AlisonGrayson

Yep, that placement is working pretty well for my boys too. Plus I'm not given enough access or time to do a helmet mic, even if they did keep it on. I've also seen several helmets roll off during a game, but I've yet to see pads roll off...

Thanks, all! Fortunately production is understanding that yes, the mics are expendables, and since they're micing players during games, they will indeed expend quicker than usual. But I have a feeling that if we keep losing mics at our current rate, that situation might change... I'm surprised to hear that the sanken cos-11s held up so well in a similar situation, as I've always considered them a pretty delicate mic. The show's primary mixer uses DPAs on the coaches and loves em, so it's nice to hear more people vouching for the brand and their prices. I've also been unrealistically biased against Sennheiser mics because of how horrendous the me2s sound, but perhaps I should get over that and give their higher end models a listen.... Off to do some more sound homework!

Hey all! I've been working on an Arena football reality show, and we've been putting some of my wirelesses on players during the game. The SMQVs are pretty snug in padding and gaff taped to hell, so they're holding up like champs, but as you can imagine, my lav mics are getting destroyed. The mic head is pretty tucked away inside of padding, but they're still taking on a decent brunt of impact. I've been using my B6s because they're fairly sweat proof, but between the impact and the yelling (my SMQVs' sensitivities are set to 1.5 during the games and the players still occasionally peak in unit), the diaphragms are taking a beating. I was thinking of picking up some Oscar Sound tech TL-40s because of their price point, but I was wondering if anyone could suggest some rugged mics that might hold up better in this situation. I've been shying away from my tram mics in this situation because my experience with them is that they tend to sweat out pretty quickly. Thanks!

uncropped of my profile/getting fidgety during a stupid long doc shot. Working on a month long kayaking documentary off the grid on the Green and Colorado rivers is an excellent crash course in waterproofing. No gear was harmed in the filming of this production. If anyone needs wild noise of rapids, let me know.

Agreed with all that was said, but adding- in your strengthening workouts, don't ignore your legs. There's a lot of stabilizing that goes on down there, and if your foundation is shaky, it doesn't matter how strong your shoulders or core are. ...plus you really don't want to be all disproportionate and pencil legged. And yes to yoga. I'm bad about only doing it on long stretches of shooting, but jeeze if it doesn't keep you in one piece. I boom with an ENG bag, so perhaps the body strain is a bit different, but this http://www.myyogaonline.com/poses/twists/revolved-lunge-pose-parivrtta-anjaneyasana and variations of it are really helpful for opening up your chest/shoulders while stretching your lower back.

Most renter's insurance will only cover hobby items, and once you make a living off of it they consider it professional...Good luck claiming that tens of thous of sound gear is just a hobby. Sometimes I'm concerned that people see me regularly lugging large pelicans in and out of my car at all hours, but I have a gear closet with a lock, a locked front door, and live with three pitbulls and two MMA coaches. I figure if anyone manages to break it and steal it without incurring serious injury, kudos to them (and of course it's all insured).

Truth, lol. I'm around town for a few more days and again in the latter half of the month. Text or PM me and we'll figure it out! And I'm getting better at saying no, slowly, very slowly, though honestly my "no's" are still vastly related to rates. I'm totally down for an audio/farming/hippie commune growing avocados. Who's in? I have a decent amount of LA and SF connections from working so frequently with out of town crews...now if only I could make enough money to summer in Portland and winter in Cali! Thanks for the advice everyone, you definitely gave me some points to chew over.

Thanks for the input! Ya, when I was thinking about playing local I did wonder if it was a faux pas, though a surprising amount of non-audio industry colleagues I talked to in Portland did it on the regular, but Portland doesn't have a ton of competition for good, non-union sound people. We're lucky that there's enough work to go around and enough niches, and the cost of living vs. value of life Portland offers is super awesome. But, gray winters, and 5 year itch, though damned if freelancing makes moving terrifying. And agreed, generally speaking the jobs I like the most and the jobs that work me hardest are the lower paying ones, but I'm in a spot where I value the experience and the challenge more than the pay. I'm also at a spot when I realize there will be an expiration date to that mentality, so I figure I should rock it out when I can physically and financially afford to.

