a few minutes to figure out what she was trying to record, until I realized the artist didn't know how to orient a mic.

If the boom op is solely responsible for positioning the mic, they can probably get the basics down in 4-5 hours. But there's a little more to it than "point it close." Personally I'd make them read either Miles' book or the pre and production parts of Rose's first book. More info there than can be summed up on a forum.
 
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