Studio Blog
Along with my work as a video production manager here at Demand Media, I spend a lot of time working in recording studios and crafting not only my own music in these environments, but other people’s music as well. I have been producing some form of media for about 18 years and most of my adult working life has been spent in recording studios. So, the gang around here always defer to me when a recording series comes in. This year we’ve been receiving some excellent music and recording series from one of my favorite filmmakers in Nashville. Dimitiri LaBarge has not only been finding us some world class musicians as experts, but he’s also been finding us some amazingly talented and knowledgeable recording engineers and music producers. This series was shot with Frank Green, owner of Digital Master in Nashville. Frank has been working for 24 years as a recording professional and his insight and knowledge in this series really shows. I’ve not only worked in this type of studio, I trained and learned my craft from working with “old school” guys like Frank.
Who Shot It: Dimitri LaBarge
What I Like About It:
I believe Frank. I trust that I’m learning something from someone who has been mastering his craft for years in this series of videos. Dimitiri not only did a wonderful job of finding a true professional, but he found someone working in a beautiful and professional recording environment with state of the art equipment. Frank does a wonderful job of explaining the basics of recording in this environment and our filmmaker gets us enough coverage so that we feel like we are on this session and are truly learning something. In each clip Frank gives us a variety of techniques and historical accounts of different ways to do things. You can only get this from an expert that has been around and has been trying things, experimenting for years and again, has been developing their craft. I like this series for the very simple fact that the expert is truly an expert…. And our filmmaker just captured him sharing his knowledge and experience
How You Can Copy It:
Research All Possible Experts: If a subject interests you and you haven’t found an expert yet, research, research, research. To me, the expert is the foundation of the clip, the central most important piece to this type of production. The right expert can make any production just run smooth. Never settle for someone who dabbles in the subject. They may be passionate about their hobby, but a hobbyist and an expert are two very different things. A true expert gives their life to their passion to their work and either makes a living doing it or at least puts most of their waking hours into what they do. Dimitri did not settle for a hobbyist in his home studio. He found a professional in a state of the art location. Research and search until you find the perfect expert.
Location: Professionals and true experts work in professional environments with interesting and sometimes expensive tools. In the case of this series, Frank was giving instruction in a facility that probably cost close to a couple million dollars to be in business. The type desk that he was mixing on can cost up to $500,000.00 dollars or more, depending on the type. Start your search for experts by researching professional businesses and environments and you are looking in the right place. Experts who use tools always invest in the best tools. In this case a beautiful and professionally built recording studio with thousands of dollars of recording gear is Franks set of tools. He’s spent time and money on them and it shows. I believe anyone who watches these videos with truly learn from them and that is the goal.
Coverage: Shoot, Shoot, Shoot. I’m just going to repeat what we tell everyone. Shoot as much b-roll as you can. This is a visual medium and the goal is to instruct, so we want to see as much as we can about what the expert is talking about. We can imagine it in our heads when we are reading about a subject and we can even grasp the concept if the expert explains it well, but for eHow videos, we need to see what they are explaining and a few cuts of action are worth a thousand words. Again, this is a visual medium, always be looking for the “money shot” or the one visual that will teach the audience. Again, answering the question is the goal and as filmmakers we have it pretty easy because all we have to do is show the viewer the “how to” action.
