Extracts from Mark Briggs book, Journalism 2.0 and additional information written by Ehrin Macksey.

The reason for us posting these tutorials on our site instead of linking to them is for the sole purpose of translation so that Asian photojournalists can understand them easier.

Get good audio

 One part of the equation that is easy to overlook when shooting has nothing to do with the picture. The quality of the audio is critical to producing
good multimedia, even more so for online since the size of the picture will be relatively small.

Natural sound and environmental pictures are also important. Remember to record “blank” shots of a story’s location or setting. Think of the standard “News” piece:

It shows the outside of a building where the subject works, then cuts to a
shot of the subject walking-up the street or answering phone calls in the office.

The best way to ensure the quality of the audio will enhance, not sabotage, your multimedia project is to choose the best microphone for the assignment.

Using a microphone

While using an external mike can be an extra nuisance during an interview, the added sound quality is well worth the effort.
There are basically two types of external microphones: A standard mike with a cord, and a wireless or lavalier mike. Let’s take a look at the advantage both have to offer and also explore the best way to record telephone calls digitally.

A standard mike with a cord is helpful if you are interviewing more than one per- son at a time or you want to include your voice on the audio clip so listeners can hear the full interview instead of just selected quotes. It is also the best way to gather natural, or environmental, sound, which can be spliced into the audio segment to enhance the listening experience. Gathering natural sound is not the same as background noise. Interviews should be done in a setting that allows the voices to be recorded without interruption.

Separate from the interview session, however, it’s always a good idea to search for those sounds that will help describe the setting.

• Are there power tools being used?
• Is it a noisy office with lots of chatter and phones ringing?
• Is it an outside setting where you can hear the bugs and the birds?

If there is natural sound to be had, take just a few minutes and record it — with-  out anyone talking. “You might feel silly just standing there holding your mike in the air, but when you get back to edit your stuff, you’ll be glad you have it,” said
Kirsten Kendrick, a reporter and morning host on KPLU radio, an NPR affiliate in
Seattle and Tacoma.

You should record natural sound in uninterrupted 15-second increments. That way you’ll avoid the problem of not having enough to use in editing. You can always make a clip shorter by cutting it but you can’t make it longer, so make sure the
material you’re working from is long enough to cut from. 

If you're using a handheld microphone, hold it about 5-6 inches below the person's mouth, while also making sure that the microphone is not in the in front of their mouth. Hold the microphone about 1 inch to the left or right and direct the microphone to the center o their mouth.This is to avoid what we call Pops  in the recording from people saying "P" and "T". And tell them to try to ignore the mic .

A wireless or lavalier mike is most helpful when your goal is to capture the voice and words of one person and
you’re “in the field.” While they might be intimidating at first, wireless mikes are really very simple. There are two halves: A battery pack and miniature mike on a cord that clips on the person you want to record (this sends the signal), and a battery pack and cord that
goes into your recording device (this receives the signal).

Here’s how to get started:
1.Clip the mike on the lapel of your subject and give them the battery pack to put
in their pocket. Don’t forget to turn the device on!

2. Connect the receiver pack to your recording device, turn it on, and put it in
your pocket or purse or handbag. Then operate your recorder as you normally
would: Hit the record button when you’re ready and pause button if there’s a
break in the action.
 

Things to Remember  

If it's noisy, then use a lavalier clip-on microphone to reduce the ambient sound.

But watch for necklaces or chains on a person's neck, or buttons on a shirt, that could rub against the lav mic and create noise.

With a lav mic, you'll need to "dress the mic" - properly attach it to the person you're interviewing

Ask the person to run the cord to the lav mic up the inside of their shirt (so the wire won't show in your video).

Then clip the mic to the outside of their shirt, about 5-6 inches below their mouth. Try to center the mic as much as possible. If you have it too far to one side, it won't pick up the audio well if the person then tilts his/her head to the other side while talking.

Use this same procedure if the person is wearing a t-shirt, running the cord up under the shirt and clipping the mic near the top of the shirt.

If the person has a necktie, run the wire down the back of the necktie and through the little label on the bottom back of the necktie.

If it's windy, the lav mic will pick up the sound of the wind. In this case try to clip the mic closer to the person's mouth, or switch to a hand-held microphone with a windscreen on it that muffles the noise of the wind.