Shooting interviews with the PDX10

Konstantin Vilenchitz · July 6th, 2005, 03:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stephen Finton

OH!

NINJA TUNES!!! Try to get him to send Kid Koala down to Houston! I spoke with DJ Vadim a couple of years back about getting Kid Koala to tour but nothing happened. Apparently he is a slacker extraordinaire.

If they are Ninja Tunes artists, then you will have a pretty good crowd. :)

Oh how quickly we turn... ;)

Stephen Finton · July 6th, 2005, 03:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Konstantin Vilenchitz

Oh how quickly we turn... ;)

Hey! I could tell you who I've filmed but I don't want you bothering me. :)

Blockhead's a fairly new artist with the label, I assume? I started listening to their label after a friend came back from Vancouver with the 10 year anniversary 3 CD compilation of theirs. I loved it so much, I just sort of branched off of that but never stumbled across Blockhead.

Where's this gonna be?

We saw some of the Anticon people come through town a couple of months back. SOLE was headlining. Dosh ate all my chips and salsa. He was so starved, when I asked everyone if they wanted them, he grunted and ripped the bag out of my hand. Never said another word because his mouth was too full. They need to feed that boy better!

Got Buck65 opening for some piss-poor group that we are not going to stay for on August 3rd. Can't wait for that one. We were going to ask him if we could film him but we have too many things on our system right now that need to be finished.

Jeff S Smith · July 7th, 2005, 04:35 PM

I use the Bogen 679B monopod (and I have the swivel head too). I also picked up a cheap monopod at Best Buy that folds up to about 15 inches and I keep that in my camera bag (it just barely fits!).

But the Bogen is the better of the two.

-Jeff

Ronald Lee · July 10th, 2005, 08:18 PM

Hi Konstantin,

Let me put your mind to rest as someone who has shot interviews with the PDX10 with a variety of equipment an both in dark clubs and on the street, in room, etc... I would love it if you send me a copy of the footage of the DJ you shoot, so I can see and hear what you ended up doing. :)

What I suggest is that, given your cirumstances for the future, you get a shotgun mic and a wireless mic.

I actually find the wireless mic better because if it's good, it will save you a lot of hassle of trying to find a boom guy and etc... I've used both the Sony and the Sennheiser (g2) in field and.... the Senn's sound better for some reason. Better noise cancellation, more natural deeper tones, than the Sony. both are good though. This is where you don't want to cut corners.

As for the shotgun, test a bunch and see what you like. I have a ME66 but I don't like it. Too whiney and you still gotta be close to the subject for good sound. Go with the MK416 or the Audio Technical 407a (or whatever model is close to that, I can't remember). With the wireless, trust me, the Senn sounds better, BUT with the shotgun, you're going to have to try a few out to see what you like. There are some sample MP3 tests in the sound forum, somewhere for all the aforementioned mics.

You will need a mono pod, or a tripod. Or even a small mini tripod, in case you can put the camera on a table or chair.

a hood man would be good so you can see what you are doing and get some privacy from onlookers.

extra batteries are always a must. both for the camera and the wireless mics.

Hope that helps, email me for my address ( *wink*)

--
To other people, have you guys found any solutions for superior noise cancellation in loud clubs?

Carlos E. Martinez · July 11th, 2005, 08:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Konstantin Vilenchitz

can you explain why you're so adamant about not having the mic actually rest in the shotgun holder? I don't know if it would be practical in my situation to get a mic stand considering I'm already carrying the camera, a pro light, light stand and tripod for most interviews.

The camera holder and camera position are usually the worst to put a mic in for an interview. That is valid for any camera and microphone, not just the PDX10.

A mic should be positioned at less than 2-feet from your subject's mouth, preferably pointing down from above. Your camera will most probably be farther than that in most circumstances. If you get to put your subject at less than 2-ft from your camera you may get away with it.

If not you should use a lapel mic or a mic on a stand. If you are using light stands, you can get yourself a mic stand.

In this matters it's a question of attitude on what you believe it's important. Test for yourself different mic positions before going on location and listen to them on good headphones. Rememb er your dialogue should be clean and free from ambience noise.

Carlos

Sean McHenry · July 24th, 2005, 01:45 AM

Quick tip that may not apply here:
If you need to mic a whole crew of say 3-4 people, you can get (rent , buy, borrow) multiple lav mics and get a small mixer and a single wireless system. This lets you move about freely and gives everyone a mic. The only obvious bad thing is that the audio will be premixed to a single channel if you do this so do it right.

Start with an inexpensive mixer like a Behringer or Samson if you are short on funds...Run the wired mics into the mixer and use a wireless mic to send the output of the mixer to the receiver mounted on the camera. You can set the levels on the mixer before shooting with a mic check from each person, leaving a little headroom if they get crazy on you later. Better yet, take a friend who can understand that a red light is a bad thing and have them mix the audio.

I have done this a time or two. It allows you to move around freely to change angles without the cables.

Not for all situations. And for the purists, yes I know Behringer Mixers are a bit noisy and not quite up to par but if you only have $100 for 4 channels, go for it.

Sean McHenry

Konstantin Vilenchitz · July 24th, 2005, 11:44 AM

Thanks for the continued replies!

