My interview sounds like a robot!

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LITattooDoc

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I recently shot an interview and the sound engineer recorded the track way too hot. Is there anything that can be a "quick fix" for this problem? It just needs to not sound like a mic is stuck in this mans mouth. Thanks very much.
 
You can do nothing for dustortion. You can limit more by bringing it down to a lagal level.
Of course you can't hire that sound man again. Sounds like just grabbing it yourself would be better.
Sound men in the field only exist becase they were required back when we shot film. Now, it's just a nother body in the way and a budget eater... in this case the root of audio ya can't use.
Skip em. Record your own.
 
grinner said:
Sound men in the field only exist becase they were required back when we shot film. Now, it's just a nother body in the way and a budget eater... in this case the root of audio ya can't use.
Skip em. Record your own.
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Beg your pardon, but there are a few of us around here that rely on this specific profession. And it's not a holdover necessity from days gone by.

Sound is a specialized trade, if it is to be done right and well and reliably. That goes for both field and studio. Too many shooters have the attitude that anyone can do sound, and I know too many shooters who do it but do it poorly.

The answer is not to skip hiring a recordist, but to know the crew you hire. There are some folks out there who hire out to do field audio because they take the "anyone can do it" mentality and think it's an easy day rate. Truth is, they end up burning just about every bridge they cross because of stupid mistakes like the one in the OP here. But hey, more work for those of us who know how to keep levels under control.

To the OP: as has been stated, not much can be done for distortion, especially if it's digital overmodulation. If I were you, I'd send a clip back to your sound guy and ask him to explain. Next time, pay attention to who you hire, and if you notice that the recordist does not have a monitor feed drawing from the camera, something is amiss.
 
Wasn't trying to offend. I know many of you make a living at this but by in large it's because you wanted to be in the bix but never learned how to shoot or edit.
It does not require a specialist to plug in a mic and ride a level.
 
grinner said:
Wasn't trying to offend. I know many of you make a living at this but by in large it's because you wanted to be in the bix but never learned how to shoot or edit.
It does not require a specialist to plug in a mic and ride a level.
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Or it could be that some of us actually enjoy working with sound and find ourselves incredibly satisfied with the work that we do. For the record, I do know how to shoot and edit. It doesn't help to say "wasn't trying to offend" if you follow that by demeaning the trade once again.

No, it does not take a specialist to plug in a mic and ride a level. But the other 486,000 things that can go with that to get sound that is not just passable but pristine usually require some dedicated training and experience.

We are all on the same team here. It takes a lot of folks to do lots of things that make one end product that is spectacular. And if we aren't all aware of, and respectful of, each other's skills and strengths, then the whole thing falls apart.

I have been on shoots of all sizes with directors and DPs who were delighted to have a sound guy on the shoot, and those have been lots of fun for all involved. And I have also been on productions where the DP had the attitude that I was just a wasted day rate, or that I'm doing this because of feelings of inadequacy due to not being at the camera (which, again, is not only wrong but terribly insulting), and those shoots have been miserable for everyone. We have to work together, and that takes each of us contributing our skill set to enhance the work of all the others on set.
 
I hear ya.
Just saying i have one ear and no headphones and always get what I need audio-wise.
I shoot with a camera mic and a wireless lav more often than not, leaving my gain in auto. It's just not something I have to spend time or money on worrying about. It's when people make it hard that they end up with robot voices.
 
I would never shoot anything serious without a dedicated sound guy. These posts ARE offensive and degrading.
 
I'd not either. I should mention I shoot reality and documentaries, in all fairness.
Features are where sound dudes shine but again, we're talking about film.
In the case of the original poster, he obviously did not need the expense
...or the frustration.
 
So, one guy makes a mistake, and you dump on the whole profession?

What difference does it make if it's being shot to film or to video? The sound guy still performs the same function.

We have a LOT of sound professionals on this board, and you just slapped 'em all in the face.
 
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