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Any journo's/filmmakers on here - interview help...

J

JasonBourne1

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 29, 2009
108
0
Hi guys,
I need some advice, Im a journalism student and I have to interview a famous footballer for a magazine I write freelance for. The problem is that I've never interviewed anyone before and Im not sure what technique to use in order to film it. Im gonna be using the Canon 550D, on a tripod next to me, with the camera facing the interviewee. I was wondering if that sounds ok or whether anyone can provide me with any tips.
I appreciate the help.
 
A couple of tips:

Shoot the interviewee on a slight angle. Straight forward or profile is boring. Give it something different.

Audio can usually make or break a good interview. At the end of the day, it really isn't about looking at the person, but what they're saying. The on-board mic on the t2i isn't very good at all, so I'd recommend an additional system. I'm a fan of the Zoom H1 when it comes to budget audio. Hide this little guy near your interviewee and then sync and mix both audio signals from the camera and the Zoom.

Just some ideas.

Good luck
Alan
 
alansmallen said:
A couple of tips:

Shoot the interviewee on a slight angle. Straight forward or profile is boring. Give it something different.

Audio can usually make or break a good interview. At the end of the day, it really isn't about looking at the person, but what they're saying. The on-board mic on the t2i isn't very good at all, so I'd recommend an additional system. I'm a fan of the Zoom H1 when it comes to budget audio. Hide this little guy near your interviewee and then sync and mix both audio signals from the camera and the Zoom.

Just some ideas.

Good luck
Alan
Click to expand...

Id also recommend, if possible, trying just a few seconds of sample audio to check it is acceptable when I interview someone, I try and do a 3 second clip of audio of saying hello and checking it on a machine - if necessary just sit in the position of your guest and speak so you can make sure its ok before they arrive - generally I use my laptop thats hidden away in a bag afterward real quick to check the level - that way you can be sure you will get decent audio :)
 
I agree with all those and also add one more. The aperture all the way open on the T2i can be fairly shallow (Depending on the lens) Make SURE your subject is in focus. This seems very obvious but it can actually be a large problem, and it will probably not show up on the screen. If your using something like the 50 1.8 all the way open then your subject either needs to be really still or you should actually close your aperture. I shot something and it looked perfectly in focus on the t2i but the guy scooted forward a bit and the whole thing was off. It wasn't the end of the world but it really really bugged me and others noticed it (This was just a little thing for my church). Just something to be aware of.
 
Thanks for your help guys. I was planning on using a separate dictaphone or my iphone 4 to record the sound, but im worried about syncing issues when editing. Is there a technique to mix both audio tracks together?
 
JasonBourne1 said:
Thanks for your help guys. I was planning on using a separate dictaphone or my iphone 4 to record the sound, but im worried about syncing issues when editing. Is there a technique to mix both audio tracks together?
Click to expand...

You can either have the subject clap and use that as a point of reference on both clips. Or what I do is use a program called pluraleyes which does it all automatically without any clap or anything.
 
FroColin said:
I shot something and it looked perfectly in focus on the t2i but the guy scooted forward a bit and the whole thing was off. It wasn't the end of the world but it really really bugged me and others noticed it (This was just a little thing for my church). Just something to be aware of.
Click to expand...
I feel your pain.

CAN - YOU - JUST - STAY - STILL! FORAMINUTE! SIT!

On that point, movement can muck up audio, too. I use lapel mics which minimises the problem to some extent, but turning heads or rustling clothes can result in audio volume changes or (worse) noise.
 
get a lav. I just did 6 interviews today and have to use a stick mic to show the mic flag...i much rather have used a lav. Simple and easy.

edit - see if you can get a friend to monitor audio through headphones...
 
Last edited:
once again, thanks for your help guys - much appreciated. Im contemplating on hiring a P2 camera from Uni and get one of the film students to come with me to film it. Might be easier and less hassle. Really dont want to ***** this up.
 
JasonBourne1 said:
once again, thanks for your help guys - much appreciated. Im contemplating on hiring a P2 camera from Uni and get one of the film students to come with me to film it. Might be easier and less hassle. Really dont want to ***** this up.
Click to expand...

The only hesitation I would have with this is that the look of the 550D and the Panasonics can often look very different. I've never tried cutting back and forth between them
 
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