Photo courtesy of FACT In this article, John Twells explores the work of Jonáš Gruska in providing relatively low-cost equipment for field recordists. Gruska, the founder of LOM and creator of the Elektrosluch, also explains his motivation for creating his recording devices. I was an experimental musician and a field recordist on a budget and I had to improvise with my gear … [Read more...]
Interview with Veteran Sound Designer Seph Lawrence
In this interview, Philip Mantoine from theproaudiofiles.com had a chance to pick the brain of audio veteran Seph Lawrence. Lawrence has an impressive career. He has been Creative Director, Sound Supervisor and Sound Designer working for companies like Blizzard Entertainment, Raven Software and most recently Torrential Audio - a company specializing in recording and … [Read more...]
Creative Field Recording: How to Record Quiet Nature Sounds
Image from Creative Field Recording In this article, Paul Virostek gives an overview of the challenges which field recordists face while recording quiet outdoor spaces and how he deals with "the threat of noise." [It] is the more subtle atmospheres that prompt one of the most perplexing questions of the craft: how can you record quiet wilderness sounds? Read the full article … [Read more...]
Making a Plasma Gun from a Beer Can
Designing sounds for really large or complex objects can be really intimidating especially for younger sound designers and those with limited access to sound libraries. I’ll be showing you how I go about breaking down complex sounds into simple little sounds that we can easily access with household objects, and then we will build our complex sound using these techniques. This … [Read more...]
Recording Fluids: Foley Magic
Some of the most challenging, rewarding, and fun sounds to record are those within the vast spectrum of fluids. Wet, sticky, viscous, mushy; the tactful use of fluid sounds can reinforce the realism and impact of a scene, or just be the punchline of a joke. In order to effectively communicate an idea to an audience, there are a few challenges in recording fluids to … [Read more...]
Creative Props – Hunting for Insipration
The most fun and creatively satisfying part of sound design, to me, is finding everyday objects and using them in a way no one designed them to function. Recording your own material is rewarding and something I urge everyone to do. In this I want to outline my process in finding new and creative props to create new and creative sounds.. Sometimes the sound you need is sitting … [Read more...]
The 30-Day SFX Challenge
Sound effects libraries are the essential toolkit of every sound designer: they are convenient and practical. Furthermore, in a time where deadlines seem to get shorter and shorter, why would one bother to hike their way into field recording when we have all the tools we need within a click from our reach? As with every overindulgence, relying on sound effects libraries for too … [Read more...]