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Throughout reading week I have been studying the material from Avid Learning Central in preparation for the Pro Tools 101 Exam.

I have used my notes from each lesson recorded on my Padlet to create revision materials. These have included flashcards, as well as quizzes produced on Quizlet. I intend to create flashcards to focus on shortcuts specifically as not only will this be helpful for my exam, but also remembering for general Pro Tools use.

Although exams arn't my strongest point, I will use this time to help myself as much as possible!

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Key points for revision

DYNAMIC RANGE:

Maximum dynamic range for 16-Bit audio - 96 Decibels (dB)

Maximum dynamic range for 24-Bit audio - 144 Decibels (dB)

TRACK TYPES:

Maximum MIDI tracks in Pro Tools -  64

For Ultimate - 1024

Maximum AUX tracks in Pro Tools -  128

For Ultimate - 1024

Maximum Instrument tracks -  512

(Same for both Studio and Ultimate)

Maximum Video tracks in Pro Tools - 1

For Ultimate - 64

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The feedback I received for both films in the crit were relatively positive, with no significant issues that I wasn't already aware of surfacing in the discussion around the films. The comments we received were helpful regarding the future development of the films, and allowed me to reflect upon my own input and workflow during the duration of the projects.

In this post I will summarise the key points in our feedback, and build upon how I plan to implement this into my future work.

Hands of Men:

Good work on the dialogue edit - issues from on set recording are barely audible, could even be highlighted more in the overall mix.

Sound design worked well - could be pushed even further to highlight the absurdity of the film, specifically with the atmos.

Moving Day:

Atmos is too quiet - make the atmos louder and give it more layers, at the moment sounds very empty and almost surreal.

Include the building noises in the sound design - would add more to the story as well as fleshing out the soundscape, would make the builder and dialogue make more sense within the context of the film.

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Before beginning our sound work on the final films, we had tutorials with Zoe and Derek to discuss feedback on our rehearsal edits/first drafts of picture lock. This was very helpful, as it highlighted the strengths and weakness of our projects, while also highlighting potential issues we were to expect as we proceeded with post-production.

I will summarise the feedback we received for each film below.

Hands of Men:

Significant issues with on set sound - far too loud and is constantly clipping, consult with Anne-Marie to discuss potential solutions.

Holes in the narrative - despite the hand hurting when she looks at it, there is moments where it is looked at and there is no reaction from him. Sound in particular should be used to help fix this issue (sound when she 'looks' at hand).

Moving Day:

Lack of work to be shown - improvements need to be made with communication in the group in all departments. Use email as a consistent form of communication to ensure clear communication between group members.

Building noises effecting sound recording on set - in order to work the building noises into the soundscape of the film, include a visual explanation on second day of shooting (builder appearing on screen). Supplement this in the sound design to emphasise its significance in the plot.

Overall, I found these tutorials very helpful for improving our workflow in the oncoming days of post-production. This is true for Moving Day in particular, as we received this feedback between shoot days, meaning we could alter our workflow on set to reflect the comments made in the tutorial.

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Avid Learning Central Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 7)

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Avid Learning Central Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 7)

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Lesson 7

TRACK SELECTION:

Multiple Tracks - press and hold the 'Shift' key, and click on the last clip within the range you want to highlight.

All Tracks - hold the 'Option' key and click on any track within the session.

Two Non-Adjacent Tracks - hold the 'Shift' key and highlight the area on one track, then click on the other.

When 'Link Track and Edit Selection' is enabled, any track within a selected section will translate to other tracks you may click on.

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 6)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 6)

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Lesson 6

MIDI BASICS:

MIDI is not audio! - it is a digital language that allows musical devices to communicate with each other.

NAMM invented MIDI technology, releasing to the public in 1984.

MIDI has no sound by itself, it only controls the instrument it is assigned to.

MIDI DATA:

Channels - data is assigned to one of 16 MIDI channels, controlling different instruments.

Note Data - individual notes that are recorded and played back, including pitch, timing, duration and velocity.

Continuous Controllers - represents 'none data' such as volume, pitch change and expression. Allows the notes to change during a performance.

CONTROLLERS + SOUND MODULES:

The connection between instrument and computer is made via a five-pin DIN connector.

