In doing my past ventures I have not yet been able to get the sound perfect as I often consider it as much more of a last minute factor in the pre-production stages. I came across a video blog called Types of Microphone, on youtube posted by a video production services, Lambda Films. It explains the different types of microphones which can be used to pick up audio. For instance, bi-directional, cardioid, shotgun and Lavalier microphones. It is very important to decide on the suitable microphone to be able to make the best quality sound, the technical side of sound is one area that ought to be well thought through, looking at the positives and negatives of the different types of microphones, based on what is being shot.
In pre and post-production steps of a venture usually what is thought of as the most significant aspect is the aesthetic imagery. Focusing on the brainstorming, scripting and storyboarding, getting carried away with this aspect of the pre-production and forgetting at times about the planning and testing that would be necessary for sound. Audio is just as essential as the visual side of things. It would be no use to have fantastic visuals and narrative, then incoherent sound. This could certainly render the entire project useless, and call for everything to be reshot again with better quality sound, blowing time and money.
I will explore the four types of microphones outlined in the video blog, beginning with the shotgun microphone, which happens to be the most directional, this means it picks up the audio extremely well at what it is pointing at, but is significantly less sensitive to the side and the back of the microphone. This can be regarded both a positive and negative, since it means that they do not pick up surrounding sound, concentrating just on whatever it is directed at. Which makes them great for use on boom poles, that means they are most commonly used on television and movie sets. Similar to shotgun microphones, cardioid types pick up audio solely from the front nevertheless is significantly less sensitive when compared with the shotguns microphones, alternatively making them great for live vocals. And as opposed to shotgun microphones, bi-directional models pick up sound evenly from both the back and the front. And lastly, they also talk about the Lavalier microphone, this is the most portable out of the four mentioned in the video, as it clips onto the subject, so that it is well suited for interviews. They are discrete as they can be clipped onto clothing and hidden, nevertheless they still pick up dialogue very clearly. They can come either as wireless or wired, both having benefits of their very own. Wireless which means that it enables even more portability, cable free, while wired microphones mean there is no need to mess about and worry about audio channels or batteries. Other key situations to use the Lavalier microphone could be theatre and for public speaking situations.
This blog post has given a quick introduction into the different types of microphones, yet this still shows the significance of planning the audio and ensuring the correct microphone is used to complete the project. Have a look at some more blog posts!