Sound Track: Hearing is Believing

For most of us, it's all too easy to get wrapped up in special effects, lens trickery and other visual feasts for the eyes. Hey--we're videographers, right?

But as videographers, we should never lose sight of the fact that audio can draw viewers into a video just as well as visuals can. For proof, rent a blockbuster movie; find a particularly engaging action sequence and "watch" it with your eyes closed. Then, repeat the procedure, but this time with your eyes open and turn the volume all the way down. Chances are you'll find the audio program to be even more engaging than the visuals alone. Viewers can usually picture what they hear, but they can't always imagine the sound to accompany the images.

Much of the power of a film or video soundtrack comes from the implication of things or people that aren't really there, be it an off-screen gunfight, devastating explosion or ambulance siren. Often it's impractical to record these sound effects while actually taping (or filming), so dubbing them in after you finish shooting is the w…

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