Stephen, yes he's fairly newer to Ninja Tune. I have that same compilation, which is great. I used to be a huge electronica fan but got bored with a lot of it eventually. I did see Amon Tobin recently which was fun.

The show was at a small local venue called Rothko's, down on the lower east side of Manhattan.

Ronald/Jeff, thanks for the equipment suggestions. I'll have to look the items up on B&H. I already added that Sennheiser wireless lav to my wish list though :D I wound up picking up the Bogen monopod right before the show and was very happy that I did. I think a screen hood is a great idea. I found it a bit distracting having people from the audience trying to check the LCD over my shoulder.

The interview went well and I was happy with the Audio Technica lav I picked up.

The only issue I had with the performance shoot was that my crowd shots were dark. They had a disco ball going which made alot of the image harder to read as well. I'd like to get a small on-camera light for the future. Something like the Sony HVL-20DMA seems good, though I'm not sure how much wattage I would need/want. That's another topic altogether though!

July 24th, 2005, 01:45 AM	#21
Sean McHenry Trustee Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Hilliard, Ohio Posts: 1,193	Quick tip that may not apply here: If you need to mic a whole crew of say 3-4 people, you can get (rent , buy, borrow) multiple lav mics and get a small mixer and a single wireless system. This lets you move about freely and gives everyone a mic. The only obvious bad thing is that the audio will be premixed to a single channel if you do this so do it right. Start with an inexpensive mixer like a Behringer or Samson if you are short on funds...Run the wired mics into the mixer and use a wireless mic to send the output of the mixer to the receiver mounted on the camera. You can set the levels on the mixer before shooting with a mic check from each person, leaving a little headroom if they get crazy on you later. Better yet, take a friend who can understand that a red light is a bad thing and have them mix the audio. I have done this a time or two. It allows you to move around freely to change angles without the cables. Not for all situations. And for the purists, yes I know Behringer Mixers are a bit noisy and not quite up to par but if you only have $100 for 4 channels, go for it. Sean McHenry __________________ ‘I don’t know what I’m doing, and I’m shooting on D.V.’ - my hero - David Lynch http://www.DeepBlueEdit.com

July 24th, 2005, 11:44 AM	#22
Konstantin Vilenchitz Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 35	Thanks for the continued replies! Stephen, yes he's fairly newer to Ninja Tune. I have that same compilation, which is great. I used to be a huge electronica fan but got bored with a lot of it eventually. I did see Amon Tobin recently which was fun. The show was at a small local venue called Rothko's, down on the lower east side of Manhattan. Ronald/Jeff, thanks for the equipment suggestions. I'll have to look the items up on B&H. I already added that Sennheiser wireless lav to my wish list though :D I wound up picking up the Bogen monopod right before the show and was very happy that I did. I think a screen hood is a great idea. I found it a bit distracting having people from the audience trying to check the LCD over my shoulder. The interview went well and I was happy with the Audio Technica lav I picked up. The only issue I had with the performance shoot was that my crowd shots were dark. They had a disco ball going which made alot of the image harder to read as well. I'd like to get a small on-camera light for the future. Something like the Sony HVL-20DMA seems good, though I'm not sure how much wattage I would need/want. That's another topic altogether though! __________________ Defkon City TV: Urban arts and interviews Every other Tuesday @ 10PM. Channel 67 (Time Warner) / Ch. 110 (RCN) http://www.defkon.com

July 7th, 2005, 04:35 PM	#18
Jeff S Smith Regular Crew Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 27	I use the Bogen 679B monopod (and I have the swivel head too). I also picked up a cheap monopod at Best Buy that folds up to about 15 inches and I keep that in my camera bag (it just barely fits!). But the Bogen is the better of the two. -Jeff

July 10th, 2005, 08:18 PM	#19
Ronald Lee Major Player Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 435	Hi Konstantin, Let me put your mind to rest as someone who has shot interviews with the PDX10 with a variety of equipment an both in dark clubs and on the street, in room, etc... I would love it if you send me a copy of the footage of the DJ you shoot, so I can see and hear what you ended up doing. :) What I suggest is that, given your cirumstances for the future, you get a shotgun mic and a wireless mic. I actually find the wireless mic better because if it's good, it will save you a lot of hassle of trying to find a boom guy and etc... I've used both the Sony and the Sennheiser (g2) in field and.... the Senn's sound better for some reason. Better noise cancellation, more natural deeper tones, than the Sony. both are good though. This is where you don't want to cut corners. As for the shotgun, test a bunch and see what you like. I have a ME66 but I don't like it. Too whiney and you still gotta be close to the subject for good sound. Go with the MK416 or the Audio Technical 407a (or whatever model is close to that, I can't remember). With the wireless, trust me, the Senn sounds better, BUT with the shotgun, you're going to have to try a few out to see what you like. There are some sample MP3 tests in the sound forum, somewhere for all the aforementioned mics. You will need a mono pod, or a tripod. Or even a small mini tripod, in case you can put the camera on a table or chair. a hood man would be good so you can see what you are doing and get some privacy from onlookers. extra batteries are always a must. both for the camera and the wireless mics. Hope that helps, email me for my address ( wink) -- To other people, have you guys found any solutions for superior noise cancellation in loud clubs?