7D External Microphone Advice

Thanks, that's good to hear. I also liked the no battery required especially if I won't be using it much.

DKCJB said:

Can anyone recommend a good external microphone in the $100 approximate price range for use on the 7D? I see a few different brands at B&H for that price right now and wonder if any of those are better than another. My intended use is for my sons piano recitals of which he only has been having about 2 a year. So I don't think I will be using it frequently and will probably leave the sound levels on auto until I know more about that. I'm no audiophile.

Thank you in advance.

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For any performance recordings where I can't tap into the mixer, I will put my Tascam DR40 somewhere close to stage.

A shotgun mic on camera may look swank, but it tends to pick up too much extraneous noise - from camera handling noises to audience noises.

When the 7D first came out a lot of us "Media" shooters that did stills and video had some issues with external mics on the 7D, there are some workarounds as well that can be found from searching the forum. After using the 7D since it was released, I think the RVMP {rode video mic pro} is the best and simplest option you're going to find. Your not going to get amazing sound with out some work on your part however.

I guess that part of the problem is that viewers of your finished video will hear the audio track, but they won't be able to sort out what weaknesses were caused by having the microphone in the wrong location. If they hear weak audio, they may just assume that it is the fault of the musician.

Bobby49 said:

I guess that part of the problem is that viewers of your finished video will hear the audio track, but they won't be able to sort out what weaknesses were caused by having the microphone in the wrong location. If they hear weak audio, they may just assume that it is the fault of the musician.

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You will hear the mechanism and lead rubbing it, but I stopped giving advice since full auto was the way and the OP didn't want to learn about gain.

My recommendation was a stand alone recorder with built in mics designed for music, but hey what do I know.

--
Cheers Mike
Keep the camera alive, (Tin Omen, Skinny Puppy)

Thank you, I will keep that in mind and try to get close as possible with the new mic next time.

I won't claim that this is the very best idea, either. However, you could connect an external microphone to the camera jack using a very long cord.

Limberger - I do appreciate your advice and I did look at the Roland device. I'm sure there's a lot of different ways to go and I can see the value of separating the sound recording from the camera, especially for these recitals. But if I have video editing software, I don't know about it. If it didn't come with the Canon camera, I don't have it. I don't think that DPP does it. It wasn't me that called Canon and told them to put video in all their cameras. But now that I have it, I'm just getting started using it. So if I was going to buy that for $150, then I would also need some software for it too.

Sound recording seems to be an art form in its own right, with a whole new and unfamiliar vocabulary to it for someone like me. Its not that I wasn't interested in learning about gain etc, its just that I currently do not know what it means. So I am interested now, especially with the mic on the way, so if you can point me to some resources online that cover the basics, I would appreciate it.

DKCJB said:

Limberger - I do appreciate your advice and I did look at the Roland device. I'm sure there's a lot of different ways to go and I can see the value of separating the sound recording from the camera, especially for these recitals. But if I have video editing software, I don't know about it. If it didn't come with the Canon camera, I don't have it. I don't think that DPP does it. It wasn't me that called Canon and told them to put video in all their cameras. But now that I have it, I'm just getting started using it. So if I was going to buy that for $150, then I would also need some software for it too.

Sound recording seems to be an art form in its own right, with a whole new and unfamiliar vocabulary to it for someone like me. Its not that I wasn't interested in learning about gain etc, its just that I currently do not know what it means. So I am interested now, especially with the mic on the way, so if you can point me to some resources online that cover the basics, I would appreciate it.

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You don't have to sync in post, but you can that was my point!

Spending $100 within 48 hours on something you say yourself aren't familiar with is rather strange.

Just drop the levels on the camera and up them on the mic or recorder it is that simple.

The Roland even has a feature to set gain automatically by doing a session, so for each session it will adjust gain in auto. Put it anyware even in the piano.

No hard feelings, but this learning is the expensive way imho.

Limburger said:

DKCJB said:

Limberger - I do appreciate your advice and I did look at the Roland device. I'm sure there's a lot of different ways to go and I can see the value of separating the sound recording from the camera, especially for these recitals. But if I have video editing software, I don't know about it. If it didn't come with the Canon camera, I don't have it. I don't think that DPP does it. It wasn't me that called Canon and told them to put video in all their cameras. But now that I have it, I'm just getting started using it. So if I was going to buy that for $150, then I would also need some software for it too.

Sound recording seems to be an art form in its own right, with a whole new and unfamiliar vocabulary to it for someone like me. Its not that I wasn't interested in learning about gain etc, its just that I currently do not know what it means. So I am interested now, especially with the mic on the way, so if you can point me to some resources online that cover the basics, I would appreciate it.

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You don't have to sync in post, but you can that was my point!

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Limburger said:

***(I have no post - that is my point)***

Spending $100 within 48 hours on something you say yourself aren't familiar with is rather strange.

Just drop the levels on the camera and up them on the mic or recorder it is that simple.

The Roland even has a feature to set gain automatically by doing a session, so for each session it will adjust gain in auto. Put it anyware even in the piano.

No hard feelings, but this learning is the expensive way imho.

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