I'm taking a vacation from my problems!

"I'm Taking a Vacation from my Problems!"
-Bob Wiley [Bill Murray] in the 1991 movie, What About Bob?

I love that movie! Bob Wiley, the chronically psychotic, but very lovable character played by Bill Murray, proclaims "I'm taking a vacation from my problems!". When we take a vacation, isn't that basically what we all want to do; take a vacation from our problems? Most of all we want to take a vacation from the daily stress associated with our work. To many of you reading this, that work relates to sound recording.

The stress associated with sound recording, comes in the process of dealing with very sensitive equipment in some often unpredictable environments. If you've ever attempted to capture good, usable audio outdoors, in anything but the mildest breeze, you know something of the stress I'm referring to. Does this sound familiar? You're on location, there's a breeze, but nothing that's going to have a noticeable effect. Then, shortly into an otherwise trouble-free take, that breeze turns into a full-blown wind gust. And don't even think about waiting for a break between those strong gusts. I'd like to know how the wind knows to blow hardest as soon as I press the RECORD button? Am I on Candid Camera, or what?!

Time to take a vacation from your problems! As you plan your Summer vacation, you're probably looking forward to some enjoyable, stress-relieving outdoor activities. If you're like me, the opportunity for anything resembling a real vacation doesn't come very often. I like to capture as much of these rare vacations as I can on video, then I can relive it all in the form of a mini vacation in my mind whenever I feel like torturing myself. It can be a little like standing outside a fine restaurant, looking through the window at all the people inside, enjoying their delectable meals. It's just not quite the same as being in there yourself. But hey, sometimes we just get a strange urge to torment ourselves by doing something like replaying our vacation-of-a-lifetime videos.

Even professional, Hollywood soundmen and videographers use less than professional camcorders to preserve their vacation memories. When the tools of your trade are quite expensive, high-end, professional cameras, it can almost be embarrassing to shoot with the average consumer level camcorder. Unless you're on a "working" vacation, I doubt you'd want to heft around your professional eight pound camera. Those small sized, easy to use consumer level cameras definitely have their advantages. They also have some rather irritating disadvantages, like unstable image (especially when zoomed), and built-in microphones that are very prone to picking up wind noise. My best advice for dealing with the unstable image problem, is to shoot from the hip rather than the less stable eye level position. The camera can be better stabilized when held lower. I know it can be a hassle dragging around a tripod when you're on vacation; a small monopod can be a more compact alternative. Often times, you can find a handy structure like a balcony railing, chair, light post or tree to serve as a stabilizing support for your camera.

The problem of wind noise can be tricky to deal with. Wind noise is that irritating rumble you often hear in audio that was recorded outdoors. It's caused by sound waves produced when wind physically strikes the bare surface of the microphone. Using the new Stick-On WindCutter, available at www.thewindcutter.com is the most effective step you can take towards eliminating wind noise. The Stick-On WindCutter works just like the fur microphone windscreens that professional sound recordists have been using on their mics for many years. In fact, many professionals who regularly rely on fur windscreens for their pro. equipment, consistently report amazing results with the Stick-On WindCutter used on their personal camcorders.

This very effective little device is very simple to use. Just peel off the backing from the adhesive side, align it to cover your camcorder's microphone holes, and firmly press it on . The Stick-On is designed to be left on your camera (no need to remove it for indoor recording), it also helps protect your camcorder's microphone from dirt and moisture. You can also get a Stick-On WindCutter for your digital still camera that takes video with sound. I've often been amazed at how well those very tiny built-in camera mics capture sound. Though they're far from professional, when equipped with a WindCutter, they will actually do a good job of capturing a good, usable soundtrack for your vacation or any other important event that you'd like to preserve on video.

Once you've got your microphone outfitted with a Stick-On WindCutter, you're ready to head outdoors! Here's some more tips for getting the best possible sound recordings. When recording in windy conditions, first try to determine wind direction. Then, if possible, shoot with your back to the wind and position your camera where it will be shielded from the wind by your body. This can make a huge difference whenever recording in very strong wind. Just as you can use whatever is at hand as a makeshift stabilizing support for your camera; you can use a handy structure, like a car, a tree, or a wall, as a wind break. I've recently discovered that an umbrella can be a pretty good portable wind break for your microphone. I keep a golfer's umbrella with my kit because they're an over-sized umbrella that seem to be of a little better quality than most umbrellas. There's also a more expensive "wind-proof" umbrella available. Umbrellas can be difficult to control in strong wind. You don't want to pick up the sound of an umbrella's nylon flapping in the wind, and you certainly don't want your umbrella to turn inside out on you...that's always embarrassing, isn't it?

As you plan for your next vacation, don't forget to take along enough memory cards/DV tapes, camcorder batteries, a battery charger and more important than you may think...a lens cleaning kit. Also, if you plan on doing any snorkeling or SCUBA diving, you'll probably want to invest in some sort of waterproof housing for your camera. And whatever you do, take a vacation from your wind noise problems by equipping your camera with a Stick-On Windcutter!

Enjoy!

Michael Stamp
Owner - Vision Artisan Productions