Mic on the bride

[Gene Brockhoff]

How does one Mic the bride if she is wearing a gown that won't allow a mic. The vows will be exchanged on a moat so cables are not a possibility, and we do have two wireless Senn's. If I just mic the groom, the sound will be too soft to pick up the bride. There may be a podium to place a wireless and turn up the sesitivity but I don't know the logistics of that. I'm stumped.

[Patrick Pike]

I have never yet mic'd a bride. For one, I don't have a white mic.

Actually, I have found if you use a good omni-directional lav on the groom it picks up the bride fairly well (just a bit of tweaking in post). Remember, when they exchange vows, normally they are holding hands, so her mouth is maybe 20 inches from the mic. To help, I always tell the B&G to state their vows loud and clear, after all, they are getting married!

For backup, you could always plant a mic some place up near the altar. I always had great luck with this approach.

[Edward Slonaker]

To mic (and un-mic) a groom is rather easy. 99% of the time it can be done just with his jacket. To mic a bride in a form-fitting gown can get a bit tricky....and a bit touchy.....

[Chris Davis]

Granted, I've only shot two weddings so far, but in both cases, the brides were very soft-spoken. I was amazed how well the Azden wireless mic picked up both of them. A little tweaking in post and they sounded great.

Also, in both cases, there would have been almost no way to mic the bride without it being obvious.

[Jeremy Rochefort]

I would steer clear of mic'ing the bride. There is normally no place to hide a wireless tx and most often a mic (even lav) will show on her gown.

A good lav mic on the groom is the best solution.

Cheers

[Peter Costello]

You could always use an ACE bandage strapped around her waist to hold the transmitter and white gaff to hide the cord and mic. However, it is very invasive and you might have to wait until she changes at the end of the evening to get your mic back. I would mic the groom and the minister.

[Joe Allen Rosenberger]

I HIGHLY recommend you NOT place a wireless mic on the bride. This is a no no with wedding videography. If you are concerned with audio on her.....then double mic the groom.....set the levels on the 1 st mic/camera for the groom....then on the sencond wireless mic.....set the levels for the bride and officiant which in return will most likely give you hot audio on the groom but that is ok since the other mic is covering him....only be concerned with the levels on the bride/officiant for the 2nd mic.

We always mic the groom...and the officiant seperately. Why aren't you setting your audio like that, if you have 2 wireless systems?

The ace bandage thing is a bad idea...especially putting tape anywhere on a bridem regardless the color of it. The options above should best suit your audio needs.

[Peter Costello]

Having over modulated audio does not help the process.

[Eric Hansen]

I think we get the point. Just don't mic the Bride. It's just not right.

Eric Hansen
www.ehansenproductions.com

[Nick Weeks]

What about only miking the officiant?

[Gene Brockhoff]

Originally Posted by Joe Allen Rosenberger

I HIGHLY recommend you NOT place a wireless mic on the bride. This is a no no with wedding videography. If you are concerned with audio on her.....then double mic the groom.....set the levels on the 1 st mic/camera for the groom....then on the sencond wireless mic.....set the levels for the bride and officiant which in return will most likely give you hot audio on the groom but that is ok since the other mic is covering him....only be concerned with the levels on the bride/officiant for the 2nd mic.

We always mic the groom...and the officiant seperately. Why aren't you setting your audio like that, if you have 2 wireless systems?

The ace bandage thing is a bad idea...especially putting tape anywhere on a bridem regardless the color of it. The options above should best suit your audio needs.

This was the tip I needed. I hadn't thought of using two on the groom and upping the sensitivity. Great tip. Thanks!
Of course miking the officiant is also a good possibility. Maybe a little experimenting in the rehearsal is in order.

[Patrick Pike]

Whatever you do, when your mic'ing people at a wedding, please think of still pictures. The b&g do not want to see a mess of wires and mics in their pictures.

[Joe Allen Rosenberger]

Peter...you have no clue what you are saying nor can read or understand properly what I wrote....thats all I'll say cuz im not about to write another long paragraph explaining it......keep on the using your ace bandages. I get fired up when someone doesnt know what they are talking about...it sure isnt me!



to the guy who started the thread.....double mic'ing is a decent alternative...let us know how it works for you.....and make sure you practice it first at home wit similar circumstances. id attempt to get one on groom and one on the officiant if possible

Peter-overmodulation on the groom is ok when all you care about is the bride/officiants audio on wireless lav #2, not on wirless lav #1....thats why the groom has his own lav and channel and he's double mic'd....the double micing are not both for the groom...DUH! Get it???


and Patrick made a very good point regarding photos....hide the mics, cables etc best that you can without hurting your sound.....

Originally Posted by Peter Costello

Having over modulated audio does not help the process.