Hey all, I'm at a split road in my career path and having no real audio mentor to turn to, I'm hoping all you beautiful veterans could give me some advice. I'm a Portland OR based non-union ENG mixer, specializing in documentary and reality style production. I manage to keep myself pretty busy in Portland's job market and I've built myself up a decent gear package, network, and a ton of experience. Currently I work in Portland approx. 50% of the time, and the other 50% is travel gigs with production companies who like working with me and don't want the hassle of hiring local. Less than 20% of my travel work is international, and the rest is domestic. Most of my work is for independent productions, though I do work as a dayplayer for larger production companies who are producing Portland episodes, and I've got some pretty decent names and networks on my resume/client list. I've been in production for seven years, but only the past 3-4 years have been focused on audio, so yes, I realize I'm pretty fresh in all this and I have plenty of room to grow, both experience wise and gear wise. Ideally I'd like to stay in the documentary/reality genera (I'm one of those sickos that likes lugging their gear up mountains, down rivers, and having to filter tap water from seedy 3rd world hotels), but I'd like to up my game and do more work for productions on larger networks like Nat Geo, Discovery/Travel and their children networks, etc, and those jobs rarely pass through my market. I just got off of a Hulu Series, and I'd really like to continue with episodic work as well. I figure my options are to: 1. Follow these networks via StaffMeUp and other sites and apply to productions as a local in markets where I'm not a local and just swallow the expense, or 2. Relocate myself to a larger market, such as LA, where the productions I'd like to work for are based. Since none of the LA production companies I'd like to work with actually produce in LA, I'm really not sure if this option would help me connect to the right people and get on the production's I'm looking for, or if those productions would just hire someone local to the production city anyway. So, sorry this is a roundabout question, but any input or experiences would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks, all! I'm definitely leaning towards the Tascam, but I'll give the Sony a look. Since I'm getting it primarily as an alternate for guerrilla projects, the clients that I'd use it for are willing to sacrifice a little higher end quality for a non-conspicuous production profile. Different tools and compromises for different jobs

Hey lovelies, sorry I've been lurking lately and less than vocal, buuuut What are y'all thoughts on the zoom h6? I'm thinking about it as a backup/second recording unit, primarily for those situations where I need to have a lower profile than my standard bag can provide, or where I'm expected to both record from a board feed and need to be a roaming unit at the same time. I do a lot of documentary run and gun, so these situations pop up enough that I'm willing to spend a couple hundred on making my life easier. Initially I was leaning towards the Tascam dr-100mkll, but the 4 xlr inputs on the h6 are a little tempting (though I'm pretty sure I'd just use my beloved nomad for anything over 3). I realize the zoom is well into the "prosumer" genera regarding quality of recordings and I've read a few reviews regarding preamps and noise and whatnot, but my main concerns for what I need from it are physical. The xlrs don't lock, and the control nobs don't lock either and don't have any sort of a protective covering- I'm expecting to occasionally have it in a non-audio bag and I'm concerned about controls getting tousled around. The tascam locks and most of the controls are internal, so I'm imagining it can take more of a thrashing. Has anyone used the zoom6 or have any input?

Unfortunately with some overdue invoices and the jolly season, I'm a little strapped myself, but thanks for the heads up!

Thanks Glenn. I'm sure you'll be hearing from me in the future for an upgrade. I'm only in the first few years of my career, and I love that the Nomad is something that can grow with me- makes it a great investment!

Thanks guys! I now have my outbus assigned 1 to Out1, 2 to Out2, etc, and the Record Routings are set to the respected Outs, and the faders are acting how I expect them to. I'm not sure how much I'm digging the Lite set up- I'll have to re configure my set ups on jobs where I'm sending a 2 channel mixdowns to cameras and recording in unit, and the Nomad4 did this pretty effortlessly. I guess it's more incentive to save up and upgrade to 10.

Hey all, I recently had to send my Nomad back to factory for phantom issues and the screen upgrade and since it's returned, I've been having issues with the fader nobs. They're only affecting the output levels. I often work in situations where I'm recording only in unit and not sending any audio out, so having full control on the inputs/card records is particularly important to me. I had just gotten an upgrade code so they changed it from a 4 to a Light at the factory (not sure if that may be relevant). It came back with firmware that kept freezing on me, so I downgraded it to 4.22, factory reset, and still had issues- I reverted to 3.13 (which I never had any issues with), and then tried 4.42, all with factory resets and all with the same issue. I can still adjust individual track gain in the setting menus, but faders are only affecting output levels. My fader assigns are also the way I've always had them, with fader 1 assigned with A to track 1, etc. I have no idea if there's a setting if I'm overlooking, or if something wonky may have happened at the shop. Zaxcom is still closed for an extended holiday, so I'm scrambling to get this figured out before a job on Sunday. I've posted to the Zaxcom forums as well, but any input would be appreciated! -Alison

I went to a large school with a very small, trimester based video program, and they had us on such a tight track that there wasn't much room to stray. Fortunately, like all things in this field, most of what I've learned has come through experience. Unfortunately the biggest thing I've learned through my expereince is that I have a very strong disdain for business :-P

So it looks like I will be onboard for the shoot! I talked with the director, and it seems like there will be a minimal amount of audio actually recorded on the water--most will be recorded at camp and in the towns we're stopping by. We'll have a bit of ambient water noise and occasional miking of a kayaker, so I'm going to go the SeaLine dry bag/Pelican route, invest in an aquapac, condoms/heavy gauge bags to protect my boom's xlr inputs, and bring a bag of rice juuuust in case.

Ditto. It boggles my mind that in getting my BS in Video Production, while I had to take 2 physic courses, a plethora of art history, color theory, drawing, design, 3d design, etc, never in my academic career was I required to or offered the chance to take any business courses. If I could do it all over, I'd have minored in it.

