Mic vs no mic

b_r_tregs

Member
I have been using a mic for my a few of my videos and i have found it nice to have sometimes and other times just not necessary.

I'm just curious what you guys do and why, because I might start going no microphone.
 
Audio important = MicAudio not important = No mic?

I dont mind my mic most of the time so I pretty much always use it, unless I dont need any audio at all.
 
unless its windy and the mic is interfering with the stability of your camera, there is no reason to not always have a mic attached. all those times you think you don't need the audio, well I bet you will find a use for it later and be kicking yourself when you dont have it.
 
i always use my mic but the port for it broke so i have so send my camera in to canon so they can fix it and not having a mic sucks when my mic works i always have it in
 
really depends if the audio is important, i find it hard to glidecam with the mic, especially if its windy, but the audio really does make the shot more powerful and legit IMO
 
High quality on-camera microphones are basically used to record crappy audio with nice quality.

The one major advantage that comes to mind is documentary-style rungun work, where a narrower pattern and more low-end is needed.
 
I dont usually use a mic, since it just makes my rig more heavy and the glidecam not work as well. But they are nice to have for certain things. Out of interest what mics do you guys use/like?
 
People overemphasize the benefit of on-camera external mics because mic'ing from on-camera is an inherently poor place to mic...well anything. Proper mic placement will be far more effective than using a nicer microphone. The main advantage I see to them is to narrow the pattern (e.g. if you're filming by a river but don't want the rapids to interfere with dialoge), but aside from changing the pattern and having a different EQ response, it won't have much of a positive effect. And if you're using a glidecam, it could be a complete tradeoff, at which point you have to ask yourself if its worth it.

That's not to say you should just ignore audio, since its role is incredibly important. I don't use on-camera external mics because I record sound separately and superimpose in post. Given the choice between using the built-in mic v.s. using a RODE Videomic Pro, obviously the RODE is a better option of the two; my point is simply that it isn't optimal, contrary to what many will tell you.
 
Ah got you, like booming from above pointing at a rail to reduce background noise(e.g snowcat or something?)

I don't think many people on here will be at that level.
 
It isn't difficult, nor does it require a boom. I use a little handheld condenser recorder and in my spare time I record things like people taking off, grinding, slashing, rain, etc. Then in post I have a library of sounds I can use for any particular edit. I do it for the Boys Club edits and those are as half-assed as they come.
 
Neat idea, got any samples of grinding? What do you do to make them fit? They're never going to be on the rail the exact same length, do you stretch the audio? Speed up the clip? Etc
 
I hope it doesn't seem like im stealing the answer from you @pandysloo but i have passed experience with this if the audio for a clip isn't good, what i would do is find the audio that fits the best and slow it up or speed it up to mach the rail. However if you change the speed to much it sounds shitty.
 
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