[Waldemar Winkler]

It appears Joe Allen and I are not going to agree on much. Placing a mic on the bride is perfectly acceptable. If the bride is willing to wear one and her wedding dress has a place to conceal the transmitter, definitely do it because the best way to capture good quality sound is to get the microphone as close to the speaker's voice as possible...in any situation. Being forced to rely on a mic placed on the groom or officiate is a second best solution, even though it is the method most often used.

Assuming your bride is willing to wear a mic I would advise her to wear the mic as follows (her bridesmaids will have to put it on her unless you have a woman assistant):
The transmitter will have to be placed inside the dress if there are no bows and such to conceal it outside the dress. Talk with the bride about this as she will have a much better knowledge of how the dress is constructed. I've had several brides place the transmitter in the small of their back and zip the dress over it. Removing the belt clip makes it more comfortable to wear. Clipping onto a bra stap (if worn) is also a good location. The mic cable is threaded inside the dress around the torso and exposed at armpit level, or as high as possible along the line of the dress on the left side. This way the mic will be upstage of the wedding guests and less likely to be visible in both video and photographs. For indoor weddings the windscreen is kept off. For outside weddings the windscreen needs to stay on the mic. Color matching the mic itself is good idea and worth the extra effort.

So, instruct a bridesmaid on how to place the mic and transmitter, and have her turn it on and leave it on. Pre arrange when and where she will be able to return the mic to you. You'll need to mute her channel until you are ready to record her voice. I connect audio from all four of my wireless mics into an audio mixer so I can easily mute any mic I don't need at any time (and yes, one camera is always locked onto a tripod during the entire ceremony).

There are, of course other approaches. Using an iRiver MP3 recorder with a Giant Squid mic yields excellent results It has to be the 700 or 800 series iRiver, and the Giant Squid has to be custom made for the iRiver. The new iRiver models don't allow for external mic use. Indeed, the giant squid mics, whether made for iRivers or not have received exceptional reviews for their sensitivity, and many videographers who choose not to even address the issue of the bride wearing a mic swear by them. Mini disc recorders are also a good substiture. A good omni directional mic concealed in a wedding arch is another possibility.

There a re lots of ways to solve this. Give it thought, and discuss your concerns with bride and groom. Once they understand your worry, they will be more than willing to help.

[Joe Allen Rosenberger]

dude...youre a crack up too! so youre gonna rely on a bridesmaid to do something that could significantly affect your audio, yeah man!.....and it is NOT ok to plave a wireless setup on a bride...you KNOW NOTHING about women obviously!, its because your are not capable of making it happen otherwise, thats why you would do something like that......but keep up your work, guys like you make me look that much better. i have to get out of this forum.....your wack ideas and advice to newbies drives me crazy....

Originally Posted by Waldemar Winkler

It appears Joe Allen and I are not going to agree on much. Placing a mic on the bride is perfectly acceptable. If the bride is willing to wear one and her wedding dress has a place to conceal the transmitter, definitely do it because the best way to capture good quality sound is to get the microphone as close to the speaker's voice as possible...in any situation. Being forced to rely on a mic placed on the groom or officiate is a second best solution, even though it is the method most often used.

Assuming your bride is willing to wear a mic I would advise her to wear the mic as follows (her bridesmaids will have to put it on her unless you have a woman assistant):
The transmitter will have to be placed inside the dress if there are no bows and such to conceal it outside the dress. Talk with the bride about this as she will have a much better knowledge of how the dress is constructed. I've had several brides place the transmitter in the small of their back and zip the dress over it. Removing the belt clip makes it more comfortable to wear. Clipping onto a bra stap (if worn) is also a good location. The mic cable is threaded inside the dress around the torso and exposed at armpit level, or as high as possible along the line of the dress on the left side. This way the mic will be upstage of the wedding guests and less likely to be visible in both video and photographs. For indoor weddings the windscreen is kept off. For outside weddings the windscreen needs to stay on the mic. Color matching the mic itself is good idea and worth the extra effort.

So, instruct a bridesmaid on how to place the mic and transmitter, and have her turn it on and leave it on. Pre arrange when and where she will be able to return the mic to you. You'll need to mute her channel until you are ready to record her voice. I connect audio from all four of my wireless mics into an audio mixer so I can easily mute any mic I don't need at any time (and yes, one camera is always locked onto a tripod during the entire ceremony).

There are, of course other approaches. Using an iRiver MP3 recorder with a Giant Squid mic yields excellent results It has to be the 700 or 800 series iRiver, and the Giant Squid has to be custom made for the iRiver. The new iRiver models don't allow for external mic use. Indeed, the giant squid mics, whether made for iRivers or not have received exceptional reviews for their sensitivity, and many videographers who choose not to even address the issue of the bride wearing a mic swear by them. Mini disc recorders are also a good substiture. A good omni directional mic concealed in a wedding arch is another possibility.

There a re lots of ways to solve this. Give it thought, and discuss your concerns with bride and groom. Once they understand your worry, they will be more than willing to help.