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Resource Group AV using graphical ...

Category Audio, Concerts, Conferences, Entertainment, Lighting, Meetings, News, Staging, Technology, Video, Web - by - on September 22, 2013

Marketing changes – new staff and new ideas. You will start to see a lot more poster and pictorial ads about Resource Group AV, based on events that we have produced some recently and some over the last few years.

The idea behind the pictures was decided upon as a way to let prospective clients see the range and scope of projects that Resource Group AV has previously done and what they can do in the future.

This weekend launched the graphic below on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin. The picture was one of a series taken at Chicago All State Arena, and shows the most moving lights up to that time, with 800 movers over the stage and over the floor area of the arena.

Stephen Brown
Production Director
Tel: 863 701 2010

Resource Group AV call me grphic

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GRAMMY® Awards

Category Audio, Entertainment, News, Technology, Uncategorized - by - on March 14, 2013

DiGiCo audio consoles used at the Grammy AwardsLet me ask you a question. How many consoles do you think it takes to run just the live production at an awards show like this?
Guess again.
For the second year running Digico Consoles, manufactured in the UK, have been the consoles of choice at the GRAMMY® Awards.
This year they used a total of 10 consoles for the Academy Awards.

The audio production team used five DiGiCo SD desks: four SD7′ consoles and an additional SD5 all connected to 11 SD Racks.

On the night they used 276 mic pre-amps with 176 outputs being shared between the five front desks and the 11 DiGiCo SD racks. All this to drive JBL”s new line array, the Pro VTX V25 3 way system.

If that wasn’t enough, there were over 50 wireless microphones used on the stages and trucks outside feeding back any of the band’s Pro Tools backing tracks – oh you thought it was all live?

Did you guess the right number of how many consoles would be needed to produce an event like this? Me neither.  But what a great night.

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5 tips on event planning

Category Conferences, Meetings - by - on March 10, 2013

Planning creative events takes time, preparation and sometimes help from outside people. Creative events are the key words, because everybody knows the basics start with who, what, where, why, when? Fortunately there are people who want to help you succeed and are already waiting to help you.

a. Every venue has its own Event Management Team. Utilize their experience to gain ideas of what is possible in their rooms, what can be flown, weight limits, sizes, have they done “x” before, etc. They see hundreds of shows and events come and go through their properties every year and they will have a good idea of space allocation and seating styles that can work in their rooms.

In a Convention Center over New Year recently one of the Event Managers was able to show our production crew an easy way to run fiber optic cables 350ft underground into the middle of the audience. We had been wondering how do we get the cable there without flying it and then dropping it to the ground, or having to put it in cable ramps. The Event Manager saved both time and money by knowing her facility.

b. Set a realistic budget to spend on the event that includes the ideas you want for the AV. You can not produce a superbowl size event on $60,000 production costs. Develop relationships with AV vendors and ask them their thoughts on costs. If you are in a city with a strong union labor workforce, you need to allocate additional costs of stage hands, loaders, minimum hours, etc.

c. When designing a creative event, meet with your AV supplier and ask for their opinion, thoughts and ideas that they may have. AV companies don’t expect planners to be up-to-date on every piece of gear available, but as industry leaders of technology, we know what equipment is best suited for different events, sizes, performance and can help you put structure to your design.

d. If the client really needs something so different and unusual – hire a set designer who will work with your budget to design a showcase event for you with all the elements of audio, lighting and video. (From my experience they hate the logistics of event planning and only want to be designers) They can draw layouts and specify equipment in conjunction with production management, LD’s, video directors and Audio engineers.

e. If you like a particular AV vendor ask them about traveling to your next event and what costs are involved to do that. Most AV companies travel and after working with you on a couple of events get to know what you are looking for, before you ask. I work with numerous clients that use our company from coast to coast, because they like our service, design and we have a track record of producing successful events even when the parameters of the event change dramatically. Like when a client double booked a show back to back with a national rock concert that took an extra 8 hours longer to unload and we had to load in through the night. The event the next day was seamless and the audience never knew there had been a problem.

Steve Brown Production Director @ Resource Group AV.

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Filming a simple Web Video

Category Audio, Uncategorized, Video, Web - by - on February 7, 2013

Canon Camcorder

Filming a web video requires attention to the slightest detail.

1If you have never filmed a web video before, then you may only be concerned with how the video looks. While this is very important, there is something that you must pay attention to even more than how the video looks. If you have ever watched a web video, and the audio was off, either it was too quite or it didn’t match with what was happening on the screen, you probably stopped the video and went to another website.

This is because the audio of a web video is extremely important in getting your message across. But how do you ensure that your web video has great audio quality?

2The main step to having amazing audio with your web video is to make sure that you have all of the proper equipment. Now, this doesn’t mean that you have to go out and purchase a $500 boom microphone that motion pictures use, however, it does mean that you will need to have at least the basic equipment needed. Many people when they film a web video simply use the microphone that is located on their video camera. While this may be passable for more visually-focused web videos, many videos require a person to talk.

When you use the pre-installed microphone on your camera, you are going to get low-quality sound, and if it is windy outside, or if there is any type of background noise, your audio will be a mess. This is why having a decent hand-held microphone, or even better a lav mic that can clip onto the person speaking’ shirt or jacket is very important.

“audio of a web video is extremely important in getting your message across”

3The best sound is obviously going to come from the Lav attached close to the person speaking mouth. But if you want a video without the obviously black bumble bee being seen then there are alternative methods to get good audio. Just use a hand held as if you are a news reporter. If you are worried that holding a hand-held microphone will make your web video look “cheap,” here are a couple of ways to cheat the system. If you have more than one person helping you with your web video, simply allow the extra person to hold the microphone out of frame while you are speaking. This will ensure that you are clearly, and professionally, heard but you don’t have to worry about holding the microphone. However, if you do not have an extra person to hold the microphone, you can simply place the microphone close to you, but keeping it out of the shot. This method works best on up-close tight framed shot, like above the waist or “bust” shot.

Since the frame will be closer on you, you will not have to worry about the microphone showing up in the shot. If you are filming siting down, you can place the microphone on a table by you. Another great tip when sitting down and filming a tight frame, is to hold the microphone in your lap with it facing upwards, just don’t move your legs a lot!

This will let you have a shot that is focused on your mid-waist and up, as well as allowing the microphone to be close enough to your mouth to record the audio. Make sure that you speak louder than you normally do when the microphone is in your lap, however, don’t yell.

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