I'm looking to buy an on camera mic for my EX1. There's a million mics out there and I imagine a million opinions, but what I'm looking for is a mic that has a narrow field of sensitivity without coming into view at the lens' wide angle and one that has the best bang for the buck, in other words something great and short but cheap! What say you?

I'm looking to buy an on camera mic for my EX1. There's a million mics out there and I imagine a million opinions, but what I'm looking for is a mic that has a narrow field of sensitivity without coming into view at the lens' wide angle and one that has the best bang for the buck, in other words something great and short but cheap! What say you?

Rode NTG 1 is one of the best inexpensive mics out there!

anyway it is not the mic which does the difference, it is the way you use (place) it.
sticking a mic on a camera is the worst place you can imagine.

I have an Sennheiser ME64/K6 combo that works well for that purpose.

Tony
Have a Senn 64/k6 as well as a couple of AT shotguns (835b, 8035), a Rode NTG2 and an AGK short shot.

I'd say that you pretty much get what you pay for, the Senn and AKG sound fuller, the ATs are loud and the Rode handles well too.

All of them will give good dialog tracks if you know how to use them.

If you just have to use a mic on camera, use a full suspension mount that's higher and away from the camera.

Much, much better is a longer cable and a lightweight boom, like a Gizto weekender. Very light, cheap and effective.

Actually my fave way is to use one of the short shots as a handheld mic and just give it to the talent to hold as an on camera mic (with a long cable or wireless, of course). As long as they don't point it at their lips (lots of plosives) the off axis rejection is good enough to get on screen dialog in nightclubs with the PAs wailing.

That's pretty good value for money, right there.

JM2c
YMMV etc
Chris