One end of the cable is connected to the 'MIDI Out' port, the other connected to a synth's 'MIDI In' port. Essentially allows sound to pass through the module to sound generating devices, triggering multiple via one key.

MIDI controllers are not only keyboards, other examples include:

AKAI EWI - Electronic Wind Instrument

Moog Theremini - a MIDI version of a theremini (an electric instrument controlled without the touch of a performer).

VIRTUAL INSTRUMENTS:

Can either be stand alone software applicants or plug-ins.

They are less expensive than a physical instrument, and easy to use with DAW s (a software application used to edit audio, Pro Tools etc).

They can also be used multiple times within one session, and connect via USB.

MIDI CONTROLS:

MIDI controls are accessible via the 'Edit Window' toolbar. This allows you to edit various time measuring features such as 'Meter' and 'Tempo'.

The default meter for Pro Tools is 4/4 - this can be changed by double clicking 'Meter Change'.

The default tempo for Pro Tools is 120 BPM - this can be changed by selecting 'Tempo Value' and pressing the 'T' key.

MIDI MERGE - when activated will ensure that any new MIDI tracks will not overwrite any previously recorded.

IMPORTING MIDI DATA:

When importing MIDI data, it will become part of the session file itself. The 'MIDI Input Selector' will determine what plays through.

Enabling 'MIDI Merge' will alter the recording process - MIDI data will be added to any MIDI that is already on the track.

The 'Virtual MIDI Keyboard' can be accessed via the 'Window' menu, and then 'MIDI Keyboard'.

The octave of the 'Virtual MIDI Keyboard' can be shifted up or down by using the 'Z' and 'X' keys.

VIRTUAL INSTRUMENT PLUG-INS:

Xpand!2 - a 'multi-timbral synthesiser'. Has multiple layers and a total of 4 parts.

Boom - primarily for beat making, can trigger individual notes from an instrument track.

Structure Free - acts as a 'sampler'. Uses small recordings of real world sounds to be played from a MIDI keyboard/controller.

EDITING MIDI:

You can alter your view of a MIDI track by selecting the 'Views' option in the 'Track Selector'.

Clips View - allows you to see all MIDI data in clip-sized blocks.

Notes View - gives access to each individual note on a track, allowing the user to change it independently.

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 5)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 5)

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Lesson 5

MICROPHONES:

Considered to be a form of transducer - a device that converts one form of energy to another.

Preamplification - occurs when the voltage being transmitted via an input is too low.

Mic Preamp - increases the signal level of an input to line-level via the 3-Pin XLR on the mic.

Audio Interface - usually includes a built-in preamp.

USB - simplest solution for boosting signal, includes built it preamp and audio interface.

There are three shortcuts to begin recording:

1. F12

2. 3 (Num Keypad)

3. Command + Spacebar

MIC TYPES:

Dynamic - works via a moving coil of wire around a magnet, oldest type of microphone.

PROS - cheap, simple and sturdy.

CONS - not sensitive to high frequencies.

Condenser - powered by two metal plates supplied with small electrical charge, found typically in studios. Requires phantom power.

PROS - records in detail over a large frequency range.

CONS - very delicate and expensive.

Ribbon - powered by a thin strip of metal between two magnets (no diaphragm).

PROS - high quality and accurate.

CONS - delicate and expensive.

DIAPHRAGMS:

Large diaphragm - have higher signal and lower noise. Less sensitive but not as accurate.

Small diaphragm - more technically accurate, and more responsive to higher frequencies.

POLARITY PATTERNS:

A polarity pattern represents the directionality of a microphone.

There are three main types of polarity pattern:

Omnidirectional - captures sound in all directions, giving a more natural sound.

Cardioid - picks up only what is in front of it, sounds from the back and side will not be recorded.

Figure 8 - primarily picks up sound in front and behind, good for recording atmosphere.

LINE LEVEL SIGNALS:

Used in studios for connecting devices to an interface.

-10 dBv - used in consumer level and some professional equipment.

+4 dBu - used in high end equipment.

PROXIMITY EFFECT - a disproportional increase in low frequency in a recording, occurring when a space is too small.

Omnidirectional microphones are not effect by proximity effect.

WHOLE FILE + SUBSET CLIPS:

Whole Files - starts on the first sample of the audio file, ends on the last.

