Sound Advice: Quiet on the Set

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"Quiet on the set" is a cliché we've all heard before. A movie director typically sounded the command before the microphones and video cameras were set in motion. After all, the audio about to be acquired was needed for the final production, and whatever got on tape, good or bad, was "part of the picture," so to speak. Hollywood of today doesn't have to worry about this as much as it used to. Most, if not all audio in a modern production has been recreated in a sound studio. So, what's a poor amateur camera operator with a mike or two to do?

Listening is Critical
If you are like most videographers, you are a visual person who thinks about light, color, texture and composition. When evaluating the environment where you will be shooting, take note of available light. What is the light temperature daylight, indoor or a combination? If you will be capturing audio, you have added to your job description. You have to also wear the hat (or headphones) of the audio engineer and evaluate or critically listen to the given environment. The easiest way to begin to tune your senses for critical listening is to don those phones, turn on your mike and amplify the noise. Noise is any unwanted sound, and when you crank up those personal audio monitors the unwanted noise will be all too apparent to your ears.

The Usual Suspects
When shooting outdoors, noise can come from an infinite number of sources that are, more likely than not, beyond your control. If you can steer the shoot away from busy streets, flight paths of aircraft or other machinery, do so. If you must deal with relatively high levels of noise, like that from traffic, your recording techniques are your only sal…