Digital Audio - Week 2
- Sara Francis
- Mar 21, 2018
- 3 min read
The second week of DA was focused on beginning to develop and create our final mix.
1. Production
For this assignment, we were to go over our lists of tasks we needed to do and also take inventory of the equipment we could use for the projects.
2. Recording Basics
This was another experimental/reflection assignment where I chose two techniques I learned previously and attempt to apply it to my project.
For this assignment, I experimented on the DIA portion of my project. I scratch recorded VO 1 and VO 2.
1) Experiment 1: Pre-Performance Preparation
The first experiment I tried was mostly for preparation. Following the tips from “Top 10 Best Voice Over Tips” by Videomaker, I made sure to drink a lot of water before recording to keep my voice smooth (2010). I warmed up my voice by saying all those funny names that were included at the bottom of the article. I also listened to voice over recordings with a similar feel to what I wanted my DIA to sound like. Finally, I read over the script a few times to figure out how I wanted my voice to sound, what the timing should be like, would it all fit, etc… Once I was ready, I went to the microphone and recorded a few times over. Each time, I would play back and listen to my different speech patterns, pitch, etc. and then determine which way of speaking was most fitting for the video.
2) Experiment 2: Sound Dampening
The second experiment I tried was sound dampening like we learned in the first YouTube video “How to Record Voice Overs” with Videomaker. In an attempt to make my own sound booth, I hung blankets on the walls surrounding me; enclosing me in my own cushy fort. I seated myself in the center with my microphone and laptop. Then, I recorded VO 1 and 2 for my DIA. However, I was unable to hang a blanket on the wall behind my computer, so I wonder if that had affected my scratch recordings. After recording, I carefully listened to the playback. I tried to identify the difference with the blankets and without. The blankets were so thin, I wondered if they actually made a difference or if thicker blankets would’ve improved the sound. After trying a few different things, I finally settled on one setup to use when it was time to record.
3) What I Learned
From this activity, I learned that there is a lot more preparation work that goes into recording voice overs rather than just plugging in a microphone and diving right in. You have to make sure your environment is suitable for recording and that means ensuring it is quiet, well lit, and sound proof. You also have to prepare your talent (whoever is recording the voice over). You have to make sure the talent is warmed up and their voice is prepared. Also, it helps to have a script, to be seated in a comfortable position that is positioned perfectly in front of the microphone, and so on.
4) New Skills/Learning Objective
I learned many new things from this activity and I believe I reached my learning objective. My objective was to learn how to record in Adobe Audition and what the best practices for doing so were. Thanks to this assignment, I learned just that. After watching the Lynda videos and YouTube videos and reading more about Audition, I now know how to record and edit from my RODE microphone right into Audition. It took me several tries to understand how it worked, but I was able to get it in the end. Along with recording, I also know what the tools are, how to rearrange tracks, the basics of editing, how to add markers, and so on.
References
Videomaker. (August 2010). Top 10 Best Voice Over Tips. Retrieved from https://www.videomaker.com/article/c4/14617-top-10-best-voice-over-tips
3. Rough Mix
By the end of week three, I had my first mix of my audio segment: the rough mix. I was instructed to compress the audio files and the PDF documents into one ZIP file.
Summary
During this process, I was worried that I wouldn’t find fitting FX for my project. The sounds I needed were rather specific. However, I was able to find exactly what I was looking for.
Another problem I had was the production form. I wasn’t sure what was supposed to be included and if I was to include all three categories. I asked the teacher about the DIA but forgot to mention the others. So, I included them anyway and categorized them as “Record New” for when I was curating them and “Edit” for when I added them to the mix.
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