booming director

[Tim M]

Two questions for y'all.

When doing a shoot where u can't always see the frame/run gun

Who is responsible for boom shadow/boom in frame...

1) sound guy/boom op only

2) camera op only

3) both equally

4) more sound guy than camera op

5) more camera guy than sound guy

6) this is a loaded question especially for a group of sound guys aka I'm an idiot

Second question: why do directors complain when you use boom over lavs, I could use only lavs all day and never hear a complaint...if that was the case would u risk going just lavs from then on out?

[studiomprd]

" Who is responsible for boom shadow/boom in frame.. "

Rich is correct: it depends, but I don't approach it as placing blame (aka responsibility)...

That goes back to "what causes shadows", and it is obviously the light! but I digress...

As RVD said, getting the frame properly clear is a joint operation. A good boom operator is an important, key player in that operation, but DP's Ops, and directors (if only by their choices in shooting styles for the projects) are also involved.

Remember, the entire team is making the movie!

[RPSharman]

While lavs might give dialog more presence, which a director might creatively want, lavs are often riddled with problems and added post work, like clothing noise, RF hits, reverse perspective, remixing, EQ and blending based on placement and layers of clothing. A properly placed boom microphone can give the desired effect in most situations, given a collaborative effort. A director who only wants lavs is clearly inexperienced and might appreciate your professional input, offered delicately. Or not.

In terms of shadows and such, it depends :-)

Given a fixed situation (actor blocking and operating choices and focal length, all of which stay the same), a boom operator is responsible for knowing where he should be. But if operators change their minds, or if it's a more fluid situation, then it becomes a combined effort to keep equipment out of the frame, be it a microphone shadow, a microphone, or any other piece of filming equipment in use.

Robert

[Rich Reilly]

I may be wrong, but my impression is that the OP is talking about a small crew bag n boom, maybe even ENG style run & gun as opposed to a typical movie set. Shadows seem clearly sound's domain..frame, to borrow a term, "depends". If it's doco and you don't have ability to see a monitor or even know if cam is zoomed to MS or CU, seems like some kind of communication from cam is needed if boom is in: thumbing up/down (down to indicate CU) or some kind of head gesture or expression. i.e. a signal that can be seen at a glance while booming.

[RPSharman]

I guess when I think of "directors" I'm still stuck in the narrative sense of directing actors. Quite clearly there are other types of directors, which I didn't really consider in my response.

Perhaps the OP can clarify if this is narrative or un-scripted.

Thanks,

Robert

[Den Nic]

In a run and gun ENG style shoot I believe it is both the Camera Op and The Boom Op's responsibility to make sure that the frame is clear of the boom. A boom op can be doing a great job, but an unanticipated and un communicated move, zoom, pan, etc can leave a boom with egg on their face, so they have to work together!

[studiomprd]

" both the Camera Op and The Boom Op's responsibility "

sometimes a good, experienced operator will just zoom in a touch more to eliminate the mic... yes, it really happens, as long as the boomer also knows what s/he's doing...

[John Blankenship]

In my view, it's definitely a team effort.

It starts with the boom op knowing their job. Keeping the talent "on mic," watching for shadows, or watching to see if an anticipated move might cause shadows, being aware of reflections (is that a boom I see in the curved car window?), anticipating moves, and being ready for the "dance" are all required of a good boom op. No one person can see everything (reflections, for instance, may not be obvious from the boom op's position). The sound mixer should also be watching from their perspective -- do they see something that needs to be communicated to the boom op? Those crowded around a larger monitor may see reflections that are not obvious in the sound mixer's small monitor. Ultimately, the camera team is responsible for what is photographed, so they have the last word.

So, my short answer is: it's a team effort that starts with the boom op, followed by the sound mixer, then extends to the entire team.

[John Blankenship]

The whole lav thing is an entirely different animal. I had a DP/Director hire me for a corporate-type gig once and he insisted that it would be lavs only. He went further to tell me I should stay "light" so probably shouldn't even bring a boom.

As I was leaving for the gig, I looked back and said, "Nah, I know better," and grabbed the boom for Justin (Justin Case).

On set, the DP/Director's client shows up and almost immediately says, "I hope you can boom this. I much prefer the sound of a boom over lavs."

We ended up in a fairly wide shot, so I laved both people and ran boom on another channel. If the boom had sounded great I would have opted for just that, but this way, they had a choice, and if needed, they could use the lavs for the tighter sound and bring in just a little boom to liven it up a bit, if necessary.

Okay, that doesn't answer the original poster's question. I think the answer is, there is no simple answer. Filmmaking is a team sport and you come equipped to be the best contributor to that team that you can be.

[John Coffey]

I came from the mainstream of tv and movies from the 70s-90's, when wires were undependable and we always boomed a scene first. After the boom operator had exhausted all clear remedies to boom shadows, to me it was then up to the DP to fix it. Period. In the end, the boom op should be able to put a mic out of frame and help where possible after that, but when push came to shove (and it sometimes did), it's the blame rests with the person turning the lights on.

That's where the wars would sometimes take place, but only with incompetent DPs. The good ones didn't make unfixable shadows. Funny how the good ones never had a problem with me.

Unfortunately, many DPs work because most producers would not know what good lighting is and some DPs with the best personalities get hired over the true artists with a bad personality.

On one series I boomed called Hotel, the DP and gaffer were complete jokes. On many scenes, they began lighting with a 10k over the top of camera and it was downhill after that. I still remember the way I felt every time I'd hear the motor noise of that light going up. Every day was a war with those poor excuses for film artists.

[stevegrider]

+1, John.

I remember working with a very talented DP. When all was set, I put my boom in place and I saw a shadow on the wall behind the talent. When I asked him if that shadow would be in his frame, he said "Oops! My fault!", and had a flag set to eliminate the shadow.

The really talented ones can make a fix seem easy and recognize that filmmaking is a collaborative effort.

[jozzafunk]

+1

[jozzafunk]

The whole lav thing is an entirely different animal. I had a DP/Director hire me for a corporate-type gig once and he insisted that it would be lavs only. He went further to tell me I should stay "light" so probably shouldn't even bring a boom.

As I was leaving for the gig, I looked back and said, "Nah, I know better," and grabbed the boom for Justin (Justin Case).

On set, the DP/Director's client shows up and almost immediately says, "I hope you can boom this. I much prefer the sound of a boom over lavs."

We ended up in a fairly wide shot, so I laved both people and ran boom on another channel. If the boom had sounded great I would have opted for just that, but this way, they had a choice, and if needed, they could use the lavs for the tighter sound and bring in just a little boom to liven it up a bit, if necessary.

Okay, that doesn't answer the original poster's question. I think the answer is, there is no simple answer. Filmmaking is a team sport and you come equipped to be the best contributor to that team that you can be.

+1

[Victor The Mixer]

It's everyone's job not fault to keep boom shadows out the frame. On smaller productions, I as a boom op, speak directly w/ the operator and find the frame & check for shadows. On a feature the communication is unspoken and we work it out. On bigger shows my mixer has a monitor and guides me as he checks for shadows.

So my answer is on smaller crews it's all our responsibility and on bigger shows it's strictly the sound departments responsibility.