Hi, we're a husband and wife videography team.
I often use a sony wireless mic and put it on the groom.
I recently bought and olympus VN-702PC and my wife will be putting it on the bride.

I'm wondering what will the best way to install the voice recorder on the bride? As she won't have any pocket.

Thanks guys!

Not that it will be of any help to you but I would never ever mic the bride and I"m pretty sure hardly anyone here does that, when you mic the groom that is sufficient to capture the voices during the vows.
It's also like you said, the bride doesn't have any pockets to place the olympus so you almost would have to place the recorder when she gets dressed (don't ask me where to put it :D) and ask her to take it of after the church when she goes to the toilet, not an ideal situation and for me not done.

In all of my weddings I have only mic'd 1 bride and only because she 110% insisted on it because she was a local small TV station anchor and felt that if both she and the groom were mic'd the audio would be better. Of course she wasn't entirely wrong but then neither was she entirely right. I had to buy a white mic (she actually paid for that) and I hung the mic pak first on the waistband of her underwear. It pulled them down so that wasn't going to work. I ended up clipping the mic pak to the back of her dress, inside the top of her dress which was fitted quite tightly. I gave her the option of NOT wearing either the mic pak or the dress she went with option 3 be a bit uncomfortable for a short time.
She couldn't get the mic off fast enough after the ceremony and I have never been asked about micing the bride since. That was 20 years ago.
BTW, YES I did place the mic pak originally. I am after a professional! ;-)

Thanks guys! That is much help!

I'm wondering what I should do with my olympus voice recorder. I also have a H4N that I use for plugging into the DJ set to get recording from live microphone. Should I return the olympus voice recorder or will there be any use for me?

Sorry if I rant too much!

Hi Derek.

NEVER mic a bride. EVER.

I have about 7 different audio devices, (H4N, iRivers, Sennheiser wireless, Yamaha C4). Each device has it's own strengths and weaknesses. Over time I've learnt when and where they work the best.

A typical wedding would be Sennheisers on both minister and groom, iRiver on the podium, H4N at the feet of the quartet.

Access to more than you think you'll need, plus the knowledge of what tool is best for each job is the mark of a pro.

If you watch reality tv shows like "Bridezilla" or something similar, you'll see that the bride wears a mic on her wedding day. If the Olympus is small enough, it could set it between her "pillows" clipped to her bra strap. Having one mic on the bride and one on the groom does make the production sound a lot better than having just one mic on the groom. Do it only if it can be discreet.

Last time this topic came up, I was surprised to find that there are people here who routinely mic the bride.

If you really want to do it... Putting mics down people's cleavage actually does create good sound. Natural resonance chamber and hiding spot. Much better than attaching to guys' chests, with the possibility of chest hair causing audio problems. The transmitter can be attached to a strap around a leg, but there are other dodgy spots also, some more uncomfortable than others. For instance, it's possible to gather up the fabric under someone's armpit, and attach it there.

No... no... no... NEVER!

I still agree with John

You would have to find not only a white mic (which are made) but also an assistant to delve into the depths of the brides dress to find a transmitter location. Not necessary and I certainly have never attempted it...At worst you might have to lift the audio for a softly spoken bride.

Definately a no-no unless the bride specifically demanded it.

Chris

I don't always mic the bride since the groom's lav normally picks up her voice clearly but occasionally, I would clip a cheap mp3 recorder on her dress as backup audio just for safety.

This is the one I use:
USB 2.0 Rechargeable Flash Drive Voice Recorder - Silver (8GB) - Worldwide Free Shipping - DX (http://dx.com/p/usb-2-0-rechargeable-flash-drive-voice-recorder-silver-8gb-158695)

I wouldn't count on it as main audio since it's built super cheap, has no control whatsoever (just switch it on and it starts recording after 3 seconds) The quality of the audio is nothing impressive... BUT it could potentially save your life if your main audio decides to fail for some unknown reason.

I normally just hand it to the bride before the ceremony and explain that it's for safety measure and if she's okay with it, I just let her clip it on the pad of her bra or directly on the dress with the clip being the only exposed part of the device. It literally takes 2 seconds to put on and take off. Since it's white, it's super discreet and barely visible.

Hope this helps!

If you watch reality tv shows like "Bridezilla" or something similar, you'll see that the bride wears a mic on her wedding day.

Yeah, but they will do whatever it takes to get sound from her, I"m sure if she doesn't want that the tv prodcucer will find another bride who will. Here the show comes first.

