Site Archive
The Hatchback Production KitWritten by David Tames on June 2, 2013
Filed Under Camera, Documentary, Featured, Lighting, Sound
I recently conducted a workshop titled “The Hatchback Production Kit” at the Camera Company Pro Video Show in Dedham, Massachusetts. During the workshop I promised to post an inventory of the items I discussed in the workshop.... Continue Reading...
The 2013 Summer Documentary Film School at MassArtWritten by David Tames on May 27, 2013
Filed Under Camera, Distribution, Documentary, Editing, Events & Screenings, Filmmaking, Producing, Sound, Video Production
If you are looking for an intensive and focused introduction to the process of making documentary films this summer, I encourage you to investigate the Summer Documentary Film School at MassArt. I believe this is one of the best intensive... Continue Reading...
Sound for Documentary, Part 2: What is it and why is it so important?Written by David Tames on March 16, 2013
Filed Under Documentary, Front Page, Sound, Video Production
In Part 1 of this series we covered eight fundamental concepts of sound for documentary. In our next post we will move closer to the practical, nitty gritty matters of sound for documentary, however, before we do, I want to briefly... Continue Reading...
Sound for documentary, Part 1: Eight fundamental conceptsWritten by David Tames on March 4, 2013
Filed Under Documentary, Featured, Filmmaking, Sound, Video Production
Between widespread access to affordable camcorders and the rising ubiquity of mobile phones with good video cameras, along with the ascendancy of YouTube as a major media diffusion platform, it’s never been easier to produce and... Continue Reading...
iPhone camera support accessoriesWritten by David Tames on March 2, 2013
Filed Under Documentary, Featured, Gadgets and Devices, Mobile devices, Sound, Tools, Video Production
The iPhone can double as a small and versatile video camera. Given the small size and the fact you probably have it with you all of the time, this opens up a lot of creative options. Sometimes holding the phone in you hand is not... Continue Reading...
Spaces Speak, Are you listening?Written by David Tames on November 29, 2010
Filed Under Books, Sound
In their book, Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aural Architecture (MIT Press, 2007) Barry Blesser and Linda-Ruth Salter remind us that we experience spaces not only through visual perception but also through our auditory... Continue Reading...
Four under $300 audio recorders for double-system soundWritten by David Tames on June 18, 2010
Filed Under Media Technology, Sound, Tools, Video Production
With the rising tide of small cameras shooting spectacular HD video suitable for documentary work, along with D-SLRs like the Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon 7D whose images rival much more expensive (and heavy) cameras, I’ve... Continue Reading...
Thoughts on video on the web and HTML5Written by David Tames on June 3, 2010
Filed Under Media Technology, New Media, Sound, Tools, Video on the Web, Web
If your web site has video on it, I believe the time has come to take into consideration viewers using mobile devices if you’ve not done it already. The desktop is no longer the only platform for viewing video, and Flash, long... Continue Reading...
Sennheiser Evolution G3 100 SeriesWritten by David Tames on February 18, 2010
Filed Under Featured, Gadgets and Devices, Reviews, Sound, Video Production
If you want to go with a wireless microphone system, and you’re trying to balance between performance and price but don’t want to compromise too much on performance, I would suggest taking a close look at the Sennheiser... Continue Reading...
Using both channels (an audio channel is a terrible thing to waste)Written by David Tames on August 13, 2009
Filed Under Camera, Documentary, Filmmaking, Sound, Video
Practically every camcorder records two channels of audio, which allows you to record in stereo (Left/Right) or two discrete channels (1/2). Lately I’ve been using the Sennheiser Evolution G2 wireless a lot and it started to... Continue Reading...
