Sound (Effects) Advice

by Dirk Fischer, Educational Technology Consultant

Yes, you can buy sound-effect CDs, but where's the fun in that? Using your camcorder, you already have a better-than-CD-quality sound recorder that you can use to make your own sound effects library.

Sound effects come in three basic types: 1) one-offs such as slamming doors, breaking glass and other sharp, short sounds; 2) natural sounds or ambient sounds such as a crowd at a football game, traffic noise or wind through trees; and 3) Foley sounds -- named after Jack Foley, the sound-effects wizard. Foley work is usually human-made noises such as footsteps on gravel, clothes rustling or hard-to-get sounds like fire crackling or horse hooves on cobblestones.

One-offs are best recorded with a directional microphone attached to your camcorder -- if it has this capability. Be careful not to overpower (and possibly damage) the microphone with too loud a sound. Record one-offs from where a person would normally hear them. A telephone sounds much different from six inches away than it does from across a room.

Natural sounds are best recorded with a non-directional microphone. Wherever you are taping, take a few minutes to have everyone be very, very quiet and then record five minutes of background noise. When you edit, judicious insertions of this "noise floor" can cover a multitude of goofs such as replacing a cough. Absolute "dead air" sounds very unnatural and jarring.

Foley recording can be a lot of fun. Try using crumpled-up tissue paper or cellophane for the sounds of a fire. Different shoes walking on different surfaces make different-sounding footfalls. How about a squeaky door or chair for an effect?

Your video editing software can be used to extract these sounds from your videotape (easy) or they can be recorded through your computer's sound card (harder).

Have some fun and build your own sound effects library at the same time!