Episode 71
How to use your iPhone to record your podcast professionally
Today I’m sharing my insights on how to record high-quality content using nothing but your iPhone and a microphone. In this episode, I'll walk you through the essential equipment, setup, and tips that I've personally found invaluable for producing top-notch recordings on the go.
The Essential Gear
My weapon of choice is the Rode PodMic USB microphone. It's compact and perfect for travellers like me, but it does come with a pop filter that adds a bit of bulk. Don't be put off by its size, though, because that pop filter is crucial for reducing those annoying plosive sounds, like P's and B's, in your recordings. And to keep your recording stable and shake-free, a reliable tripod is a must. My personal favourite is the Manfrotto Tripod with a smartphone adapter. It's not only sturdy but also highly portable, allowing me to record from virtually anywhere.
Setting Up Your Smartphone
Now, let's talk about the heart of this mobile podcasting setup—your smartphone. I use an iPhone 14 Pro, and I'll show you how to connect it to the Rode PodMic USB microphone using a separate USB cable. I'll also walk you through the benefits of the Rode Central app, which allows you to fine-tune your microphone's settings for that perfect audio quality.
Lighting and Noise Control
Don't underestimate the significance of lighting and noise control. While recording, I always make sure to have good natural light. However, I'm well aware that sometimes you can't control external noise, like chirping birds or barking dogs. Here's my advice: pause and let the noise pass, making post-production editing a breeze.
Cinematic Touch and Camera Placement
For that extra touch of professionalism, I often use the cinematic camera option available on my iPhone 14 Pro. It creates a beautiful background blur that instantly elevates the quality of your recordings. I also recommend using the back camera for higher video quality, even if it means you can't see yourself during the recording.
Recording with Guests
If you plan to have guests on your podcast while on the go, I suggest keeping it simple with a single high-quality microphone that you can pass around. This ensures a smooth flow of conversation without the hassle of multiple microphones and phones.
Conclusion
So, there you have it! My personal tips and tricks for recording professional podcast episodes on the go. Whether you're a digital nomad, a traveller looking to create content, or simply curious about diversifying your recording locations, I hope you found these insights helpful.
Resources Mentioned:
LINKS:
EQUIPMENT WE USE TO PRODUCE THIS PODCAST
Aputure Amaran 200d LED Video Light
Transcript
Today I'm coming to you from my bedroom
Speaker:to shoot a video that shows you how
Speaker:you can record really simply, just
Speaker:using your phone, iPhone smartphone,
Speaker:as long as there is a good enough
Speaker:camera and a microphone that you
Speaker:can plug straight into the Phone.
Speaker:in my case I'm using the Rode PodMic USB.
Speaker:This is a microphone I've
Speaker:already done a review on and
Speaker:I've also done a battle on too.
Speaker:I wanted to use this microphone
Speaker:because I did quite a few tests with
Speaker:different microphones, and this was
Speaker:still my favorite to record if you're
Speaker:on holidays or something like that.
Speaker:the thing I will say, obviously
Speaker:it's quite big and chunky,
Speaker:you can take that off and it
Speaker:gets smaller, but then you do
Speaker:have the problem of the popping,
Speaker:because this is a pop filter.
Speaker:And so this goes on top of the
Speaker:microphone, uh, and it helps.
Speaker:Reduce those plosives that
Speaker:you have when you say P's and
Speaker:B's and if we put this back on
Speaker:If I say P's and B's it's
Speaker:nowhere near as bad So that's
Speaker:why the pop filter is important.
Speaker:Even though it doesn't make it kind
Speaker:of chunky I'm using the iPhone 14
Speaker:pro and I'm plugging it straight into
Speaker:this road pod mic U S B, using A U S
Speaker:B cable it's a cable that doesn't come
Speaker:in the box with the Rode PodMic USB.
Speaker:You have to get it separately
Speaker:and I'll include a link to it
Speaker:so that you can go and find it.
Speaker:It is a cable from Rode Once you have
Speaker:that cable, it's pretty simple to set up.
Speaker:You just plug it in and
Speaker:you plug in the other side.
Speaker:You can download the Rode Central
Speaker:app, which gives you some adjustments
Speaker:that you can make from within that
Speaker:app for this particular microphone.
Speaker:There's some processing that you can do.
Speaker:It's a nice little added feature if
Speaker:you know what you're doing from an
Speaker:audio perspective and you want to
Speaker:make some changes to the sound of
Speaker:the microphone so that there's less
Speaker:post production, So the only other
Speaker:thing you really need is a tripod.
Speaker:And in this case, I'm using a
Speaker:Manfrotto tripod with a smartphone
Speaker:adapter on the top of it.
Speaker:that just means that I can
Speaker:basically set it up wherever I
Speaker:want and have a tripod there.
