How-To Guides about Sound

The mic you use will affect the quality and sound of the audio for your digital film project. The in-camera mic is usually not enough, so you'll need to buy some extras. But which ones are the best, and how to use them?

The Canon 5D is a wonderful camera for shooting HD video footage, but one thing it isn't great at— sound. In order to get great quality audio, you're going to have to use an external sound recorder. If you want professional grade sound, you have to use professional equipment. You need to make sure your sound recorder has a sampling rate of 96 KHz at 16 bit resolution or better.

When you film at home with just a regular camera using the built-in microphone, the quality can be bad to worse at best. If you are looking to improve the sound the best that you can with low budget solutions, check out this video. You will get tips on how to secure your locations and also how to monitor the sound going into your camera.

In this tutorial, we learn how to make a microphone blimp. You will first need a shotgun microphone and a power module that attaches to the microphone. There will be low roll off switch on the bottom which is supposed to help with wind noise. Next you will need to build a blimp with a filter you can purchase from a farm supply store. Apply a steel reinforced putty to one side of it, and this will be your end cap. Place your microphone through this and then your microphone will become complete....

Keep your sound and electronics gear in order! Safety and neatness are everything. Check out this video tutorial from the Good Idea Guys at Good Buy Guys to learn how to keep a mic stand neat and safe. Mic Stand Mike demonstrates how to keep your microphone stands and cables neat and organized on stage. A great helpful tip for cable safety.

Make sure your electronics gear stays in order! And make sure your running wires are safe. Check out this video tutorial from the Good Idea Guys at Good Buy Guys to learn how to tape down a cable correctly. Keep those microphone cables, audio cables, and extension cords secure and safely underfoot. Tape Tex shows you how in "How to Tape Down a Cable". A great helpful tip for cable safety.

If you need a little advice about film sound and music, these tips should help you out. Find out a good place got get royalty free music to add to your low-budget film and see when not to use music with vocals. Watch this video tutorial to learn how to improve your moviemaking music and sound skills.

Rajo from the SubStream's "Film Lab" has some tips regarding sound recording.

Check out this film and theater video tutorial on how to set up a wireless microphone for sound recording.

See how to snap a person's neck for a film effect, complete with sound. This requires just two easy steps. First, get some peanuts. Second, synchronize the head movement to you crushing the peanuts into the microphone. Snapping a neck on camera is nothing as long as you have those peanuts and are careful... very, very careful not to snap the neck for real. This neck snapping is a great cinematic trick for the seasoned amateur filmmaker.

If you need some sound effects for your upcoming film, you better watch this video! After principle photography in production, you have to get into the editing process in post-porduction, which leads to sound department for ADR, Foley, Sound Effects and Sound Design. If you can't afford a professional sound designer for your movie, you can do it yourself, and this video will help you find sound effects on the Internet for your film.

You may be tempted to skimp on audio quality in your first movie. Don't—a single garbled conversation can drive an audience to the exits. Learn how to record perfect audio with this filmmaking tutorial for first timers.

Need a boom pole for your project? Take a look at this instruction video and learn how to build your own boom pole on a low budget. The relative cost of all these materials to construct the boom pole is approximately fifteen pounds.

This video shows you how to upgrade your consumer camcorder sound capabilities using a camcorder XLR adapter, a simple device that mounts to the bottom of the camera. It then tests and compares the various types of microphones that can be attached, including the lavalier, sennheiser, handheld interview, and the wireless clip-on microphone. WAtch this helpful instructional video, and boost the sound on your camcorder for professional audio.

The only way to get great sound is to get the microphone as close to the talent as possible. This video tutorial will discuss the dark art of hiding a microphone in someone's clothing or elsewhere. These tips will help you keep your mics hidden and heard.

It's not a dead cat on a pole, it's a boom microphone. The primary component is the boom pole, which is attached to the microphone. This sound and film making video tutorial will teach you to properly use a boom mic as well as support a boom pole.

This video will give you tips and tricks on how to use a field audio mixer for your home movies and amateur films.

This video covers the basics of recording Foley sound. Foley was a sound technician at Universal studios who invented a new sound effect method. This video will teach you how to use his method to get great sound effects.

Sometimes, we need to record outdoors for our film making. Perhaps we need an audio clip of a babbling brook, or perhaps just ambient noise. This instructional filmmaking video covers some tips for capturing good sound when shooting outdoors.

Ian and Blake share with us their awesome tutorials for making 3D Models and crazy Monster noises.

If you plan to do a voice-over on a video, there are a few ways to get that big studio sound in your amateur film without the big studio usage fees. This episode of Jim Shorts gives you a look inside Jim Shorts, at how I do some voice-over work, and how you can do the same thing for next to nothing.

Several great YouTubers have had their accounts suspended for illegally using copyrighted music from those easily agitated big record labels. This episode of Jim Shorts covers places you can go to find awesome music for your videos that won't end your YouTube career.

Ben and Paul show how the addition of horror sound effects can make an otherwise normal scene utterly creepy...

Too many zero budget films suffer from poor sound quality, so here's a way to dub your films on the cheap, with a studio-in-a-box! You're voice-overs will shine like no other.

Xander and Calvin go over some ways to help get great sound for your films and videos! This is a great short video with some great tips for making the best sound possible for your low budget, indie film.

Bad audio is a plague! It must be eradicated! Here are some common examples of bad audio, and how to better it. External Microphones, getting the mic closer to the subject, removing any other noise in the room, and several other examples are shown.

Does your video camera not have a headphone jack? This cool idea enables you to use a pair of headphones to monitor what your video camera is hearing in real time.

John shows us how to record ambient noise to enhance the audio of your video.

Brandon discusses the audio technique "capturing ambient noise". He describes how to do it and why it can improve your video's overall sense of depth and appeal.

Brandon explains how to record a voice over audio track to improve the quality of your videos.

This is a great video that breaks down the different types of microphones available and how you can use them to get different results or resolve different problems. If you use the right microphone, your videos will come out that much better.

In this episode, the Shirtless Apprentice gives a brief overview of the equipment and technique to capturing audio for a sit down interview.

Sometimes a shotgun mic isn't enough. The guys at Indy Mogul show you how to build your own boom pole to help capture better sound for your films.

Want to make your own documentary? Voice-over is a big part of any documentary. Learn how to record voice-overs in this Israel Hyman's video tutorial. Even if you're not making a documentary, you may find other times you need a voice-over, and this video will give you the tools to do it.