Thanks for agreeing to be a guest on MacVoices. To help you look and sound your best, and to deliver the best product possible to our audience, please review and consider these recommendations.
General:
– Restart your computer immediately prior to the recording session.
– Use a hard-wired Internet connection if at all possible, to achieve maximum bandwidth and stability.
– Have as few applications running as possible.
– Turn off anything that might use significant bandwidth during the recording (backup software, DropBox syncing, etc.).
– If we are using a service that has an app (Zoom, Skype, etc.), please be sure you are updated to the current version.
Audio:
– Use earbuds or earphones if at all possible to prevent audio feedback or bleed over to the recording. The noise cancellation in Zoom, Skype,Teams and the like is good for casual use, and is always improving, but for the best recording, earbuds or earphones are definitely better.
– Use a mic of some kind if you have it. If not, we can experiment with what you have on your computer or in the earbuds to see what will give us the best sound.
– Make your environment as quiet as possible – close doors or windows, put the dog in another room, send the kids to Alaska, warn family members or co-workers that you are recording.
– If you have a less-than-ideal audio environment, locate the mute switch either on your mic or in the software we are using, and cut yourself off when not speaking. It really does help. (That’s a bit of a learned skill, so it should be a last resort.)
Video:
– Avoid having a light source behind you (window, lamp, etc.). The view out your window may be lovely and you would like to share it with us, but you end up looking like you are in witness protection.
– Light your face with something; try to avoid being in shadow. If nothing else, open a blank word processing file, draw out the window to be large on your screen, and leave it in the background as a way to give you a light source.
– Smile – this is fun!