Subset Clips - any clip that doesn't r epresent a complete audio file. For example, a whole file modified by the 'Trim' tool is now a subset clip.

Whole file clips will appear bold in the clip list, whereas subset clips will be thin.

Pro Tools automatically adds a hyphen (-) to any new subset clips.

Multi-Channel Clips can be identified in the clip list via a 'disclosure triangle', which will be next to it. When you click on this it reveals a drop down, which then shows the two mono tracks.

To rename a clip, double click using the grabber tool.

REMOVING/DELETING FILES:

The shortcut to clear selected clips is 'Shift' + 'Command' + 'B'.

When deleting whole and subset clips, the dialogue box will be different:

Subset Clips - will read, 'This operation clears selected clips'.

Whole File Clips - will read, 'REMOVE selected tracks from this session. MOVE TO TRASH for selected source files, if possible. DELETE selected source files permanently from disks'

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 4)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 4)

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Lesson 4

COUNTERS - found at the top of the edit window, they show the location of the timeline insertion.

If a counter is a single figure, it is the main counter. To change the timescale of this, select main counter selector.

After doing this, the following options will appear:

Bars|Beats

Min:Secs

Timecode

Feet+ Frames

Samples

SUB COUNTER - allows you to measure the passage of time in a session in multiple ways.

RULERS - the view menu allows you to add/edit rulers (when put in Ruler View).

ZOOMING - can be done horizontally or vertically by using the bracket keys.

To focus on a specific part/section of a track, click and drag with the zoomer tool.

Double clicking with the zoom tool will show the entirety of a session.

SCROLLING MENU:

There are several options available in the scrolling menu:

NO SCROLLING - the session will not automatically scroll when played back.

AFTER PLAYBACK -  same as no scrolling, but only active when playback stops. The edit window will automatically scroll back to where it stopped.

PAGE - the scrolling is determined by where on the page the cursor is placed.

CONTINUOUS - the playback cursor is in the middle of the screen while the edit window scrolls.

INSERTION FOLLOWS PLAYBACK:

When disabled,  playback begins where the timeline insertion is set. When stopped, it will go back to where it was originally set.

When enabled, playback will begin where the timeline insertion is set. When stopped, it will pause where playback ended, pick up where it was paused, and play again.

When 'no scrolling' i s active, 'insertion follows playback' is usually disabled.

THE EDIT MODES:

SLIP MODE - tools will move more smoothly and freely. [F2 Key]

SHUFFLE MODE - allows to move tracks between each other.  [F1 Key]

GRID MODE - tracks will snap to the lines on the timeline. [F4 Key]

SPOT MODE - aids specific positioning of tracks on the timeline. [F3 Key]

SHORTCUTS:

ZOOM IN/OUT - 'Command' + 'Option' and either '()'

ZOOM TOOL - 'F5' key OR '[]'

DISABLE/ENABLE TIMELINE INSERTION - 'N' key

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Week one of Cinematic Post Production has been mostly setting up for the coming weeks of learning. I have successfully completed two lessons on Avid Learning in relation to Pro Tools.

As I have some previous experience with Pro Tools I have been able to navigate this quite comfortably, however, taking on information regarding the more scientific and technical aspects of the software and sound work in general has proven to be quite challenging. Overall, I have enjoyed week one and look forward to improving my knowledge of sound in post production.

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OPENING AN AAF:

A session will be created automatically when opening an AAF.

Must be 25 frames per second.

Sound recorded on set should be 24-bit.

The editor MUST provide and EMBEDDED AAF!

The order of the track in the original AAF should be in the order: MIX - BOOM - LAVS.

Via the menu 'Setup - I/O' you should ensure channel 1 and channel 2 are the main output.

Listen to the guide track to ensure the audio is synced with the video.

SHORTCUTS:

Command + E - makes a cut in the track.

Command + Shift + N - creates a new track.

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AAF (continued):

Once fully looked through by the sound designer, the AAF should be condensed into three tracks: MIX - BOOM - LAV.

All recordings should be in one of the three tracks, the order of the tracks being as stated above.

DIALOGUE EDITING:

Pre Fader Metering - used to give a signal reading from the Clip Gain, but does not show the edits you make.

