Sound Reasoning: Sweet Sound of Matrimony

Meet Bob and John.

Bob owns a camcorder; for that reason alone his best friend asked him to shoot his upcoming wedding. Not wanting to let his friend down, Bob responded "Sure, I'd love to do it." And why not, Bob thought, how hard could it be?

The day of the wedding dawns. There's Bob, video gear in hand, standing in the church on Confusion Street. Sure, he exercises good command of his camcorder and knows how to capture stable, eye-pleasing images; his audio experience, however, is limited.

Meanwhile, across town on Happyface Lane, John prepares to shoot a wedding as well. But the experienced John knows exactly what to do; he and his long-time partner complete their mike placements in record time. John even enjoys some free time to relax before the ceremony kicks off.

Back on Confusion Street, the ceremony is about to begin. Unfortunately, Bob is fumbling around trying to pick the best spot for his mike stand.

As John already knows and Bob is about to find out, there are dozens of potential mistakes a videomaker can make when recording audio for weddings. Without guidance, the beginner will usually make all of them. One way to learn about proper wedding audio recording: compare the typical mistakes of an amateur (Bob) to the savvy techniques of a pro (J…