Speaker:This particular stand packs down to be
Speaker:quite small, so it's very easy to just
Speaker:shove in a backpack and take with you.
Speaker:And then you've got to think
Speaker:about is, okay, well, what's
Speaker:my backdrop going to be like?
Speaker:Do I have good lighting?
Speaker:there are some lights that you can get
Speaker:that are nice and small, but if it's
Speaker:something that you're traveling and
Speaker:you don't have space for lights, or
Speaker:you don't want to worry about charging
Speaker:them, or X, Y, Z, you know, all that
Speaker:sort of thing, you just need to make
Speaker:sure that you have good natural light.
Speaker:Now, in this situation,
Speaker:I have flawed his...
Speaker:So, um, I have windows on one side,
Speaker:which is directly in front of me, and
Speaker:then I have windows all along the side
Speaker:as well here in this bedroom, I have,
Speaker:uh, linen floor to ceiling curtains.
Speaker:that are white that filter the light so
Speaker:that it's not smacking me in the face.
Speaker:because the less light you have,
Speaker:the harder your phone or your camera
Speaker:has to work to actually give you the
Speaker:result, like to make you look good.
Speaker:The other thing to suggest is just
Speaker:to make sure that you have controlled
Speaker:the noise as much as you can.
Speaker:So in my case, I had some chirping
Speaker:birds outside And so I had to shut.
Speaker:The windows, for those situations
Speaker:where there's dog barks or there's
Speaker:planes, or there's, you know, anything
Speaker:that you can't control, just pause
Speaker:because it makes it way easier to
Speaker:edit that out in post production.
Speaker:If you're just not
Speaker:talking over those things.
Speaker:And then the other thing I will say
Speaker:is that particularly in the iPhone
Speaker:14 model, and I'm not sure about.
Speaker:The 15 or the 13, but I
Speaker:know for my phone, I have
Speaker:cinematic as a camera option.
Speaker:So when I go to just the camera app
Speaker:on the iPhone, I can select cinematic,
Speaker:which means it gives you that blur,
Speaker:even though it's not real blur.
Speaker:It still gives you that kind of
Speaker:distance from the background,
Speaker:makes it feel a bit more fancy
Speaker:than just the camera in itself.
Speaker:I'm also using the back camera to
Speaker:record so that I can record in 4k, and
Speaker:have it be high quality because the
Speaker:front facing camera is nowhere near
Speaker:as good as the back facing cameras.
Speaker:And so it's important that
Speaker:I've set it up that way.
Speaker:I can't see myself, but if I know how
Speaker:I've set up the shot to begin with.
Speaker:And I've tested it, then there's
Speaker:no reason for me to be looking
Speaker:at myself through the whole time.
Speaker:In fact, it's quite
Speaker:distracting when I do that.
Speaker:So I hope that really helps.
Speaker:If you are looking to go on location,
Speaker:be a bit of a digital nomad for a while.
Speaker:You want to go on holidays and
Speaker:you want to record some content.
Speaker:Maybe you want to
Speaker:record with some people.
Speaker:You can do it just with one mic
Speaker:like this and you can kind of...
Speaker:Ask a question, pass it over, I know
Speaker:the flow of the conversation isn't as
Speaker:good when you do that, but uh, the other
Speaker:option gets a little bit more complicated
Speaker:because you need to then have multiple
Speaker:microphones, multiple phones set up, that
Speaker:can be a little bit hard So if you're
Speaker:trying to keep it really light, then
Speaker:I suggest one microphone, high quality
Speaker:microphone that you hold just like this.
Speaker:It's not heavy.
Speaker:And then pass it over if
Speaker:you're going to have guests on.
Speaker:And that will be a pretty seamless
Speaker:way to do your recordings.
Speaker:only other thing maybe I would say
Speaker:is if you're going to have guests,
Speaker:and it's cool to have multiple camera
Speaker:angles, then yes, two phones is good.
Speaker:Preferably the same phone.
Speaker:Two of the same phone and two of
Speaker:the same microphone and then you can
Speaker:set them up with different angles so
Speaker:that when you do the post production
Speaker:you can split between them as well.
Speaker:So it just depends on how
Speaker:fancy you're going to go.
Speaker:It depends on how much effort and how
Speaker:much gear you want to bring, how much
Speaker:space in your luggage you actually have.
Speaker:But this is my recommendation, and I
Speaker:wanted to show you what it sounds like
Speaker:and looks like to record in a location
Speaker:that isn't my normal recording situation.
Speaker:If you've enjoyed this video,
Speaker:I hope that you will subscribe
Speaker:to the channel, like it.
Speaker:I will be doing all sorts of microphone
Speaker:battles, reviews, software reviews,
Speaker:Anything to do with audio, podcasting,
Speaker:that is really what we do here at Bambi
Speaker:Media, and thank you for watching.
