AUDIO SPECIAL ACADEMY
GEAR UP FOR SUPER SOUND
RYCOTE CLASSIC-SOFTIE A classic ‘dead cat’ style slip-on windjammer, such as this Rycote Classic-Softie, is ideal for fast use in breezes and light winds.
Just a single mic won’t cut it in the world of professional filmmaking E veryone knows audio is key in making professional-quality films, and many beginning filmmakers splash out on an external mic once they realise the audio from their DSLR or mirrorless camera has a tinny built-in mic that’s pretty much useless. And these cameras often have rudimentary amps inside that make the audio even worse. For many, that first purchase is a camera-top DSLR mic that plugs into the camera, which is a huge improvement, especially as it records high-quality audio alongside the video footage to make editing easy. As the output from an external plug-in mic is more powerful and adjustable, you can turn down the audio level on the camera to reduce the in- camera gain. A win all round. But a DSLR-type mic isn’t all that you need. An external recorder, wireless lavalier mics, a reporter mic, an advanced XLR shotgun mic and some way of cutting down wind noise is crucial on the journey to flawless sound. We take a look at some of the things worth investing in and how to use them. WORDS ADAM DUCKWORTH
RODE VIDEOMIC NTG The latest technology comes to DSLR mics with Rode’s newest VideoMic NTG. In addition to the latest Rode shotgun engineering, it’s USB-C compatible, so ideal for vlogging.
RODE NTG5 A professional-quality XLR mic is the heart of any system, and Rode’s latest NTG5 has a new acoustic design and comes with a complete location kit.
34
PRO MOVIEMAKER SUMMER 2020
Powered by FlippingBook