With sound you hear it all the time and it doesn’t just
travel straight to your ears as direct sound it also radiates out and bounces
back at you from surrounding objects which is reflected sound for instance one
example is windows as an example of a object that has reflecting sound.
With sound there are different environments and areas you
can be to receive noise level for instance if you was indoors it is a more
controlled environment and generally noise free if you have the place to yourself
and don’t have surrounding sound. For outdoors there is potential for loud
noise for instance in a city where there is an airport this could be a factor
also the public and other transport creating noise.
In other locations
for sound you could use a recording studio this is a perfect environment for recording sound because you
can get rid of any surrounding noise. But having these locations can cost and
needs to be taken into account for instance for college students such as myself
who has a recording studio it’s free to me but people in the real world wanting
to record sound would have to pay a sum of money for studio hire. With outdoors
and indoors environment it is free for everyone to use unless a filming permit
is needed.
Other than noise
affecting the location environment; weather plays a part to for instance inside
with rain or a stormy day the sound might get disorted because of standing near
a window making sound reflection. With being outside you have to consider the
wind and rain because it can distort the microphones which comes into place
with meter readings. In a recording studio it is sealed off area for peoples
use so you won’t have problems of weather conditions disrupting sound.
Connecting audio- with connecting audio checks it must be
done to ensure connections are sound and strong. Headphones must be worn by the
sound operator / recorder / technician if on location so that the sound being
recorded is properly and accurately checked. This relates to the quality of the
sound that is being recorded. It isn't just a case of looking at a peak meter
and seeing that sound is there every Sound Technician must ensure that the
sound being recorded is clear with a good quality for editing/ broadcast purposes after.
When sound is in place with someone who is acting the
sound for instance a acting dialogue it can be captured by microphones that are
hidden for events such as live performances it will be hidden microphones which
are fitted onto or inside a costume by this it has a wireless link to an
external source this is a useful way for actors because you get direct sound
but the only thing is a sound operator will have to monitor the microphone
incase of rubbing on the actors clothing and the levels of clearness also is it
the right place to capture the persons speech.
A main
consideration is how is the actor / contributor sound being recorded or
captured as said above hidden microphones these are fitted onto or inside a
costume of the performer and can be recorded via a wireless link to an external
source. These are useful in the sense you will get the direct sound from a
performer but that the operator has to constantly monitor the microphone for
the clarity of what's being recorded ie . is the mic rubbing the only thing
with microphones is that one person has one mic so it costs money but for a
sound operator they have to monitor separate monitors which is trickery unless
you have more sound operators problem is that costs money to have more staff.
Another way of recording sound for a large group of
actors in film and television would be boom mics. These would be visible to the
performers but not seen on screen. The benefit of this is that you can record
everyone's sound at once - however this is also a negative as isolating /
enhancing one contributor's audio when recorded on a boom mic is impossible
without affecting everything else you have recorded.
Monitor and control: sound operator must monitor the
sound being recorded so that the levels are not too low or too high so it
doesn't peak. And of course, as discussed above the "quality" of the
sound is vital too.
The success of this depends on how carefully the
Sound Technicians and crew record the sound on set. The are many ways of doing
this but one being the clapper board. The clap of a clapper board is done in
front of a camera whilst it is recording but just before a take and before the
director shouts "Action!". The board will have the shot details
written on it and often a digital time code that also relates to the video /
picture being recorded. The editor can then use all this information - visual,
audible and technical - to make sure the pictures and sounds are synched perfectly
also with the clapper board the sound reverbs on one second compared to other
methods. Also in terms of synchronization time code in a clapper board operates
in hours, minutes, seconds and frames at (0.24).
Sound mixers- useful multiple channels, effects, utilities compression.
Documentation and storage:
Any production relies on the logging of all shots / takes
by a logger / script supervisor. This will ensure a more successful and cost
effective editing process later. With data have the date, time of day and small
voice e.g. by paper, pen and pencil. Back up to the data in different areas for
safety precautions that one is lost it’s good to have an alternate of an issue
so back up immediately.
Sound Recorder is an app you can use to record audio for
up to three hours per recording file. The recordings are stored within the
Sound Recorder app this is one way of storage. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-8/sound-recorder-app-faq
Microphones- there are different categories to do with a mic for instance below have
the various categories of the microphones; below is a list of microphones;
1. Large Diaphragm Condenser
Mics
2. Small Diaphragm Condenser
Mics
3. Dynamic “Utility”
Mics
4. Bass Mics
5. Ribbon Mics
6. Multi-Pattern Mics
7. USB Mics
8. Boundary Mics
9. Shotgun Mics
In terms of college equipment we use three microphones one
dynamic, second ribbon and thirdly condenser mics.
Dynamic microphones are versatile and ideal for
general-purpose use. They use a simple design with few moving parts. They are
relatively sturdy and resilient to rough handling. They are also better suited
to handling high volume levels, such as from certain musical instruments or
amplifiers. They have no internal amplifier and do not require batteries or
external power.
Ribbon microphone –is a type of microphone that uses a thin aluminium of electrically which
consists of conductive ribbon placed between the poles of a magnet to produce a
voltage by electromagnetic induction. With
Ribbon microphones they are
typically bidirectional which means that they can pick up sounds well from
either side of the microphone. With ribbon microphones they are the only ones
that are not dynamic or condenser. The reason for this is they get their own
category as a headphone because they use a thin aluminium ribbon not a diaphragm
other microphones use.
Health and safety is used in the area of sound for this they will have to make sure wires aren't in danger of people, safety checks will be put in place, checking wires couldn't cause a hazard like a fire or someone trapped. Risk assessment will help when sorting out sound In pre production to make sure it good to go ahead with the activity in hand with sound.
Below is what
microphones receive threw pickup patterns that microphones get;
Unidirectional pickup patterns are most sensitive to sound because it is produced on the front side of the microphones.
Bidirectional or figure 8 pickup patterns are sensitive to signals from front and back and reject left and right.
Omnidirectional pickup patterns are sensitive to sound and this is from all directions.
Switchable pickup pattern microphones and they can be switched from one pick up pattern to another for different environments.
Advantages of condenser, ribbon and dynamic microphones-
Condenser microphones
are good because they have high output level, excellent frequency response and
quite common to have variable polar patterns. The bad thing about condenser microphones
is that it is expensive, it requires external power source and not resistant to
moisture but some new models are better in this case. 
Ribbon
microphones are different they are relatively flat frequency response, needs no
external or internal power these are advantages and why people buy these microphones.
The downside to ribbon microphones is that they are too are expensive, fragile
and liable to lose quality from wind noise so it isn’t great to use this mic
outside for meter readings unless there is no wind noise. 
The third microphone is Dynamic microphones
the advantages to this microphone is that it is relatively cheap, strong and
durable and resistant to moisture the downside like many microphones have is
that it generally has fixed polar patterns, lack of clarity and is reduced of
high frequencies.