Recent Rode NTG-3 experience on short film shoot

[jthabel]

I recently completed post on a 30 minute short film where I used a Rode NTG-3 microphone almost exclusively for all scenes. I did experience a couple problems here and there, but overall, this mic worked brilliantly as an all-around outdoor and indoor workhorse.

A few observations and mistakes I made along the way:

- When shooting in an echoey garage, I held the mic too far from an actor in one scene and ended up having to ADR because of tonal mismatches. All the other scenes I filmed in the garage where I held the mic a proper distance from the actor came out perfectly.
- I shot in a bar full of crickets and other unwanted ambient noises. I'm not sure if using a hyper would have made a difference in this scenario, but I had to ADR this scene, which was a pain. Yes, I got decent room tone from the location, but it didnt make much of a difference.
- 95% of my dialogue in the film was recorded indoors using the NTG3. I also used the NTG3 for my ADR work and for some voice over narration. In the end, I ended up having to ADR about 3 minutes of the 30 minute film. I'm not sure if this is considered a good statistic, but there it is.

My point? If you can only afford one mic in your arsenal, get the NTG-3. The sound is rich and clear, it's very forgiving in most circumstances, and it's built to last. I was considering coughing up a fair mount of money for a hyper for my next short, which will be another project that I'll be shooting mostly indoors, but I'm really not sure if it's necessary given my recent experiences.

 

[Jema]

Nice to hear that you like the NTG-3! I use an MKH416, and since they are so similar and the NTG-3 seems to deliver in quality and durability, I have no problem recommending it as a great choice for the price.

I was considering coughing up a fair mount of money for a hyper for my next short, which will be another project that I'll be shooting mostly indoors, but I'm really not sure if it's necessary given my recent experiences

Maybe not - it depends on the type of work you do and in what locations. A hyper is a very good addition in any kit, and I wouldn't want to be without one if I can help it. It's not just because it can sometimes deal with reflective locations that give shotguns problems, but also because it's smaller and lighter, therefore easier to handle in small spaces, and has a wider pickup pattern which is actually desirable for certain situations.

I would advise you to borrow or rent one in the price range you're interested in, try it out and compare the results to your shotgun. Maybe you wont be impressed at all, but the fact that most professional sound technicians use them, and many instead of a shotgun outdoors if they can get close enough, should mean something.

 

[starcentral]

Are you using any lavs in parallel to your booming? I've worked on several productions where it was pretty common to record boom sound and lavs on all those speaking.

Also we used the NTG-3 on the Movember web-series I was the DOP on incase you're interested in hearing it. As I mentioned, backup lavs were also use and overall I was quite impressed with the sound from the NTG-3.

You can catch all the episodes and BTS from DOP POV here in the DVX Cafe

 

[jthabel]

Actually, I did use a pair of Countryman lavs for a driving scene in this film where the NTG3 wouldn't have been practical. I never used the lavs in parallel with the NTG3 though. Thanks for the recommendation, I'll have to consider trying this in the future.

 

[starcentral]

The good thing with having both (aside from the obvious of one being a backup to the other) is the fact that in post you can use a blend or mix between the two so the lav doesn't sound so lav-like...

i'm really not a sound guy but just guessing at the post possibilities.

 

[Jema]

The main three resons for sometimes using both is, as said, that one can be a backup to the other (usually the lav as a boom tends to sound better), that you can mix them - a boom can get a bit more presence by mixing in a little from the lav, and a lav a more "spacious" sound by mixing in a little boom - and also that it can save time to always have a lav on someone for the times they are needed. Some mixers mix lav and boom quite a lot to find a balance, but I also know of one person that when doing dialogue editing avoids mixing any two channels, as he thinks the phasing makes it sound weird.