Reading materials

When preparing to record for your first podcast, it’s important to research the essential elements that go into it. I have linked two articles below that list terms and different tips to recording and have included a few bullet points from each.

7 Secrets for Getting Pro Sounding Vocals on Home Recordings

• This article has tips about getting the perfect audio.
• Using things from your bedroom like a blanket to create a sound booth, like a blanket.
• Sometimes to get the perfect recordning, it can take several attempts.
• If you do have a microphone, the placement and position of it needs to be correct. Recording a test run with words that contain the letters ‘p’ and ‘t’ and listening back can tell you if it’s the right spot.
• Vocal editing can be precarious. Cutting out sound many times in a short frame can make it sound choppy and could ruin the flow. You want to try to get sounds in one large chunk.

Editing Audio for Video

• A-roll – the primary footage
• B-roll – filler footage, secondary. Reinforces the topic
• Insert edit is called “c”
• “L edit” is a split edit, as it looks the shape of the letter in software.
• “Viewers expect sound to be consistent,” so we can always go back and fix the transitions or shots. Once you’ve got the audio editing down, the video editing should be a breeze.
• This article also contains other terms, I’ve just pointed out the ones I think are the most important.

Research to inform

I’ve chosen the above YouTube video by NPR’s Tiny Desk Concerts as audio/video inspiration because of the intro. With these mini concerts, they overlap the artists’ music into their intro and for this one specifically, it goes really well with their graphics and title sequence. It reminds me of a Pixar movie! Being a music video, the sound the artists are creating is the audio for the video. It would be weird if they played sound over it. Hearing the audience applaud is enjoyable for me as a listener, as it’s not too loud and still the main focus is on the band. BUT, I appreciate that when the singer is speaking, no one is making a sound.

Click here if the embed isn’t working.

This type of video is something that I would typically search for, as I am vegan, love Spanish cuisine, and am planning a trip back to Spain in 2025. In this vegan food blog video, created by Rated V for Vegan (Eunice), I thought was very well done overall. The music captures the essence of Spain and invites the audience in to want to watch more of the video. Eunice also increases the volume of the background music when she’s no longer speaking, and lowers it when she is speaking. However, either the transition from the 1st piece of music to the 2nd needs to be improved, or the 2nd piece needs to be something different. I just don’t think it fits the vibe! It also is quite distracting behind her audio.

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André H. Mack is a well-known American sommelier and winemaker. In this video by Bon Appétit Mack is rating 20 bottles of white wine that cost $15 or less. All of the background sounds fit the vibe of the video really well. The intro background sound is soft and elegant as Mack is describing what he does for a living. Then, from second 24 into 26 the sound effect is great and transitions into fun and what the video is really about. It then continues to be very subtle in the background. I also really appreciate the “ka-ching” sound when the bottle is shown with the dollar amount.

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Resources

D. Urban Agriculture + Community Gardens. (n.d.). Retrieved October 8, 2023, from https://rochester2034.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Urban-Agriculture-Community-Gardens-Full-Section.pdf

Francis, R. (n.d.). Why Gardening Makes You Happy and Cures Depression. Permaculture College Australia: Djanbung Gardens. https://permaculture.com.au/why-gardening-makes-you-happy-and-cures-depression/

Hearn, G., Collie, N., Lyle, P., Choi, J. H.-J., & Foth, M. (2014). Using communicative ecology theory to scope the emerging role of social media in the evolution of urban food systems. Futures, 62, 202–212. ScienceDirect. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2014.04.010

Kaplan, S. (1995). The restorative benefits of nature: Toward an integrative framework. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 15(3), 169–182. https://doi.org/10.1016/0272-4944(95)90001-2

Mara, J. (n.d.-c). Mind & Soil: About Us. Mind & Soil. Retrieved October 11, 2023, from https://www.mindandsoil.com/pages/about-us

Mara, J. (n.d.-d). Restorative Gardening with Mind & Soil – YouTube. YouTube. Retrieved October 11, 2023, from https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5eLPZi_RSh81523mrBzHNg

Ohly, H., White, M. P., Wheeler, B. W., Bethel, A., Ukoumunne, O. C., Nikolaou, V., & Garside, R. (2016). Attention Restoration Theory: A systematic review of the attention restoration potential of exposure to natural environments. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B, 19(7), 305–343. https://doi.org/10.1080/10937404.2016.1196155

Pitt, H. (2014). Therapeutic experiences of community gardens: putting flow in its place. Health & Place, 27, 84–91. ScienceDirect. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.healthplace.2014.02.006

Reid, R., & Mara, J. (2023, August 14). Nerdy About Nature (No. 19) [Podcast]. Spotify. https://open.spotify.com/episode/7hXEfInTt7qiYYzyA3ErzI?si=c1445221d1ba41cb

Soga, M., Gaston, K. J., & Yamaura, Y. (2017). Gardening is beneficial for health: A meta-analysis. Preventive Medicine Reports, 5(5), 92–99. ScienceDirect. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2016.11.007