When you’re ready to record, relax, take a breath, and try to enjoy yourself.
- When you record, don’t speak too close to the phone’s mic. Keep a distance of about 20cm (8 inches) between your mouth and the mic, and don’t talk straight at the mic. Talk over or across it instead.
- By not being too close and not talking directly at the mic, you’ll avoid recording mouth and breath sounds, like BAH, PAH, WHOO, and SSSS. These can be tricky to fix later when editing. (Top Tip: Put a sock in it! Or rather, over it. A nice woolly sock placed over the mic of the phone can act as a pop-shield, helping to reduce mouth sounds!) If you are still struggling, check out this My plosives (i.e. K, P, T, B) are too loud (Video)
- You’re in someone’s ear, which can be quite an intimate experience, so talk at a regular conversational volume, and like you’re explaining stuff to your best friend!
- Pause between lines. Thingsarehardtounderstandwhenitsallnonstop,knowhatImean?
- If possible, it’s best to record your script in one sitting, either as one long recording or broken into takes. If you do record each location separately, make sure to record the full location in one take. Avoid breaking it up into multiple recordings. We also recommend against recording over a period of days, as this will effect the quality and continuity of the audio.
- If you make a mistake, stop. And start again from the beginning of that line.
- Avoid moving during the recording as the microphone will pick up the smallest rustle, and make sure to leave a few moments of silence at the end of the recording before pressing stop.
- A warm drink (dairy-free) helps to relax the vocal chords, so you’re less likely to make squeaking noises, and suffer from a parched mouth from talking.
- Breathe