Hi, I'm new looking for some audio advice:) TY

O

oxymoron

Hi guys,
I am currently taking on on an amateur project to capture video and audio in a loud bar / nightclub environment.
More specifically to capture conversations between 2 people in this noisy environment.

I will be filming with the Canon Powershot s100
And have been contemplating a Zoom H1 and rode lavalier mic for the audio capturing and am on somewhat of a budget. The audio quality doesn't need to be amazing, just as long as I can hear the conversation between 2 people with one mic.

Any suggestions or guidance on this would be greatly appreciated.
Having a large audio setup is not an option as it must be able to not be visible as to ensure a genuine reaction.

Thanks for any input guys, I appreciate it.

Adam
 
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If you can get a recorder that will take 2 inputs, then you can have 2 lavs... and be better for that environment... unless you're floating the mic back and forth between them, you need to overwhelm the background noise by placing the mic REALLY CLOSE to the talent's mouth holes (6-8" -- no more than a foot).
 
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Not in real time... is this scripted? If so, shoot one side, then move the mic and shoot the other side.

Otherwise, just plug in 2 mics into a recorder (or 2) and record the sides separately.
 
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No its not scripted.
Basically what it is recording guys going up and opening conversations with women in a bar setting.
The guy will have a mic but the girl will not.
And yes consent and everything like that for filming and recording audio will be given etc.
 
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I only have the option of putting the mic on one subject.
Just the guy.
He basically will be walking up to a woman in the club and opening a conversation with her.
I am sure we will be able to record him, But I would love to be able to record the woman's reaction too.

Thanks again

Adam
 
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No bud, I'm afraid it won't work.
Basically she is not aware that the conversation is being recorded and it must remain that way.
The goal is to record a genuine reaction from a guy approaching a girl at a bar from the guy's perspective.
The hope is to also be able to capture her response. Please keep in mind that the quality doesn't have to be anything special. Just as long as it can be heard.

So basically it has to be a small hidden microphone setup.
 
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It's almost guaranteed you won't get any usable dialogue from the woman unless she has her own lav. Depending on exactly how loud the club/bar is, there is a fair chance you won't get any usable dialogue even from a lav. So you should have a back up plan (hand held mic, very close to the mouth), unless you can make your scene work with no dialogue at all.

G
 
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I may have to switch ideas and subtitle it. Or dub it.

Is there any mics that you would recommend that have features that may help my cause?
Not all situations will be like this as we will be trying to capture footage in restaurants and out on the street as well.

The club setting will be the most difficult due to the noise level. I was just trying to figure out a way to make it work:(
 
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oxymoron said:
Is there any mics that you would recommend that have features that may help my cause?
Click to expand...

Shotguns and lavs have the best features available but there are no mics I know of that have a brain and unfortunately that is what you would need. The brain pattern matches and partially masks out sound it's not concentrating on, artificially lowering the noise floor. Mics cannot do this.

oxymoron said:
Yeah I will have to it seems.
Do you think I will be able to capture the girls voice with a lav in a quieter environment?
Click to expand...

Only if she has her own lav and it's really quite quiet.

oxymoron said:
Not all situations will be like this as we will be trying to capture footage in restaurants and out on the street as well.
Click to expand...

Even restaurants and out on the street can be extremely problematic, why do you think you see commentators and news-gatherers using hand held mics close to the mouth and not using lavs?

Sounds like your ideas may be running ahead of what is technically possible. You should run a few tests before you commit to an idea which may well be unworkable.

G
 
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Build a parabolic reflector with a shotgun pointed into it and then find a way to shield the back of the mic from sound so it only gathers from where you point it?... works in noisy stadiums for stealing football information from the opposing team... it's a bit obvious though and the subject may notice the camera and parabolic reflector pointed at her.
 
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The street is not as noisy as the environment you're looking for... I'm sure they're using a lav mic for him under the shirt hidden somewhere... her voice is much quieter than hers, so if the background was much louder, you wouldn't be able to hear it over the background noise, as it is, it's not much louder than the background... the difference is that her voice is a higher frequency than most of the background, so you can differentiate it better... in a bar, it'll be mostly voices (same frequency ranges) and harder to separate.
 
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