This was brought on by a lot of questions I have heard, as well as missconceptions I feel a lot of people have. I am a 23 year old sound engineer/everything else. I have been in the biz at a profesional capacity for 5 years. Audio is what pays the bills, camera, lighting, directing and so forth is what I am learning. That is where I am coming from, these are my observations. Let me know what you think.
In my opinion there are two main aspects of booming. You have mic technique and you have boom technique. I feel that mic technique is easier to catch on to for the new boom op, but is only a small part of booming. Knowing how to achieve good mic position and therefor good audio during adverse conditions is where your boom technique comes into play, and in my experaince most sets or locations equel adverse conditions. Yes, you must have a solid working knowledge of audio and microphone characteristics in order to hone your technique, but its experiance, wits and physical energy that yields good technique and ultimately this is why you get hired and can charge a liveable wage.
Mic positioning and the subtleties associated are reletively easy to grasp. The core concept is simple: point the mic at what you want to hear. Granted there are variations in how one should point the mic, placement and so forth. Most common and generally preferable is to be up over the talents head and pointing down. I typically aim for the chest and adjust from there, others have their own ways. Regardless, with a little info and training, understanding where and why is fairly simple. In a perfect world that is all you would need to understand and audio would be easy, but its not and is only a fraction of a boom ops job. Which leads me to boom technique.
Good boom ops have a lot of finesse. They can maneuver deftly, dodging lights and personel all the while toeing the frame line and getting the mic where it needs to be at the right time. This comes from a lot of experiance and requires good intuition and a good working knowledge of the production and what is going on in each department at any given time. This is not something you can just show or teach someone, you only get good at this by doing it. Granted some people will have some inate aptitude and some people are destined to not be good boom ops. Clumsy people and those who can't intuit movements and cadences will struggle with the job. On the flip side sometimes grace and intuition are not going to be what makes the day. Often you have no choice but to hold the boom in the most physically taxing position for prolonged periods of time due to lighting or many other limitations, it sucks but it happens. In these cases strength cannot be replaced by anything else. I know for myself sometimes I will opt to just "tough" out a shot because I don't have time, nor the recources to choreograph an elaborate boom move or body move in order to save some energy. I find a place where myself and my mic can live and I hold it, and if I have to move I stay out of the frame and I don't create shadows which is often much more difficult. Could a more experianced op do it without as much energy, probably, but the end result (good audio) is the same and I'll trade physical pain for a good rep and good work any day. Its a physical job and the more I do it the better I get and the easier it gets
In the end I cincerelly believe that all the mic knowledge and tech savy you may have becomes secondary to the "craft" of boom operating. A person with considerable audio knowledge does not automatically make a good boom op. Its a phyiscal job and requires fast thinking, having a thorough knowledge of the Nyquist Theorem is not going to do you a bit of good when you have to weave around camera crew, lights, flags and other wonderful things, while keeping your mic on the talent, staying out of the frame and creating no shadows. Not mention mainting a good attitude, profesional demeanor and communication skills. That is not to say that you should throw all the rules out of the window and not stick to your guns, you can't let the DP show you how to boom, you want good audio remember. Ultimately though the only aspect of booming that has to do with sound is the mic at the end of your boom all the rest is what truly makes a boom op.
In my opinion there are two main aspects of booming. You have mic technique and you have boom technique. I feel that mic technique is easier to catch on to for the new boom op, but is only a small part of booming. Knowing how to achieve good mic position and therefor good audio during adverse conditions is where your boom technique comes into play, and in my experaince most sets or locations equel adverse conditions. Yes, you must have a solid working knowledge of audio and microphone characteristics in order to hone your technique, but its experiance, wits and physical energy that yields good technique and ultimately this is why you get hired and can charge a liveable wage.
Mic positioning and the subtleties associated are reletively easy to grasp. The core concept is simple: point the mic at what you want to hear. Granted there are variations in how one should point the mic, placement and so forth. Most common and generally preferable is to be up over the talents head and pointing down. I typically aim for the chest and adjust from there, others have their own ways. Regardless, with a little info and training, understanding where and why is fairly simple. In a perfect world that is all you would need to understand and audio would be easy, but its not and is only a fraction of a boom ops job. Which leads me to boom technique.
Good boom ops have a lot of finesse. They can maneuver deftly, dodging lights and personel all the while toeing the frame line and getting the mic where it needs to be at the right time. This comes from a lot of experiance and requires good intuition and a good working knowledge of the production and what is going on in each department at any given time. This is not something you can just show or teach someone, you only get good at this by doing it. Granted some people will have some inate aptitude and some people are destined to not be good boom ops. Clumsy people and those who can't intuit movements and cadences will struggle with the job. On the flip side sometimes grace and intuition are not going to be what makes the day. Often you have no choice but to hold the boom in the most physically taxing position for prolonged periods of time due to lighting or many other limitations, it sucks but it happens. In these cases strength cannot be replaced by anything else. I know for myself sometimes I will opt to just "tough" out a shot because I don't have time, nor the recources to choreograph an elaborate boom move or body move in order to save some energy. I find a place where myself and my mic can live and I hold it, and if I have to move I stay out of the frame and I don't create shadows which is often much more difficult. Could a more experianced op do it without as much energy, probably, but the end result (good audio) is the same and I'll trade physical pain for a good rep and good work any day. Its a physical job and the more I do it the better I get and the easier it gets
In the end I cincerelly believe that all the mic knowledge and tech savy you may have becomes secondary to the "craft" of boom operating. A person with considerable audio knowledge does not automatically make a good boom op. Its a phyiscal job and requires fast thinking, having a thorough knowledge of the Nyquist Theorem is not going to do you a bit of good when you have to weave around camera crew, lights, flags and other wonderful things, while keeping your mic on the talent, staying out of the frame and creating no shadows. Not mention mainting a good attitude, profesional demeanor and communication skills. That is not to say that you should throw all the rules out of the window and not stick to your guns, you can't let the DP show you how to boom, you want good audio remember. Ultimately though the only aspect of booming that has to do with sound is the mic at the end of your boom all the rest is what truly makes a boom op.
