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audio Having trouble removing unwanted sounds from audio

Hi there!

I'm pretty new to this so please excuse what may be an amateur question.
I'm using Davinci Resolve 16 (free version), in case it's relevant for suggesting a potential solution.

I'm editing a wedding video (shot as a favour for a friend - not paid!), and have got clips of audio from the ceremony playing throughout.

So far I've worked out how to do audio ducking, so that the music fades nicely when there is voice audio.
I've also added noise removal to the voice tracks, targeting hiss and set to automatically detect speech.

However, there are a couple of scrapes and blips that are really distracting, that unfortunately happen during speaking.


The noises I'm talking about happen at 0:21 (swoosh sound) and 0:25 (swoosh followed by click sound).

Is there any way I can minimise or remove these?
What could I do in the future to minimise the effect of these whilst shooting?

Thanks in advance!
 
While we're waiting for the real sound guys to turn up, I'd suggest you separate out the original audio and post that instead. The more you process and re-process something, the harder it is to understand (and recommend a fix) for this kind of artefact. It's quite hard to hear the "problem" part because of the added music.

What could I do in the future to minimise the effect of these whilst shooting?
Bearing in mind that you've reprocessed the audio, but based on the dialogue throughout the recording, I'd say you used an on-camera mic, or a single stand-alone sound recorder left on a table somewhere? Neither of these are good techniques for recording intimate dialogue, as you will inevitably pick up every other sound in the room and the mic will "hear" sounds close to the camera more clearly than your ears (see this recent comment on the topic). That "swoosh" at 0:21 sounds like someone turning a page, and maybe 0:25 is the same person turning it back again!

In your intro, you say that you're moving from (still) photography. That will be a handicap, as you'll have trained yourself to look for good camera angles and (probably!) learnt how to use long/telephoto lenses and wide apertures to pick your subject out from the visual noise. As a rule of thumb, if you use an on-camera mic in such situations, the better your picture is, the worse your audio will be.
 
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Sounds like you didn’t have much audio support at all, correct? On-camera mic and not much else?

Despite the heavy noise removal processing, the two sounds you point to sound like movement within the room. When you have only an on-camera mic, you record everything in the room and not just the dialog. That stuff cannot be removed with any noise removal plug-in. To avoid that in the future, hire a proper sound mixer who has the right gear and knows how to use it. At the very least, learn how to use wireless mics properly and pack a couple of systems with your camera.

Also, noise removal processing is very much a “less is more” process. Shaving off just a tiny bit of noise in a single pass, and making multiple passes, allows you to remove more noise without the result sounding like a bad Internet download. Trying to remove all the noise in a single pass with heavy processing gets just that result, which is what you have here.
 
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Hey Celtic Rambler & AcousticAI - thanks so much for your replies.
You're both spot on with your comments.
It's audio from a zoom mic attached to my camera, which was picking up the noise from the entire room.
I wonder if it's common to give the bride & groom lavalier mics? I definitely need to spend some time properly learning about sound.
With this footage, I'll try your suggestion of making multiple passes of smaller amounts of noise reduction.
I really appreciate your time, thanks again!
 
It's audio from a zoom mic attached to my camera, which was picking up the noise from the entire room.

So there’s really nothing you can do to remove the sounds recorded from human movement over the dialog. It’s there to stay.

I wonder if it's common to give the bride & groom lavalier mics? I definitely need to spend some time properly learning about sound.

My standard suggestion for covering the wedding is to put a lav on the groom and on the minister. The groom’s mic will be able to capture enough of the bride as they exchange vows since they’re facing each other. It’s a lot less invasive to mic the groom as the bridal gown requires some Hollywood-level sound team support and coordination with the bridal party. I guarantee you aren’t going to have that.

Aside from bride, groom, and minister, you also have to think about anything else that’s happening during the ceremony and how you get a mic close to that source. Is anyone reading? Are there musicians and/or singers? It can become a very large task. That’s why it’s always a better bet to retain a professional sound mixer/recordist.

Sound is literally half the experience. Why people spend thousands on camera and lenses and then spend nothing on sound support - or try to find the cheapest ($300) sound kit they can - is beyond me.
 
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So there’s really nothing you can do to remove the sounds recorded from human movement over the dialog. It’s there to stay.



My standard suggestion for covering the wedding is to put a lav on the groom and on the minister. The groom’s mic will be able to capture enough of the bride as they exchange vows since they’re facing each other. It’s a lot less invasive to mic the groom as the bridal gown requires some Hollywood-level sound team support and coordination with the bridal party. I guarantee you aren’t going to have that.

