AUDIO ASSIST: Building A Travel Audio Recording Toolkit

For those outside the filmmaking business, video is often regarded as purely a visual medium for obvious reasons. But those of us who actually create films understand the importance of audio in a project and how it can be as essential as the visual components of a production.

It’s why this issue’s Audio Assist column focuses on creating your own audio recording toolkit. And not just any audio toolkit, but one small and lightweight enough to take on the road with you.

It’s important to note that building any on-location travel audio recording toolkit will depend on the types of shoots you support. So, for instance, some of you might need to choose additional or different gear. I’ve attempted to make this toolkit compact, lightweight, affordable, capable and, most importantly, flexible, so that it might be used to record sound for a variety of projects, including narrative, documentary, corporate, event or reality television. Additionally, I wanted the kit to be able to work on its own or when it’s combined with other components.

But Do You Actually Need An Audio-Recording Kit?

Before we begin, some projects might not need an audio kit at all. In some cases, the audio