Posted by ben on 03/30/06 00:07

The timeframe for my project is flexible, which means that I would
rather waste a lot of time than waste a lot of money. I don't see
renting as a viable option because I worry that I may not get all the
shots that I need within the rental period and have wasted my budget
(the shoot location rental is minimal). I am aware that $300 is a
miniscule budget and you could easily spend thousands of dollars,
especially on lighting, but I'm just attempting to get my project to
look as professional as possible with what I have.

If I am going to go the work lights direction, what kind of things
should I ask for at my local hardware store? I assume I would need
lamps that are directionally adjustable and that are on stands (so that
the light is coming from above the talent)? If I get two lights like
this, would I also need reflectors/soft boxes/scrims? Would I want to
get standard bulbs or professional bulbs?

With audio I am going to try for the lapel microphone bit. There is a
cheap wireless lapel and hand-held microphone kit going on ebay.com.au
at the moment that I'll try for and test to see if it suits my needs.
If I voice over my interview questions as I'm editing, will that be
painfully obvious? I can always tell in television advertisements when
someone has been dubbed/is a voiceover. Are there any tips on making
it seem more real? The wireless microphone kit has two microphones,
but I don't think I should use them both at the same time because of
phase cancellation.

Thank you both for your suggestions so far, it is certainly appreciated.

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