Video Production and Editing Guides: Setup for Video Interview in Photo/Video Studio

Camera and Zoom Audio Recorder Setup

The preferred camera to use is the Canon XA40. In the event that it is unavailable, the Canon G50 or Canon G70 is a suitable alternative. Because as of 7/11/2024, only these three types of DMC video cameras are able to record 4k videos and recording in 4k resolution is recommended for sharp visual quality. The setup is the same on both.

• Canon XA40 and Canon G50/G70 video setup 

  • Set up the camera on a tripod 3-5 ft away from the subject
  • Turn on the camera, press MENU -> Recording Setup -> MP4 resolution -> 3840x2160 (150Mbps)
  • Switch the camera to the M setting, this will allow you to control the settings of the camera
  • Turn on the camera and open the screen. In the upper left corner, press the shooting mode and set it to Av
  • Press the Func. button in the lower left corner of the touchscreen to change settings
    • Set the IRIS to F4.0
    • Set the GAIN to 6.0dB
    • Set White Balance to Daylight
    • In the Exposure Comp. menu, make sure it is set to +/-0 and turn on Zebra 70% to allow you to monitor your bright highlights in the frame.
      • If you have Zebra on Black and White turned on, the view on the camera screen will be in black and white. but the recording will be in color. 
      • If you have Zebra on Black and White turned off, the view on the camera screen will be in color. 
    • In the Focus menu, switch focus to M and turn on Peaking, this will highlight areas in focus in red to aid in focusing
  • Zoom the camera in to the subject's face and adjust the focus using the ring around the front of the camera right behind the lens hood, the subject's eyes and face should show red peaking highlights
  • Zoom back out to your desired composition, giving the subject ample headroom in the frame
• XA40 Audio Setup:

  • Option A - Recommended. Use the included Audio-Technica AT875R Short Shotgun Microphone - Electret Condenser Microphone,

    • Connect it to mic input 1, and turn on Phantom power. 

    • Menu -> Audio, set Channel 2 to input 1

  • Option B - Use 2 Sony ECM-44B lavalier mic,
    • Disconnect the Shotgun microphone from the XLR input on the external audio attachment and switch off phantom power to both XLR inputs 1 and 2 (switch should not be positioned on MIC +48V because Sony ECM-44B lavalier mic doesn't need phantom power. It uses AA battery power. )
    • connect a Sony ECM-44B lavalier microphone to XLR input 1 and XLR input 2
    • Open the menu and go to the first Recording Setup menu, make sure Audio Format is set to 4CH
    • In the first Audio Setup menu, make sure CH2 Input is set to INPUT2
    • Set CH1 and CH2 to M and adjust the volume dials so that when your subject speaks normally, the volume monitor on the screen does not exceed -6 dB

• G50/G70 Audio Setup:

  • Use Rode Microphone VideoMic Pro Shotgun Microphone. 

    • Plug the mic to the mic port, and turn on the power switch on the mic itself. 

    • Menu -> Audio, set Channel 2 to input 1

• Zoom H4N Audio Recorder setup

  • set up a Zoom H4N either on a tripod or a stool next to the camera
  • Press the 1 or 2 button on the Zoom H4N to switch to recording audio from the inputs instead of the onboard microphones. (i.e., the red lights for the 1 and 2 are off, and the red light for the input mic is on.)
  • Press the record button once and monitor audio levels, adjusting the recording level on the side of the H4N with the dial. Then press the record button again to start recording. (i.e. you need to press Record button twice to record.)
• A note on recording and file size:
  • Recording 4K footage requires typically around 1GB per minute. The XA40 and G50 both come with one 128 GB and one 32 GB memory card. If you are recording an interview longer than 2 hours, make sure that the camera recording setting is set to relay recording so that it will switch to the second card when the first one is filled

Backdrop Choices

• In this guide we are using the black paper backdrop, but we have other options available
• Note that if you are using a white, grey, or colored backdrop, you may have to adjust some of the camera settings as the backdrop will reflect more light than a black one
• When using a seamless paper backdrop, pull it down such that there is some amount on the floor to ensure that you do not inadvertently see the green wall behind it when you frame the shot
• Backdrops available
  • Black seamless paper backdrop
  • white seamless paper backdrop
  • dark blue seamless paper backdrop
  • black cloth backdrop
  • white cloth backdrop

3 Point Lighting

• Set up two lights with soft boxes in front of the subject and off to either side 3 ft away angled towards them
  • Set the intensity on one light to 100%. This will be your key light
  • Set the intensity of the other light to 50%. This will be your fill light
• Set up a third light with the barn doors attached instead of a soft box behind the subject and pointed at the back of their head
  • Depending on the color of your subject's hair, you will either increase or decrease the intensity of this light as it is meant to separate the subject from the background. This is referred to as a hair light
  • Typically this light should be kept around 50% as it is not intended to be providing light so much as create a highlight on their hair
  • use the barn doors to direct the light so that it is only falling across their hair to avoid spillover light on the backdrop or their face
• Once you have set the intensity of all of the lights, raise them as high as possible and angle them downward towards the subject

Premiere Pro Workflow

• Create a Premiere Pro project and import your footage
• Drop your footage into the empty sequence to create a sequence with settings that matches your footage settings
• If using the XA40, you will have 4 channel audio. Likely you will want to use channels 1 and 2, which are the Sony ECM-44B Lavalier mics, but play through some of the video with channels 1 and 2 muted and then again with channels 3 and 4 muted to make sure it sounds better
  • Right click on the video and select Unlink, allowing you to delete the unneeded audio tracks
• If using the G50/G70, import the audio files from the Zoom H4N and drop them into the project with your video file
  • Select the video and the audio files and right click, select Synchronize and check the Audio box. Choose 2 Channel
  • Once your audio is synced, right click the video track and select Unlink, which will allow you to delete the camera audio
• Once audio is synced, export the video using the following settings
  • Preset - Custom
  • Format - HEVC (H.265)
  • Video - Match Source at 3840x2160 resolution.
  • Bitrate Settings - set the Target Bit Rate to 15 Mbps. 
  • This is suitable to serve as the master file. The estimated file size for a 2 hour interview with these settings will be 15GB and it will take about 30 minutes to export on the DMC's MacStudio station. 
• For a smaller, faster loading file for viewing and distribution, you may downsample the footage to 1920x1080 resolution and set the Target Bit Rate to 2Mbps