Shooting video with a DSLR camera has lots of advantages. They’re smaller than a traditional video camera and videographers use them for ‘the look’ and I have to agree, that’s the reason I often use my Canon 5D Mk lll.
But the one problem all DSLR’s have is sound.
My Canon C100 Mk 2 video camera has two channels of digital audio built in with XLR inputs, mic/line +48V switches all included. My DSLR has none of these.
The best solution is to use a digital audio recorder in conjunction with the DSLR to get the quality sound you need for professional video production. I started off with a Zoom H4N, which I still use but I now use a Tascam DR 60D, which is designed to mount between the camera and the base plate of the tripod.
The Tascam has two XLR inputs (and TRS phone jacks) plus a 3.5mm stereo plug if you have an on-camera mounted DSRL shotgun mic. The back of the unit, which sits directly below the back of the camera provides access to level controls. menus and the ‘transport’ controls, such as record, playback etc. It records to an SD card in a range of audio formats.
The back panel also includes a slate button which records a tone on the track and if you plug the output of the Tascam into the mic input on the DSLR means you have a sync point between the Tascam’s SD card and the card in the camera.
This is going back to the ‘double system’ technique of shooting film, but these days the digital world makes it very simple to sync the sound from the camera mic to the digital file from the Zoom or Tascam. (This was never as straight forward with double-system film)
You can plug mics directly into the DSLR and you can buy cabled lavalier mics for this purpose. I have plugged the receiver of a radio lavalier system into the camera and provided I ensure the record levels are ‘just right’ – the quality is acceptable. The one thing to check is that the audio system is in manual and you adjust the levels carefully. There is very little room for over-modulation and if the signal is too soft, it will get lost down in the noise of the DSLR audio system. It needs to be ‘just right’.
