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How to Get Better Sound Recording for YouTube Videos?

As Hampshire based bespoke video production experts, here at Motion Picture Video Production, we know that getting good sound recording is absolutely vital when making professional business videos.  A sure-fire way of losing your audience as soon as they press play, is by having sub-standard audio.

So, here are a few tips from Motion Picture, to help you capture your sound at the best it can be.

Equipment

To capture high quality audio, you will need to invest in decent equipment for sound recording.

Don’t worry, this needn’t be complicated. You can get the quality of sound you need just from a single microphone.

There are many excellent sound equipment options out there. From a clip microphone to attach to a person, to a shotgun mic to place above or below your presenter.

Choose what best suits your needs. Consider the requirements of your production.

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Lavalier Mic

There are some brilliant budget solutions when it comes to lavalier mics – also known as a lapel, clip or personal mics. Some connect via Bluetooth to your phone – perfect if you’re filming your videos via your smartphone.

Radio Mic Pack

If you’re after a more professional feel, we would suggest investing in an entry level radio mic pack.

This normally consists of a transmitter and receiver. You simply plug the receiver into your camera and the transmitter pack before concealing the transmitter out of shot. Feed the mic cable up so it sits not too far from the breast pocket, or where a breast pocket would be located.

Shotgun Microphones

Shotgun microphones also come highly recommended equipment for sound recording by industry professionals.

These microphones are very directional – concentrating on capturing the audio at the front of the microphone and therefore reducing any background noise.

Shotgun mics are normally attached to a boom pole. However, if you are filming at a desk, lock the boom off or clip the microphone to a lighting stand. As long as it is pointing downwards towards the mouth of the person talking, it will capture your audio as desired.

A decent shotgun mic set up will cost you around £165 to £200, but often require only a single AA battery to keep them powered, unless they use the power off your camera.

Making sure you have the correct sound equipment for your video is essential to the production process. Having high quality sound recordings to work with, will save you time and money down the line.

Video Equipment

Environment

Nothing ruins good audio like unnecessary background noise.

Before you start shooting, be aware of the noises that exist wherever you’re proposing to shoot. This includes atmospheric noises – such as air conditioning – which can be picked up by some mics.

Monitor the level of noise in your chosen location to make sure that, when you record, you are able to capture uninterrupted.

Audio Level

It is also worth mentioning that with all audio, it is absolutely critical to monitor your levels whilst recording.

If your audio levels are too high, the software will compress the audio signals. This often leave you with robotic and distorted sound recording. This is easily avoided by plugging some headphones into your audio device, to constantly monitor its levels.

A pair of good quality headphones will help massively in avoiding retakes and unusable audio.

Background Noise

Avoid filming in particularly noisy environments – such as near building sites, under the flight path to an airport or near a busy road.

If you hear a loud noise whilst your recording and monitoring the sound levels, it’s always better to retake rather than fix it in post-production. Audio can be cleaned up in the edit. But this may take hours compared to a retake, which could be a matter of minutes.

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Recording Conditions

Be aware, recording in a small room may resemble a little echo chamber – with the sound bouncing off walls.  This may produce an odd effect, and whilst you may not have a choice, there are ways to circumvent this.

When filming multiple people, consider having them share a microphone – like a news interview where the mic is passed back and forth.

If you are new to making videos, we would suggest always sticking to a single source of audio. When you feel your project requires more than that, then we suggest engaging a professional sound recordist to help you out.

Audio equipment

Looking for that expert help in your next video project? With over twenty years of professional experience in UK broadcast TV, Motion Picture Video Production has everything you need to produce high quality video for your business. Based in Hampshire, we are a boutique video production house, that offers end-to-end video production services.  Our job doesn’t end just with great looking videos, but with fantastic audio and the results you and your business want.

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