I go with "Production Maven" rather than jack of all trades. Less room for the sentence to be finished :-P. I started out thinking I'd be a camera operator/utility, and when I moved to Oregon I realized that I was working with a lot of really talented documentary operators as utility, which generally translated into primarily running audio. As I kept going with my career, it seemed like a better idea to focus on audio and work with them, rather than trying to pit my (then) 2 years of post college experience with their 20+. Its also nice being able to buy a recorder that I'll use for decades if treated well, rather than the few years (if you're lucky) of life that comes with a camera purchase. The more I did doc audio the more I realized I loved the challenge of it, and the more I've focused my jobs and my purchases on it. Now only if I wanted to work in a genera of film that paid the bills.... I still camera operate for some of the production companie's I've been working with since I got to Oregon, but I don't have a current reel and I don't often take on jobs for new clients. I also do one man news style sort docu programming for a government channel, and I get my fair fill of camera though them. I don't edit for clients (other than the government gig), but I've also done my fair share of editing and recently started teaching intro courses. Aaaand I also accidentally started producing docus, but that's another thread. I market myself as audio first, utility second, and then if they're paying and I'm available, sure, I can do it. I use my varried experience as an advertising point. I work on a lot of small crew stuff, 2-5 people average, and the more jobs I know how to do, the more useful I can be. I really think that knowing how to think like a camera man is helpful as hell when recording/booming with them on an unscripted piece. That said, I just my 5 year anniversity of graduating and entering the market, moved cross country and had to rebuild, I'm in a small market, and I'm not working massive union jobs. If I want to pay the bills, buy new awesome audio gear, and work on the indie docu stuff I love working on, it makes sense for me to play the field.

Spare time, I'm a documentary film maker, but lately the business side of that has been more of my full time job than audio work. For a no budget, first doc, it's doing pretty well in the beer community. http://theloveofbeermovie.com is my baby. This sample was made a few years back with no crew sans myself and is pretty run and gun, so the audio isn't a great representaiton of my current skill set. That said, I figure its not bad for a no budget and it's given opportunities to travel, meet awesome people, and drink a ton of beer. And taught me all the things to do differently for my next one. Like get a budget and hire a crew so you can focus on audio more (apparently I don't know how to embed on here, so just click if youre interested). I've been working on a new trailer for the digital release, and it will be up as soon as the composer scores it. I also still occasionally camera operate (I started my career as a camera op and then found myself on the audio side), work for a government channel as a producer, and volunteer at a local documentary NonProfit teaching editing and doc making to adults and kids. And I wonder why I have issues trying to market myself correctly. Other than that, hiking, kickboxing, beer, boyfriend. Not enough of the first two lately.

And they sound like shite. I've had decent luck with Countryman EMWs with gaff tape/moleskin coozies for sports/sweaty shoots in the past, and talent will be having the extra protection of a wetsuit. I've been in production for a while now but only focusing on sound for about two, so my kit is very much a still evolving creature. I'm not sure if I'll be on board for this particular shoot, but I'll definately be doing simiarl gigs in the future (hopefully after I purchase my lectros) and using the crap out of everyone's advice. Cheers!

Thanks--cooler is a great idea, and way cheaper than an extra pellican case (I'd rather have things be less than accessable than get wet). The production will be insuring everything, but of course that doesn't do much if something gets ruined mid-shoot. It's not a white water situation, but that's not to say that they won't happen. As per wireless, I'm still using old school Sennheiser G2/3 series. Is there a way to enhance their antennas to maintain RF signal inside the cooler? And oOo on the lithium warning--I forgot about that chemistry.

Hey all! There seems to be a lot of info on the site about how to waterproof wireless systems, but I was hoping someone would have advice on how to waterproof your whole darn bag. I'm looking at the costs involved before accepting a (very poorly paying but awesome sounding) month long documentary gig taking place on a river. The crew will be in a raft following some kayakers for 85% of the production. The bag *should* never be fully submerged, but given the situation, I want to be prepared for the potential, and it's a gaurantee that it will get plenty of splashing. I haven't been able to find a dry bag made for this purpose, so a DIY alternative would be great. We'll have dry time to set up in the mornings and at night, but I'll need something that has easy access to operate my Nomad through, and a solution that will accomidate for harness connections, headphone cable, and the boom's XLR (and a way to seal the xlr input on the boom itself). There's a solution to waterproofing wirelesses at the end of this thread: and it sounds like it could work on a larger scale for a bag. Thoughts? Easier solutions?

Thanks!!

Awesome, thank you! I've only used np-1 styles before under very different, power hungry circumstances, so I was feeling a little green on my lithium knowledge. (back in film school they made us take a physics 101 and 102 class with some sort of fake design/art twist on it. I think I retained a better understanding of physics from reading A Wrinkle in Time as a child than from those class)