7 - Common Pitfalls

Overused openings

It’s easy to allow cliché to slip into field recorded script like the Aro Street Medical Centre or ad-lib pieces. Opening phrases such as ‘I’m standing…’ or ‘In front of me…’ are overused. It’s a simple matter to replace them with a sentence that both identifies where you are and gets you launched into the body of the piece in an ear-catching way:- ‘This is not the glitzy end of Willis street…’.or perhaps ‘We’ve left the glitz and glamour of city-end Willis street behind…’

Don’t slavishly stay on mic

If the script or ad-lib piece requires you to look at something to your left or right, don’t be afraid to turn your head and go slightly off mic: this signals head movement to the listener and adds to the realism. The same applies if you bend or stretch to reach for something. Take care using this technique in high background noise though; if you go too far off mic you’ll be drowned out by the noise.

You should apply the same technique to informants: when the farmer bends down to lift another fence post, allow him to go off mic. This, and the effort in his voice as he lifts the post will add to the realism.