Basic dialogue should meter 2 thirds up from the waveform.

The Clip Line tool can be used to adjust the volume of dialogue specific to certain parts of the track.

If you are required to create an atmos or any work outside of the main session track in the session you can use a scratch track.

SHORTCUTS:

'+' and '-' - can be used to nudge.

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 3)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 3)

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Lesson 3

AUXILERY INPUT TRACKS:

An Auxiliary Input Track is a bus that can receive audio from other tracks and reproduce them.

Most Pro Tools software can support more than one AUX track.

MIDI TRACKS:

MIDI clips can be input via a clip/recording from a MIDI instrument.

A MIDI track cannot be listened to on its own, it is commonly used along side an AUX track.

Pro Tools Studio and Ultimate can accommodate up to 1024 MIDI tracks.

INSTRUMENT TRACKS:

An instrument track is a combination of the AUX and MIDI tracks.

Allows the user record MIDI information into the track and output it from a virtual instrument assigned.

Instruments have two max tracks limits: for Artist this is 32, for Ultimate + Studio this is 512.

VIDEO TRACKS:

Pro Tools Artist: does not support video tracks.

Pro Tools Studio: single video track is supported.

Pro Tools Ultimate: 64 video tracks are supported.

VCA MASTER TRACKS:

Stands for V oltage C ontrolled A mplifier.

The VCA master track controls the other tracks.

Pro Tools Artist does not support VCA tracks, but Studio and Ultimate can support up to 128.

BASIC FOLDER TRACKS:

Simply used for organisation.

The user will have limited control over the tracks within the folder.

All Pro Tools versions will be able to support up to 2000 basic folder tracks.

ROUTING FOLDER TRACKS:

Acts as a combination of the basic folder and AUX input track.

It helps to simplify large sessions by influencing the mix process.

Shift + Command + N is the shortcut for creating a new track.

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CATEGORIES OF FOLEY:

1. Footsteps

2. Movements

3. Objects

Applies to anything that the actor has touched/manipulated.

Conventionally, foley should sound like it exists in the same 'space' as the dialogue.

For foley, sessions should be marked up. Can be done with markers or empty clip groups (good for ADR).

MOVEMENT TRACKS: typically layered sounds re-creating clothing/material sounds.

Although it won't all be used, provide foley for the entire film just in case!

It is difficult to make close up recordings appear to be further away. If in doubt, record from further away than needed.

For recording footsteps, weight and surface are key in producing an accurate recreation.

Foley can help to portray character. For example, if everything a character touches sounds sharp, we can presume they are dangerous or sinister.

SHORTCUTS:

[All shortcuts to do with markers will be on the number pad]

'Return' (num) - places a marker.

'. 1 .' (num) - snap to marker.

5 (num) - access to memory location.

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The dialogue edit for Hands of Men proved to be challenging due to a mistake made on set. As a result I have had to deal with all three microphones used on set combining into one recording, resulting in significant clipping.

I have sought out guidance regarding how to deal with this issue, which has been extremely helpful with fixing the audio to its best state. Despite the process being difficult, I was able to learn from this experience from both a sound recording and sound designing perspective.

I have compiled a list of information regarding how to improve my dialogue both in Hands of Men and also in the future.

TIPS FOR DIALOGUE EDIT:

For dialogue edit with foley, cut out all the sound inbetween dialogue.

For dialogue edit without foley, include an atmos track in the session.

RX De-noise - a noise reduction plug-in that reduces the background noise in a track. When put in learn mode, allows you to highlight a section of a clip and reduce this noise from the entire track.

ProLim - a limiter plug-in that limits the output of a track. Is useful for making sure your audio does not peak.

I found that the use of de-noising plug-ins did effect the sound of the audio in both positive and negative ways. The negative being that it removed the depth in the dialogue, giving it a tinny, almost muffled sound. Despite this not being ideal, within the context of Hands of Men, this worked very well as the aim for the final film was to create something surrealist and quirky. As I have stated previously, from both a sound recording and editing perspective this project has allowed me to learn from mistakes. This meaning I will be less likely to make them in the future, and be equipped to deal with them if they happen to occur again.

