2. Agenda
More tips on ways to find great online content
Interview tech options
Interview tips
Vox pops v. ‘proper’ interviews
Using the zooms
Let’s get the zooms
4. Interview recording options
1. Using the voice memo function on your phone
Audio quality can be quite good, but remember to
keep the phone close, and find a quiet place.
But not too close or it might distort!
The problem is that you can’t test the levels, except
by doing a test recording and listening to it through
headphones.
5. Interview recording options
2. Using a Zoom
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_emb
edded&v=T9GIzarhwyE
Most important things:
Check the levels
Make sure you are actually recording, not on pause.
6. Interview recording options
3. Recording a Skype interview
My test with quicktime resulted in poor quality
As usual, I’m more concerned about audio than video, if
the vid is too bad, you can always just use a still.
Great tips for audio improvement here, but rather
technical – and you may not be able to get around the
Firewall
http://www.blogarithms.com/index.php/archives/2007/12/23/s
kype-for-interviews/
7. Interview recording options
Summary of the easier things:
Quit all applications except what you really need
good broadband
Make everything as quiet as possible
Both parties should use a headset USB mic if possible
Eg,
http://shop.skype.com/headsets/#/#categoryid=1&sortby=3&subcategoryid=&fil
ter=&manufacture=&price_range=~30|30~60|60~90|90~&page=1
8. Interview recording options
They recommend audio recording software called CallBurner
http://www.callburner.com/ Free 30 day trial
And post-production audio level software called The Levelator:
http://www.conversationsnetwork.org/levelator FREE
You’d also edit out the clicks, umms, stutters etc in Audacity (or
similar)
Note: don’t edit the audio if you’re going to marry it up with video, it
will get out of sync.
16. Vox pops v.
‘proper’ interviews
A vox pop is a stranger off the street who you ask a
couple of questions to as they walk by. You will get
an unreflected, off-the-cuff opinion rather than a
carefully thought through response. They are useful
for capturing the public mood, but it will be
superficial.
A proper interview is organised in advance, you’ve
given the interviewee warning about the subject
matter, you’ve found a good (quiet, well lit,
uninterrupted) location. You will get more interesting
answers this way.