Location audio scene-2 actor-musicians+acoustic guitar

E

eco_bach

Well-known member
Hi
Relative novice when it comes to audio though lots of experience doing basic interviews with lavs.

Shooting a scene involving 2 actor-singers and an acoustic guitar.

They are supposed to be rehearsing and just finishing a song.

I plan on renting any audio equipment, mics I might need, though have a Zoom H4N.

How should I best mic this?

Simply a shotgun on a boom?

Should I avoid any on camera shotgun solution?

Should I use a combination of lavs and boom mounted mic?

Any specific mic recommendations?

Thanks for any and all advice!
 
You should ALWAYS avoid shot gun ON camera.

now with that being said, what type of shoot is this? is it for news show? music video ? documentary?

I guess for me it would depend on the type of shoot.
for instance if its for a news type shoot then i wouldnt mind seeing the lavs on the people and perhaps a mic in front of guitar.
now the set upon which this takes place has some input as to the better choices as well, if youre in a fairly live living room type environment then I would shy away from the use of the shotgun and score a hyper and probably do the whole thing with a pair of hypers in XY configuration, the acoustics of the room will dictate things quite a bit. so I would plan on having a number of moving blankets and stands to tone down the rooms effect on the recording.

but untill we know the specifics im just guessing.

so details here would help tremendously.

Cheers
 
Now that you say its a narrative i would assume you probably do not want it to look like a tv show.

details about the environment are still critical in order to give you the best recommendation.

is this backstage at some club? in a rehearsal studio? how big? how reflective? tall ceilings? coke machine in the room? is it in a living room? these are just as important to answer in order to direct you properly.

and of course the best advice is to acquire the help of a knowledgeful sound guy who can handle the situation properly with his or her gear allowing you to deal with the image.

Sound for narrative film is a science and art all of its own and deserves the same amount of attention and respect that a beautiful image gets. this audio forum is full of people looking for help on how to fix things because they thought sound was just throwing a lav on someone or giving a helper the boom pole and expecting great results. great audio does not come naturally, its great audio when you believe it sounds like exactly what the images look like, and that takes a ton of work.

ok rant is over.

give us location details, as much as you can , and we will do our best to help.

Cheers
 
Thanks!
Just finalizing locations so can't give you precise details other than to say it will either be
A) a typical basement, rehearsal space

or

B) stage in a small club

I think what i'm looking for is a solution that
a) gives me the most flexibility in post

b) will provide me with a backup


My current thinking was to use combination shotgun-boompole plus wiring the talent with some wireless lavs.
 
The best is to have a soundguy/girl/man/woman/undesided

But the "most common mistakes and things to think about and keep in mind and to follow because I say so are:

- put fresh batteries in the equipment
- check XLR cables
- check 48v phantom power
- see if the meter (if it's a dBFS) plays between -12 and -6 and then turn the monitor level untill you hear every detail (not to loud, but not to quite neither) you have to hear it when it's suddenly to low or to high
- turn off all heaters, airco's, close all windows, doors....
- if a certain thing that makes sound can not be turned off... have a shot of it so people know what it is.
- have people be quiet...specially own crew...
- if you record double (on boom AND lav), don't forget in the edit to pan both in the middle...I know you will forget, but still...don't forget. And also try to mix a bit, if only the boom is good, mute the lav....Don't delete it but mute..and better mute the clip rather then the track
- go as close as possibe. 0,0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000001 inch out of frame = out of frame.
- If you use lav and boom you could have some more distance with boom, but then you have to be 100% sure the lavs are perfect...
- don't be afraid to ask to play "less hard" on the guitar (piano/forte) or to sing louder
 
Thanks for the great info. I might try and simplify and go with a boom only, thinking of the Sennheiser MKH-416
 
eco_bach said:
Thanks for the great info. I might try and simplify and go with a boom only, thinking of the Sennheiser MKH-416
Click to expand...
Shotguns are not the best choice for reflective environments like most non-soundstage interiors. Hypercardioids are preferred in those applications. So the 416 might or might not be okay if you decide to shoot on the stage in a club (depends on the space) but probably would not be a very good choice if you shot in a small basement room (unless it was a real acoustically-conditioned rehearsal space with sound absorbing materials on the walls).
 
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