There is no harm in asking the bride if she is up to wearing a mike but it should be concealed in such a way that it doesn't show. The bride has to shine, no matter what :)

I also use a multitude of recorders throughout the day for different purposes, like in church that can be up to 4, one on the groom, one on the altar, one on the lectern and one on a soundspeaker, that covers it all. During speeches at the reception I try to plug in in the dj soundsystem, set a mike in front of a speaker or attach a recorder on the microphone handle. My sound gear consists out of a zoom h1, a yamaha c24, a tascam dr40, a iriver and I also have a azden 500udr that I mainly use for interviews with a wireless handmicrophone.

We used this transmitter with a white Countryman B6 on the bride. It's almost invisible, and sound quality was excellent. Strap the transmitter to her thigh or bosom, run the wire up the front of the dress to her bra, or conceal the transmitter behind her hair if her hair is down. The transmitter is about the size of 2 AA batteries put together.
Lectrosonics SMV Super Miniature Wireless Microphone SMV-20 B&H

You would get arrested for trying that in the UK Warren.
On serious note, a wireless lav or H1, with a decent lav on the groom covers everything. Well at least for me.

Yeah - I would imagine the pleasure of mic'ing up a bride in Honolulu would be quite different from the Cornwall experience! LOL

You would get arrested for trying that in the UK Warren.


Really? Why? I don't understand. When we used to do it, it was the bride that requested it.

Yeah - I would imagine the pleasure of mic'ing up a bride in Honolulu would be quite different from the Cornwall experience! LOL
You got that right lol

Thanks for the response guys. Learned alot!

I'm really surprised at the number of negative suggestions regarding mic'ing a bride. I do it all the time and have never had an issue with the bride or the technology. When you hear the results, you'll never want to go back. John, I'm not sure what your issue is...

I use an older iRiver mp3 recorder. I have her or a bridesmaid clip it on her garter andturn it on well before the ceremony. The bonus is that I get fabulous candid audio before the ceremony that makes for great background narration.

As for mic placement, I have a white lav with a Rycote cover. I hide it in the dress so you never see it. Even if it's a lacey dress you won't notice it because it's white.

I use an older iRiver mp3 recorder. I have her or a bridesmaid clip it on her garter and turn it on well before the ceremony.


No. I don't believe you. This is a wind up.

has anyone got a link to the iriver?
which one do you all use?

The Amazing iRiver Recorder VideoUniversity (http://www.videouniversity.com/articles/iriver-recorder)

You'll need the older model ones... iFP 7xx and 8xx models (get them on eBay). Use with a Giant Squid mic. Great for podiums.

I really had to smile - if there's a need, then mic 'em up! I don't do weddings I do theatre - and we routinely put transmitter packs on girls with tight tricky costumes. We always use mic bags - white linen pockets that wardrobe knock up in 5 minutes, they have two ties on, and you just pop the recorder or tx pack into them, and then attach it - if the person is fuller up front, then central underneath attached to the front centre between the cups, or in the small of the back, if the dress is high. if there's more loose material at the rear, then the bag goes at the back, tied to the waist dropping down the bum crack line. If we have ultra tight costumes - think Japanese/eastern dress, the packs would make an obvious bulge. If the girl is very slim in the legs, there can be a gap between the upper thighs. If they put their feet together, the lack of big thighs means there is a gap where you can tape the pack to. I suspect a bride would not be happy with this one, but actresses usually are. we usually have an A2 or even A3 (as in Audio person No. 3) who may well be dedicated to radio mic fitting. Sometimes we even hide them in hair pieces. I'm not sure what you may call it in the States, but small mics can be painted with tippex (typo correction fluid) to hide them on a white dress - it scratches off quite easily afterwards.The key feature is that mics need to be fitted by somebody who can act professionally, and it rarely causes embarrassment when done properly. The pack gaffer taped to the inner thigh is effective, but very painful to remove - so they need warning before you do it!

I totally agree Paul. There's a lot of people out there that get freaked out when dealing with a bride. Sure, not all of them will be comfortable with the idea, but then again, some aren't comfortable being in front of the camera either. It works for me as I make a point in establishing a comfort level with the couple long before the wedding. When it comes time to mic'ing, she has no problem.

No John, it's not a wind up. I use the old iRiver ifp 800. There's still a few kicking around ebay for cheap. Yes, the Giant Squid mics work well and come in white. Throw on a a Rycote cover and you're good to go.

Mic'ing the groom only limits you with audio. If it's outdoors and windy you won't pick her up as well.

Quote from that Still Motion blog on their stuffed toy wedding:

"We’ve also stopped relying so much on soundtrack. Now we use more natural audio and dialogue. In the end it makes for a much deeper, richer story — you’ll notice a huge difference in the emotional impact of your wedding films if you put effort into catching any exchanges in dialogue that are especially funny, sentimental, or cute (and often this means going to extra mile to mic the couple as much as possible)."

Does that mean they mic the bride? Seems quite possible to me.

Personally, I've never done it, but some of the posts in this thread are making me reconsider.