Custom presets for indoor concert + is UV Filter needed indoors?
 

Hey All

Anybody have a good custom preset for an indoor venue at night with live music and changing lights? Also is a UV filter needed in an indoor artificially lit scene like this? Would manual audio be better than auto?

Thanks
Pie

ps I'm getting ready to have gateway customize my new computer and will check with you all before I push the button.

Manual audio is absolutely better, and don't forget the mic. att. switch if the levels are hot. (If you get the opportunity, be there on the soundcheck to do some test recordings.)

Good luck!
Sven

depending on the size of the size of the venue and available resources...i try to never rely solely on camera audio. tap into the board if possible. i also use a couple of RODE NT4 mics into a hard disk recorder on directly into the cover camera's XLR inputs. on occasion these have worked just as good if not better than what i can get from the main board in the event of an uncooperative sound man. as far as presets go...i'm constantly changing settings to adjust to the lights...so i'd say set your white balance as best you can and be ready to adapt. if u get a lighting team that knows what they are doing you should be ok..if not good luck and be prepared to make a lot of adjustments. I never take my UV filter off unless I'm putting on a wide angle adapter... hasn't seemed to affect the picture quality to my eyes.

The main purpose of the UV filter is to protect the lens. Unless you're shooting extreme long lens shots outside you'd probably never notice that the UV does anything at all.

As Bill notes, UV filter is mainly for protection. If beer or other libations will be sloshing among an unwashed throng at the concert, and you are near them, the UV may be worth it.

I believe that recording sound at a concert can be much more complex than video. And a lot depends on the type of concert (rock, choral, symphonic, jazz, acoustic vs electric instruments, sound reinforcing, etc.). There is no simple answer - it is an art.

If preserving the dynamic range of the concert is important, use manual audio and watch your levels with care. Using AGC will have an effect a bit like compressing the audio (from the bottom). The effect can be much worse for some type of concerts than others.

In any case, a concert shot with mics located in the audience usually gets a lot of ambient audience sound, and in taht case AGC is probably not going to hurt the recording much more than the audience noise has already. If you can get sound board output, that should be much better, but work out details such as levels, cables, connections, in advance to be sure you can get a good recording.

Using AGC (or even the level controls set low) can mask clipping in the preamps (the meters will not see it). If you get adequate record level with MIC ATT setting, use it.

If all this is a mystery to you, start crash course reading about audio.

LOL, very poetic indeed. :)

A UV filter is not required for indoor concert shoots. It will merely serve as protection. However, an IR CUT filter is quite useful in these situations. I have noticed and recieved many calls regarding indoor shoots where the camera caused color shift in black levels (trending to magenta) due to IR light coming through onto the CCDs. I would recommend that you look at our UV/IR CUT filter for increased performance in this and all other scenarios.

http://www.schneideroptics.com/ecomm...D=667&IID=4389

Ryan Avery
Regional Sales Representative
Schneider Optics