After combining the two Pro Tools sessions, the dialogue fit well with the tone set by the sound design despite its imperfect quality. The only changes needed were a slight adjustment of levels to match the dialogue volume to the atmos, which was purposefully intrusive to the dialogue of the film.

As a whole, I am happy with how Hands of Men despite the problematic context of the dialogue edit. I am pleased with how it turned out and have learned a lot from this project.

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The concept for the sound design in Moving Day is based in realism, the tone of the film as a whole being along the lines of realism/drama. As a whole, the film is very quiet, the dialogue being important for conveying the narrative. The main aim of my sound design being to create a backdrop for the dialogue.

A significant challenge I faced was due to issues on set with sound recording, this being frequent construction work. Ironically, little to no building sound actually effected the recording, meaning we had incorporated a builder into the script to cover this issue. As a result, I was presented with the choice of artificially including builder noises, or discarding them completely. After receiving feedback, it was evident that the best option would be to draw less attention to this aspect of the film, hence my final decision to completely remove the building sounds from the design.

The overall execution of the sound design was also impacted due to issues with the edit, as we has very little time to combine dialogue and sound design. As a result, the volume of atmos and dialogue is off in moments of the film, primarily with the atmos being too quiet/inaudible.

Most of my sound design work on this project consisted of highlighting sounds that naturally occurred within the image. This mainly consisting of footsteps, doors closing and the movement of objects. This was mainly sourced from the on set sound, some of it coming from the sound bank. As I mentioned before, Moving Day is a film that has a very naturalistic soundscape, I believe that my sound design has achieved this.

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 2)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 2)

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Lesson 2

STARTING UP PRO TOOLS:

The monitor speakers should be the last thing you turn on when starting up. This is due to a spike of voltage causing a pop, this can damage the speakers.

The order in which you power up Pro Tools should be as follows:

1. Start with all devices powered down.

2. Turn on the devices that use external power (apart from the computer).

3. Power up the computer.

4. Launch the Pro Tools application.

5. Turn on the monitor speakers.

A session file saved from Pro Tools will have the '.ptx' file extension.

SHORTCUTS:

To return to beginning of the timeline, press the return key.

To go to the end of the timeline, press the enter + alt keys.

To create a new session, press the command + N keys.

CREATING A SESSION:

When creating a session, choose Local Storage.

If the interleaved files option is left unchecked, all audio files imported to the session will be mono as default.

The two file types to choose from are BWF (.WAV) and AIFF (Mac only).

It is unnecessary to use a large sample rate. This can be used when working on a project but not the final piece.

WAV + AAF FILES:

WAV files are more common and therefore more compatible.

In Pro Tools, WAV files use Broadcast Wave Format (BWF), including more information.

Both file types are uncompressed PCM, (Pulse Code Modulations), so no difference in quality.

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 1)

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Avid Learning Notes (Pro Tools Lesson 1)

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Lesson 1:

WAVEFORM - the shape of a sound.
This can either be sine, square or triangle

All waveforms have a compression and a rarification phase.

COMPRESSION PHASE - when the energy in a sound wave reaches its peak, and then returns to zero.

RARIFICATION PHASE - when the energy in a sound wave falls dips to negative, and then returns to zero.

One period of compression and rarification is called a cycle. The number of cycles per second is measured in Hertz (Hz).

The human range of hearing is around 20 to 20000 Hz.

A lower frequency sound will have less cycles per second, whereas, a higher frequency with have more.

AMPLITUDE -the energy level of a sound, referred to as volume or gain. Measured in decibels (dB).

The human range for decibels is from 100 to 130 dB.

When audio is recorded, this energy is converted from sonic to electrical energy. This is referred to as analogue-to-digital (A/D), and when played back is called digital-to-analogue (D/A).

Samples measure the amplitude of an audio signal.

NYQUIST-SHANNON SAMPLING THEOREM - to accurately record a sound, the sampling rate must be twice the highest frequency of the sound itself.

One sample should be from the compression phase, and one from the rarification phase.

If less than two samples are recorded, a lower frequency will be applied to the sound.

BIT DEPTH - the number of bits of information in a sample, corresponding to its quality.

The most common bit depths are 16-bit or 24-bit.

Higher bit depth creates a greater dynamic range. Max dynamic range for 24-bit is 144 dB.