Do You Really Need a Mic?

Without watching it, yes. After watching it, YES. Listen to the difference between the clean sound of your insert footage compared to your commentary footage. Okay, you're on the street but with proper mic placement you can almost eliminate that background noise. And you're lucky you're outside. Believe or not ambient noise can be even worse indoors with reflections of the walls and without the 'colour' of the street. You don't need to go to town with your mic purchase. A cheap microphone placed properly will sound better than an expensive microphone improperly placed and any microphone will sound better than your camera's.
 
For that piece, you really needed two lavalier mics with decent windscreens. As drapeama said, even a cheap set would make a big improvement in the sound quality.

- Greg
 
I actually watched it and the next one that auto played. #2 you had a mic. I know because it kept showing up in the shot! Also there is a device called a tripod that the cameraman needs to invest in. The framing is just drifting all over the place obviously hand held but not well handheld.

The one with the mic sounds a LOT better. And FYI you are using a mic in both cases, it's just that the other one is built in (I'm guessing).

Other visual notes would be jump-cuts need to change perspective, framing or angle or they look like really bad edits. And it's not a good choice to have props apear and disappear randomly. ie If the computer needs to be in the shot it really needs to stay in the shot.

Also the talking heads should face the camera more. They seem to only look at the camera when they get a reaction from the cameraman. I know they are talking to each other, But really they are talking to the camera. That is where the audience is and if they never act like "we" exist then it's just eves dropping on someone else's conversation and that isn't all that interesting.

On the up side with all the issues I mentioned the host is still personable enough and the discusion is cleaver enough that it works kind of.

I think if you up the sound quality, lock down the camera (hand held doesn't work well with static subjects, if they were walking and talking that would be different but they are still and only the camera is moving), and clean up some framing/ shot choices so you can make the cuts less jaring they could be nice little segments.

In terms of shots. Since you pretty much know you are going to have to cut away to edit, you should probably do something like having two cameras so you can cut to the other angle when you need to slice in. You could also just do a short dissolve. The former if done well will give the impression of one continuous take where the other is obviously an edited version possibly from multiple takes. So it's kind of a style choice. If it wee me I would try for the seamless take look but...
You could also use B roll, insert footage in the first video and maybe close ups of the phone in the second? That could also give you the "continuous take" look with out having a second camera. Or you could do two complete shows from two angles and cut back and forth, but that can be problematic since things are bound to be different from tae to take.

Back to your question. Yes.
You could use a pair of lavs as someone else said or a boomed mic (over head and track whos speaking - it looked like you had a shotgun pointing at them at about their head hight and about as far away as the camera (and it still sounded better!!)). Or fixed plan mics. Either a pair over head (one for each speaker) or a pair on the table. In the last case don't try to hie them just stick them out there, we know your using a mic anyway so it's not a big deal to have then always in the shot.

The other "talent" note is they should keep their hands on the table when they aren't using them to gesture. It looks weird as they kind of magically apear from below frame and then just disappear. It's a classic "new actor" kind of thing. They are always hiding their hands and just letting their arms dangle when they aren't "using them". Normal relaxed folks don't generally do that. They are always doing something, lots of little "business". Take a look at some good talk show hosts and any good actor on screen/ stage and watch the hands, they never just sit there.
 
Without question, two lavs..
I am not a DP or even a cam op, but I know enough to lock down a camera on shots like that... Viewing it made me sea-sick
 
Lav's would be best. I know out of experience that you will think "yeah, but can't I just "hang" a mic somewhere between the two ?

Yes you can.... But...if they talk looking at left or right side... if they go down or something or whatever...

So...lav's would be the best. I'm NOT saying wireless...The lav's can be fix cable to a mixer and then to camera or recorder.

And also: mixing, leveling. If you put other footage don't just put it and go away... Put it, listen to it, compare soundlevels. The microsoft parts can easely go 6dB lower
 
Sound is 70% of what you see! haven't you heard?
- For 90% of video (picture) folks, audio is just an annoyance, especially if it involves a dedicated pro sound person... and most of the time the attitude is "audio will take care of itself".
sorry to offend anyone.
 
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