Aside from bride, groom, and minister, you also have to think about anything else that’s happening during the ceremony and how you get a mic close to that source. Is anyone reading? Are there musicians and/or singers? It can become a very large task. That’s why it’s always a better bet to retain a professional sound mixer/recordist.

Sound is literally half the experience. Why people spend thousands on camera and lenses and then spend nothing on sound support - or try to find the cheapest ($300) sound kit they can - is beyond me.

Thanks so much for the advice, really appreciate it! Completely agree about sound being so important. Looking forward to learning more about it, and that's a good shout about hiring a proper sound guy.
 
AcousticAl has hit all of the important points, so I'll just reinforce the lessons.

Yes, the "swish' sounds are movement of some kind, and are there to stay.

And Al is right, less is more when doing noise reduction. It is not unusual for professionals such as Al and myself to use multiple NR plugins on a single track. Personally, I use a broadband first for hums and rumbles, then another to go after the hiss (if any), then work on gently reducing everything else that is problematical with a few other plugs. This avoids thinning out the voices and getting that "watery" sound.

Wiring the priest/minister/pastor/rabbi with a lav and transmitter is quite standard, and these folks are used to it. Wiring up the bridal party can sometimes be a problem. One "trick" that I know is used quite often are plant mics. One mic is placed where the groom is standing, but is pointed at the bride, a second placed where the bride is standing and is pointed at the groom; this is because they face each other when exchanging their vows, the most important part of the ceremony. One guy I know hides them in or near floral arrangements so they are unobtrusive. It also reduces the hollow, echoey sound of distant camera mics. Between the lav on the officiant and the two plant mics you're very well covered. He also uses a plant mic on the head table during the reception to capture the speeches.

As far as the mix goes the music is just a bit too loud when there are voices, at least for my taste.

Putting on my music supervisors hat, I would go with some happier music for the post-wedding taking pictures section, and some party music for the reception, and then back to your original music to close out.

I understand that this was a freebee on your part, so not bad all things considered. However, if you decide to go into this on a semi-regular basis you need to pay serious attention to the sound issues. One videographer I know, early in his career, did one wedding for next to nothing, giving the money to a qualified sound team. He then edited the video together using the camera mic, and then again with the audio from the sound team, using the two edits as an A/B comparison... "For an extra $XXX it can sound like this." They almost always fork over the additional money.

Good Luck!!!
 
AcousticAl has hit all of the important points, so I'll just reinforce the lessons.

Yes, the "swish' sounds are movement of some kind, and are there to stay.

And Al is right, less is more when doing noise reduction. It is not unusual for professionals such as Al and myself to use multiple NR plugins on a single track. Personally, I use a broadband first for hums and rumbles, then another to go after the hiss (if any), then work on gently reducing everything else that is problematical with a few other plugs. This avoids thinning out the voices and getting that "watery" sound.

Wiring the priest/minister/pastor/rabbi with a lav and transmitter is quite standard, and these folks are used to it. Wiring up the bridal party can sometimes be a problem. One "trick" that I know is used quite often are plant mics. One mic is placed where the groom is standing, but is pointed at the bride, a second placed where the bride is standing and is pointed at the groom; this is because they face each other when exchanging their vows, the most important part of the ceremony. One guy I know hides them in or near floral arrangements so they are unobtrusive. It also reduces the hollow, echoey sound of distant camera mics. Between the lav on the officiant and the two plant mics you're very well covered. He also uses a plant mic on the head table during the reception to capture the speeches.

As far as the mix goes the music is just a bit too loud when there are voices, at least for my taste.

Putting on my music supervisors hat, I would go with some happier music for the post-wedding taking pictures section, and some party music for the reception, and then back to your original music to close out.

I understand that this was a freebee on your part, so not bad all things considered. However, if you decide to go into this on a semi-regular basis you need to pay serious attention to the sound issues. One videographer I know, early in his career, did one wedding for next to nothing, giving the money to a qualified sound team. He then edited the video together using the camera mic, and then again with the audio from the sound team, using the two edits as an A/B comparison... "For an extra $XXX it can sound like this." They almost always fork over the additional money.

Good Luck!!!

Hey Alcove Audio, thanks so much for your reply!
I really appreciate it. Will definitely take that all on board - good thinking also with the different moods: your suggestions are far more suitable for the mood the scenes are meant to be portraying! :)

Cheers,
Josef
 
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