I will deliver three sessions on mulitmedia reporting at Wordstock in Toronto, Oct 3. 2009
“Twitter for Journalists”
“Breaking the Barriers to Multimedia and Social Media Reporting”
“Get your audio right and upgrade all of your multimedia”
We will cover the fundamentals of tech and technique all with a veteran journalist’s understanding and expertise in using these tools to produce compelling digital mulit media.
What are the dead simple to use reporting tools for field audio interviews? The field research continues in Europe where I’ll be training reporters using these FlashMics in Brussels.
I hope to be convinced that they are extremely simple to use AND can produce sound to professional standards. That’s a winning combination for me and, as a part owner in a recording studio, something I obviously value very highly.
On the FlashMic, You basically just have to press one button to make it record, and another to stop. They also do have line input for picking up sound from an external source (like a press conference etc).
Sound is the highest value multimedia asset that modern journalists must master. Audio quality is the first thing an audience will judge you by and instantly brands you as an amateur or a professional.
I have been doing audio multimedia consulting for correspondents who cover the EU Parliament in Brussels for the last few months and I’ll share some of the expertise I have gained in recording and mixing sound for better the part of my life.
Sound recording in the field is one of the high demands now for more and more digital journalists. So where are we with the state of the art? How important is great audio and what are people using for their VOX pops and field podcasts?
What makes great audio? Consider for a moment just how much technology, technique and expertise goes into making sound, uh, sound good. Here’s an INXS track posted by my friend Diana into her Yahoo! feed.
We take it for granted that vocals sound like this - as a society we have been raised on professionally produced audio for the last 40 years since the advent of FM radio.
It takes an incredible amount of technology and talent to make a vocal track sound this “natural.” The sound passes from the lips through an exquisite suite of electronic gear that processes it and compensates for many, many faults along the way.
March 10-12 - AMERICA EAST - Video and audio master classes
Video: Beyond the Basics (Two-day advanced master class) March 10-11
Instructors: Craig Dufff and Robb Montgomery
- Advanced camera techniques — “Getting out of auto mode for better results”
- Getting the Sequence - Gathering enough of the right images to let the story tell itself.
- Running and Gunning - strategies for getting video images when things are moving fast
- The video interview - what makes a good video interview different from print
- Story structure - moving past the pyramid: how best to structure a video segment.
- Trade Secrets - 10 helpful tricks of the video trade that come in handy when doing multi-platform reporting.
Robb Montgomery produces new media workshops to train journalists and media professionals in more than 20 countries in writing for the Web, multimedia reporting, and Web video journalism.
His hands-on seminars include interactive learning techniques, live demonstrations and expertise in teaching new media concepts to professionals.
