OK I am a total newb-- I have yet to record actors and such. Can anybody explain to me how simple or complex it will be, and how, to record separate audio and video and sync it up later without resorting to complex timecode methods? I mean, I have a nice digital audio recording (Zoom brand) that I could hook up to my mic and boom to record audio. If I then use a slate clap board or whatever it is called to vocally mark scenes, can't I just line up the sound of the clap board ("Action scene 2 take 1 CLAP") with the visual snapping of the clab board? Or is that simple method just not realistic--does it require more complex timecode stamps and such?
I could just record the audio straight to the digital camcorder (Canon XH-A1 HD), but it seems to me that recording the audio separate to digital recorder would give a lot more freedom to the boom operator--the audio could be all self-contained on the boom: mic on boom, boom, digital audio recorder on the boom; so that the boom operator could move around without fear of yanking the cord and jarring the camera. Advice? Thoughts?
quote:
Originally posted by Beowulf
If I then use a slate clap board or whatever it is called to vocally mark scenes, can't I just line up the sound of the clap board ("Action scene 2 take 1 CLAP") with the visual snapping of the clab board?
This is the way professionals have been syncing up the audio with the visual for 80 years. It still works today. I always prefer to record the audio separately from the camera for the reasons you mention - more freedom for the boomOp and one fewer cable attached to the camera.
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The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
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The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
While there's something to be said for the freedom this method provides, there's also something to be said for the simplicity of single-system sound (hooking the mic right up to the camera).
I have shot double-system sound before, running the audio into a minidisc recorder, and I found that there are a number of deal-breakers for me: 1) File management - when you're shooting sound separate from video, you wind up with twice as many files on your computer in post, and you really have to maintain a good file system if you don't want to lose takes. 2) Tedium - It is, quite frankly, tedious to match and sync sound to picture in post.
Granted, a lot of the really troublesome problems were caused by the fact that I was recording to Minidisc rather than a friendlier digital recorder, but still I eventually decided that the costs outweighed the benefits for me, and I now shoot single-system sound almost exclusively.
To reiterate: that's just the best workflow I've worked out. If you really need the flexibility during production (or if you're more disciplined than I am about logging takes and keeping files organized), double-system may be a good solution for you. Try it out and see if it works.
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Andrew Gingerich
Exploding Goldfish Films
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Andrew Gingerich
Exploding Goldfish Films
Check out my blog at http://www.exgfilms.com
and my reel at http://portfolio.exgfilms.com
