Boom poles
 

Ok, one of the things I've been looking at buying when I get my DV 'Kit' is a boom pole to hold a shotgun mic. When I first enquired about them I almost had a heart attack when told the price. In New Zealand for a boompole I'm looking at NZ$700+ (~US$350). I then started thinking about making one myself but wanted to get your opinions on it. Has anyone made one themselves and if so how did it turn out? I've heard of people use painters poles, and using a roller cases and mounting the mic through that on flexible supports as a shock mount..Hmmm.


Cheers

Yes, i went to Home Depot and picked up an extendable paint roller pole. It is made by Mr. Longpole. The exterior is made of fiberglass, the inner expandablr part is aluninum. To reduce sounds from handleing the pole, or if wired from mic to camera, I wraped the exterior portion with rubberized black copper pipe insulation(1/4 inch thickness) and used electrical wire ties to hold it in place( the ties are the plastic type that you can tighten but can't loosen).

It extends to over 16 feet when extended.

Next I placed an adjustable paint roller holder on the top of the inside pole, this enables the mic to be adjusted in a 300+ degree arc. Attached to the holder is the shotgum mic holder. To attach any wires I use womens hair bands, you know the ones with the two balls used for pony tails.

This was not an original idea of mine but an article I found in Computer videomaker magazine. You can find the article by looking in their archievesfrom about 2 yrs ago. Go to www.videomaker.com (current password is "optics " without the quote marks) then search.

Total cost about $50.00

Try it you'll love it.

Bruce

Yes, i went to Home Depot and picked up an extendable paint roller pole. It is made by Mr. Longpole. The exterior is made of fiberglass, the inner expandablr part is aluninum. To reduce sounds from handleing the pole, or if wired from mic to camera, I wraped the exterior portion with rubberized black copper pipe insulation(1/4 inch thickness) and used electrical wire ties to hold it in place( the ties are the plastic type that you can tighten but can't loosen).

Next I placed an adjustable paint roller holder on the top of the inside pole, this enables the mic to be adjusted in a 300+ degree arc. Attached to the holder is the shotgum mic holder. To attach any wires I use womens hair bands, you know the ones with the two balls used for pony tails.

This was not an original idea of mine but an article I found in Computer videomaker magazine. You can find the article by looking in their archievesfrom about 2 yrs ago. Go to www.videomaker.com (current password is "optics " without the quote marks) then search.

Total cost about $50.00

Try it you'll love it.

Bruce

Hey thanks Bruce, sounds like I might give that a go!

Cheers
Aaron

One eBay retailer sells their special cheap boom pole with a shock mount all for something like $45. When you receive it, you can peel off the sticker with their name on it and underneath discover the "Crappie Stalker" fishing pole logo.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Now that is hilarious! Thanks for making my otherwise dull day here at work, a bit more fun :)

I just worked on a project where a guy rigged a boom pole from a broomstick. I believe he stuck a mic clip on there and wrapped the end with whatever you call the thin black tape. There was plastic tie involved somewhere, but I'm not sure how.

<<<-- Originally posted by Robert K S : One eBay retailer sells their special cheap boom pole with a shock mount all for something like $45. When you receive it, you can peel off the sticker with their name on it and underneath discover the "Crappie Stalker" fishing pole logo. -->>>

Robert,

How does the mike connect at the end of the Crappie Stalker? That sounds like a very reasonable mike boom.

I've used numerous different poles when filming, painters poles work very well but have a lot of handling noise. so if you do go this route, you might want to try using those skin-tight glove "thingies". Basically the more you spend, the lighter the material, which in long scenes is a god send.

Skin tight glove thingies? Do you mean the rubber grips that are roughly hand/finger shapes that you can put on a pole? Or are there actual gloves you can wear that will reduce handling noise?

Aaron, go to a pool shop, if you can find one open in winter, an get a pool leaf skimmer. Take the end off and mount a shock mount to that. instant pole for about $20

Hehe, sounds like another good option. Can shockmounts be bought separately and are they of standard specs or do I need one that matches my shotgun mike (Probably MK66)?

aaron,
here is a link to a gitzo boom mount, http://www.promax.com/Products/Detail/6354 I got this boom mount from a friend, I just have to get a pole for it, but it's cheap($US 109 for only the shock mount), the one's from sennheiser cost too much(a couple hundred for just the shock mount), I have a ME-67 mike, so it fit's fine on this mount. I haven't actually used it on a job yet, but it has rubber strips that you put the mike into. I'm sure when I get a pole I'll put some rubber grips on it to help dampen the noise more. Anyone out there have the Gitzo G11510 shock mount? Would like to hear from people who use this shock mount.