On Camera Mic For Prison

W

workaholic

Member
Soon I will be shooting a documentary in a prison and I was wondering what on camera microphone to use.

This will be a run and gun type of deal with 0 crew.

Prisons generate ALOT of reverb so I need something that will be highly directional and will cut down the reverb as much as possible.
 
IMO, your best bet is a hypercardioid in conjunction with a wide angle adapter, and the camera stuck right in their face. I'd put the hyper on a mount above the cam, aimed slightly downward.

Which particular hyper you choose is much less important than minimizing the subject to mic distance as much as possible.
 
directional mics and reverb rejection strangely enough do NOT go hand in hand. Shotguns are pretty bad when it comes to not getting reverb, so a hyper is your best bet.

BUT

hypers have much shorter pickup range, so as joe said you're going to have to shoot in the persons face with a wide adaptor
 
TheYankee said:
Honestly, I would go with a lav mic...

-Jeremy
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LAV mics will pose some issues in this setting; especially with prisoner-interview situations. If the lav were wireless there will be special requirements/permissions to take it into a prison; if wired, the contact needed for microphone placement with the prisoner might be difficult.

I would also go with a HYPER cardioid.
 
I will not be allowed to mic the prisoners. This is a maximum security prison with many mentally disturbed inmates. The security will be extremely tight. Since I cannot have anyone else on the crew, an on-camera microphone is the only option for me. I know it's not an optimal scenario.

Expense is not an issue.
 
workaholic said:
I will not be allowed to mic the prisoners. This is a maximum security prison with many mentally disturbed inmates. The security will be extremely tight. Since I cannot have anyone else on the crew, an on-camera microphone is the only option for me. I know it's not an optimal scenario.

Expense is not an issue.
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What prison and where, if you don't mind my asking. I've been trying to get access to Stateville in Illinois with no luck. How'd you get access?
 
If you can shoot one-handed (auto focus... sigh), I'd reccomend bringin a handheld reporter-style mic as well as the on-camera hyper. This'll get that mic a few precious feet closer to the subject. Of course, if the handheld prooves too akward during the shoot, you can always pocket it and keep rolling with the on-camera hyper.
 
If expense is not an issue why only one person crew? I see no reason the prison would not allow you to bring in a sound person. What is the issue with not having a crew?
 
Joe Kras said:
Maybe he works for MSNBC (which seems to have turned into "The Prison Channel" at some hours...
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Tell me about it. I have a HORRIBLE and limited cable package and MSNBC is the only dedicated news channel I get. I don't even watch it on the weekends because, yes, it's nothing but prisons or "headliners and legends". I would offer my opinions about their coverage of prisons but I'd probably veer too far into politics.

Does anybody actually hire journalists anymore? It seems like most news channels hire a few talking heads they promote relentlessly, a few nice looking women to sit at "anchor" desks and read a telepromter, and then fill remaining air time with clip shows. Thank god for the internet.
 
i haven't used it but i have heard that the schoeps shotgun mic has superb qualities that the other shotgun mic's don't have.

if you have a project with no real cost issues i'd see what high end microphones might be suited for this specific task.

i would call a company who really specializes in production sound and explain your needs.

i use gotham sound - gothamsound.com - micah is my sales contact

other ones that people have great luck with are trewaudio.com and coffeysound.com

all of these companies specialize in sound and broadcast or film type customers so you will get a lot more real world experience than if you were to call b&h etc.

matthew
 
If cost is truly no object, then go rent a boatload of different mics, head to your nearest gym and ask them if you can use their racketball court for an hour. Go in with someone and test the heck out of all of your mics (racketball courts tend to be a bit echoy. ;-)

Then you will know what will work best for you.

Phil
 
i think calling one of the pro sound companies i mentioned would be better than renting stuff and trying to figure it out on his own.

the sound companies will give him great aavice for free and the big ones rent to so many big productions that they may have already had to solve the problem he has for someone else.

matthew
 
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