Audio & Video Production Basics

Brett Atwood

Microphones

Microphones can be extremely fragile Do not blow or tap into them Do not drop them or throw them

around

Popping the “P’s”

Announcing words that emphasize p, b, or t sounds naturally produce a sharp puff of air

This can result in a pop or thumb in your recording if you speak too close to the microphone

A windscreen on the mic can help

Windscreens

Foam ball-shaped accessory for the microphone

Used to reduce unwanted sounds

Dynamic Microphones

Contains a mylar diaphragm attached to a small coil surrounding a tiny fixed magnet.

When sound wave strikes, the diaphragm vibrates.

A tiny voltage is generated based on the interaction between the magnet and coil.

Microphone Pickup Patterns

General Mic Tips

Get your microphone as close to the source as possible.

Even directional microphones pick up a little sound from most directions, so the closer the better - as long as you're not getting negative effects (plosives, mouth noises, etc)

General Mic Tips

Eliminate the Competition: Think about the OTHER sounds in the room where you are recording. Two main sources of unwanted sound are: noise : this can be the noisy air conditioner,

traffic outside, crowds in the hall. ambience : may be the "live nature" of the

room you're in, the unwanted echo. Do what you can to eliminate the problem

and place your mic as close to your subject as possible.

Lighting

Three purposes of lighting:Provide adequate illumination for the

picture to be processed correctly by the camera

To tell us what the objects on the screen look like, including space/depth relationships and time of day

To establish the mood of a scene

Hard and Soft Light

“Hard Light” – Very pronounced; Directional; Casts strong shadows

“Soft Light” – Light is diffused/spread out; less shadows People look better

with soft lights

Directional vs. Diffused Light

Example:

Directional Diffused

Directional light

Hard light casts a sharp, clearly defined shadow.

When hard light is used to illuminate a face, imperfections in the skin stand out. The result is less than flattering.

But in other applications, such as bringing out the texture in leather, or the engraving on a piece of jewelry, this can be an advantage. 

Diffused light

Soft (diffused) light has the opposite effect.

It tends to hide surface irregularities and detail.

Diffusers are used over the front of lights to soften and diffuse their beams. At the same time, diffusers also reduce the intensity of light. 

Soft Lighting

Since soft light is more scattered, you may need more light

Soft light may be created using bounced lighting Light source hits

subject indirectly since it bounces off a reflector

How the Camera Works

“White” light reflected off the subject is picked up by camera lens

How the Camera Works

A beam splitter fragments light into Red, Green, and Blue signals Each signal is sent to a respective color

pickup tube or chip

How the Camera Works

Camera converts light into electrical signals that reproduce original imageBright parts of the image create a larger

chargeDarker parts of the image create a

lesser charge Photosensitive imaging device within

the camera encodes the scene into stream of electric impulses that become the video signal

Imaging Devices

The heart/guts of your camera is the Imaging Device

Imaging Device = transducer thatconverts one form of energy intoanotherExample: CCD

Imaging Devices

Imaging device in studio cams usually based on pickup tube or CCD (charge-coupled device)

CCD is usually cheaper than pickup tube Amount of CCDs or pickup tubes

determines the quality…and price3CCD vs. CCD cameras

CCD

- An integrated circuit (computer chip)

Contains photosensitive “pixels” on the surface of the chip

Light hits the rectangular pixels

Each pixel emits electric signal when struck by light

White Balance

White Balance – Used to balance the color of your shot.Point the camera at a white object

(piece of blank paper or white wall)Object should be in the same light that

you will use in shootingPress “white balance” button to adjust

the sensitivity of the camera to the current light source

White Balance

An improperly white balanced camera can cause your video to appear yellow, greenish or reddish or yellower than it should.

Example: Bad (Top image) Good (Bottom

image)

White Balance

If you move the camera into different light or the light source changes, then you will need to redo the white balance setting

Some cameras do automatically re-balance the white

Establishing Shots

Many directors follow this simple formula: First scene shot: Wide,

establishing shot to orient the viewer

Second scene shot: Closer proximity to main subject

Third shot: Main subject

Camera Angles

Use angles to keep the production interesting

Angles can be used to manipulate audience perception

High Camera Angle

Positions the camera above eye level

Camera shoots down at subject

Used to show overview of area

Used to make subject appear smaller

Low Camera Angle

Positions the camera below eye level

Camera shoots up toward the subject

Used to give sense of power to subject

Canted Angle

Camera is tilted on a horizontal plane

Used to convey sense of excitement or instability

Simply tilt the camera to achieve this effect

Use this sparingly

Subjective Camera Angle

Places the camera in the place of a character to show us a scene from their viewpoint

Also known as point-of-view shot (POV)

Used to engage viewers in the action

Capturing Motion

You should always consider the path of moving subjects and, generally, leave space in front of them into which they can move.

Capturing Motion

If you don't, here's what can happen! This jogger looks like she's going to run right out of the frame.

Capturing Motion

By placing the subject in the lower-left position, we've used the rule of thirds and given the jogger plenty of room to run within the frame.