First wedding- audio question

A

aonavy

Well-known member
I want to make sure Ill be okay for sound. I have 2 Zoom H1's with lav mics attached. Ill be shooting with a GH2, Hero3 Black addition and a Canon Vixia. I was going to mic the groom low on his jacket and boost the gain. I head this is a good trick. Should I mic the JP?
Should I have an additional mic on the GH2 even though they have mics?

I just want to make sure I dont need anything...or do i?

Thanks for the insight!!
 
Get the lav close to the groom's mouth, that way you catch the vows more clearly. It will catch the Bride as well, because she'll be standing close. What you mentioned (putting it lower and boosting gain) is a good way to get a lot of extra noise. I know it's not always considered the "right" way to do it, but putting the H1 on auto gain with a lav captures decent audio for weddings (since you can't be there to babysit the levels).

The gh2 does great for ambient audio if that's what you're looking for from it.

A mic on the JP would be a good idea too...they do most of the talking.

Between those 3, you should have it covered pretty well. I've got an example of a similar setup below: about 2 minutes in is where the audio starts:
https://vimeo.com/54509851

All the main dialogue is captured from a lav on the groom, set to auto gain on the H1. I mixed in the ambient from the gh2 at the end of the kiss for a crowd reaction. The key is mixing the right audio in post for the right effect.
 
Don't mic the groom low on the jacket, The proper place for a lav is in the mid-line over the upper sternum. Make a fist, thumb tcked in, and lay it against his chest, pinky on the notch under his Adam's Apple, Your thumb will fall at about exactly where the lav should be mounted. Mount it on the lapel and feed the wire under the jacket so it doesn't dangle free, taping it with a bit of gaffer's tape if necessary. Don't forget the strain relef loop at the mic capsule.
 
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If it's an outdoor wedding, consider putting the mic under his shirt using a Rycote sticky and undercover/overcover (I've actually had better luck using overcovers under clothing). If you properly tape the wire, you won't get rubbing sounds and the mic will be hidden from view. You'll want to slightly boost the highs in the audio in post production but it's really the best solution when you consider it eliminates the chance for wind noise and there won't be a mic in any of the family photos
 
great advice from you all!

Thank you.

I have ordered ROAD mic to carry around with me if needed. I just want to make sure I have what I need and not missing anything.

Thanks again
 
aonavy said:
great advice from you all!

Thank you.

I have ordered ROAD mic to carry around with me if needed. I just want to make sure I have what I need and not missing anything.

Thanks again
Click to expand...

uhh Rode? also they make many microphones so the brand is not telling us much.
 
haha yeah! RODE shotgun mic.

I figured I would be good for now with that setup for audio
 
aonavy said:
haha yeah! RODE shotgun mic.

I figured I would be good for now with that setup for audio
Click to expand...

using shotgun mic on the camera? might not use a mic at all. The first thing I learn on audio from this forum is that on camera mic is one of the worst place for a microphone to be. For weddings, stick with your lav.
 
Victor Nhat Nguyen said:
using shotgun mic on the camera? might not use a mic at all. The first thing I learn on audio from this forum is that on camera mic is one of the worst place for a microphone to be. For weddings, stick with your lav.
Click to expand...

While that is the usual advice, shooting a wedding as a onemanband probably requires the 'degradation' to mounting on the camera. Part of the 'wedding coverage etiquette' is that the photographer or videographer, other than a specific points should 'melt into the background'. That really can't be done for some situations and so video lights, still flash equipment, etc. are used, but often lights and mic are mounted on the camera, to minimize the documentor's footprint in the event. (Then again some couples do 'want picture quality' and so those customers will allow for additional 'dramatic' lighting setup for the event.)

With the current solid state based capture cameras, one element of the 'don't mount on the camera' advice is minimized to just handling noise of the camera being captured on the mounted mic. The other problem of course is that the camera is distant from the subjects, but that's just the nature of the situation.

For most video covered weddings I've seen, often for personal message sessions, there will be a handheld mic available, or the subjects are within 3 feet of the camera for delivering their special message. So the camera mounted mic is pretty much for capturing fleeting moments, as 'best as possible'.

The other issue with camera mounted mics is capturing commentary by the camera person or crew... but judicious editing should be done before delivery...
 
well, I guess it can be used for fleeting moment. However, for speeches, they usually have a microphone and soundboard. So I try to plug it in the soundboard or at the very least, stick a microphone in front of the speaker.
 
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