i have a question
how far from the roads/highway must you be to stop hearing cars
how do they tackle production sound on shows like "Last Man on Earth" where they can't have any hum at all of car noises in the background
That's a great one! I can make a blog post on location scouting for sound but to sum up some highlights that popped up in my head:
- Don't location scout without a member from your location audio team. You focus on if the scene looks right, let us tell if it'll sound right or any problems to chew on before shooting starts.
- On set hopefully your audio team is bold/experienced enough to hear what can cause problems in post, like ambient noise (ac's, refrigerator hums, and the like), cars, animals (like a flock of geese going nuts when an actor is talking), planes, construction, etc.
- Remove noise where needed but remember that noise is NOT the enemy. The last thing you want is for a scene in Grand Central Station to sound like it was recorded in a studio. Mitigate noise, but dont try and eliminate everything. This one comes with experience and with speaking to the director which is why taking audio to location scouts is so important so we can ask them those questions. "Is it ok if you periodically hear an elevator chime or should we shut em down and add the dings in post?" Remember, the director is the one in charge of how to capture or translate sound in a script. Their input matters, don't keep them in the dark.
- For big budget films it's easier to get rid of a lot of the modern sounds. They have the budget to block off roads, redirect foot traffic, even redirect flights if that's a problem. For 99% of us we can't afford it. Proper location scouting, understanding how production noise is used/mitigated in post production (Dx editing: Fill, Fix Fade), having an audio team that speaks up on set when an issue comes up, MAKING SURE YOU GET ROOM TONE, and taking those extra minutes on set to get it right will do you wonders.
- Bonus: Stop relying on lav mics to fix your noise issues. Yes, they cut out more noise than booms but they also remove all the natural ambiance and noise you DO want. Going back to the Grand Central Station, if you paid a large amount of money to record there but have all your dialogue in super wide angles using lav mics to compensate and manage noise...you've just wasted your money. Because now all that beautiful natural ambiance of the station is gone and all you have left are recordings that sound like the person was inches from a mic...because they were. Plan your scenes for Boom, plan to use lavs ONLY in severe crisis management.