SKYPE RIGHT

This post is a kind of “how to” lesson.  In an earlier post, “Talk Radio,” I discussed various methods for interactive voice broadcasting.  But this post is simpler; it just tries to suggest ideas to make your Skype calls, whether for radio or just social, more effective.

Skype, being free as basic software for noncommercial use, is enjoying great popularity.  I have heard any number of Skype radio comments and interviews, have participated in social Skype calls, and even interviewed candidates for jobs via Skype.  Sometimes the sound quality—and video quality on video Skype calls—is great, sometimes not.  This post will discuss ways to get the best audio and even video quality using Skype on a typical laptop or desktop computer.  There is software for Skype calls using cell phones, but there can be severe limitations to the quality possible with that format.

The topics to be discussed are:

1. Microphone types
2. Microphone placement
3. Acoustic surroundings
4. Visual surroundings
5. Camera type and placement

1. Microphone types

Good-quality voice recording benefits from a good microphone.  But unless you are voicing an interview for major market or network radio/TV, and you can keep the mic close to your mouth, a fairly inexpensive mic works.  OK, not a $9 mic, but a $39 mic or slightly higher will often give decent quality.  For serious voiceover production using Skype, a fully professional mic ($90 to hundreds of dollars) fed into a studio-quality computer audio interface would be best, but that can be overkill for casual Skyping.  Mic placement, however, is important.

Some mics are intended for professional interfaces, have large XLR connectors, and may require what is known as “phantom” power.  But there are mics that work OK (for voice, not so much for serious music) that can connect to the mic port of your laptop using a small connector.  Look at your computer’s interface before ordering or buying your mic.

2. Microphone placement

For everyday voice communication, it is generally a good idea for the mic to be quite close to one’s mouth.  I think we have all experienced a situation where we are talking to someone on the phone and they need to use their hands for something so they switch to speakerphone.  Their voice in speakerphone mode usually sounds hollow with lots of room reverberation and extraneous room noise.

Yet many people try to Skype using a laptop computer with a small camera and microphone just above the screen.  When one sits back so the camera gets a good picture, the microphone is usually too far away, especially if the room is “live.”  The voice takes on a “speakerphone” quality.  This can be annoying to listeners and can be a dealbreaker when it comes to radio or television interviews.

A good solution is to use a microphone close to one’s mouth and to listen via headphones or earbuds (to prevent feedback and other issues).  You may notice that even a network TV commentator in a studio might wear an earbud with a small clip-on microphone attached to collar or lapel.  When I Skype for social purposes I tend to use a $90 B&O (Bang & Olufsen) headset with a small mic in the cord.  (See the picture at the head of this post.)  If one needed to do a broadcast television interview then one might want something much more discreet and of even higher quality.

3. Acoustic surroundings

Good sound generally requires an acoustically good environment, though with a close talking microphone one can sometimes get by with less than the ideal.

Dry is best. That means a room that does not promote acoustic reflections.  A room that is nearly empty and has lots of hard, flat surfaces tends to have a “live” sound that can be annoying unless it is a special effect in, say, a radio drama—for example, a scene that takes place in an art museum or a basketball court.  Objects break up sound reflections in a room, so lots of furniture and other “stuff” can be good.  A noted actor and voiceover artist once told me about reading an audiobook in a large, midwestern city while doing a stage play at night.  The public radio station there gave him a “studio” but it had hard surfaces and was not acoustically dry enough for an audiobook.  He had the staff there bring in all kinds of furniture and large objects to fill the room, leaving just enough space for him to sit and read into a microphone.  That solved the problem.

I have heard of voice artists who use their walk-in bedroom closets as studios.  That may feel too claustrophobic for some people but the results can often be good.  Having all of the soft clothes around you can save you the cost of high-end acoustic treatment for a “sound booth” of similar size.

Another consideration is noise from inside the room or outdoors but leaking in through windows or thin walls.  So far we have been talking about sound reflections inside the room where the Skype call is taking place.  But, according to the purpose of the Skype call, one might have to consider sounds from outdoors—dogs, sirens, traffic noise (especially loud trucks and motorcycles), children playing, and so forth.

4. Visual surroundings

Although this blog is mostly about audio, most Skype calls these days include video.  If the call is just a social call with a good friend, then maybe nobody will care if it is visually strong.  But at the college from which I retired, we did job interviews via Skype.  Some TV stations do news interviews using Skype.  In those cases one would like the best possible visual treatment.

• Don’t have the background brighter than the foreground
• Don’t “wear the set”
• Don’t have too many conflicting patterns

Your eyes have a very high dynamic range. They can see bright things and things in the shadows at the same time.  Thus they often mislead when setting up a video interview for Skype or any other purpose.

One of the biggest errors people make is placing the subject (often themselves) in front of a window, thinking, “Let’s enjoy the beautiful fall view.”  But unless one lights up the area in front of the window with strong photographic lighting, the subject will be dark in comparison to the background and the result will almost be a silhouette when seen by the camera.

Even if the subject is not in front of a window, you have to be careful.  I have done an exercise with students where I asked them to set up a television studio featuring a subject sitting on a stool and a plain background, curtain or smooth wall, behind them.  I tell them to do the lighting without use of light meters and without turning on a TV camera.  They do it by eye and when they are done I pull out a light meter.  Usually they have lit the background twice as brightly as the subject. This is one area where the eyes deceive.

The walls in your office or living room may be painted a nice beige color that is easy on the eyes. You also have just purchased a nice beige suit that you decide to wear for your job interview over Skype.  The result will be that you seem weak and nearly invisible in the shot.  Video loves contrasts.  A nice navy suit would work well in front of the beige wall.

Be careful about a “busy” scene. If your wallpaper is floral and you plan to Skype with it as the background, then be sure your clothes are all plain and simple.

If you want to study interview lighting then watch television interviews done by the major networks.  But remember, they usually take several lights out on location, even if it is someone’s living room, so they can control the lighting.  Very few Skype interviews will be that elaborate.

5. Camera type and placement

Almost all Skype interviews will be done with a camera attached to a computer.  Often laptop computers and smartphones have tiny cameras built into them.  In the “early days” these were not very good, but modern computer and phone cameras are quite good.  The camera built into my Android BlackBerry PRIV has a Schneider lens and an 18-megapixel sensor.  Modern Samsung Android phones and Apple iPhones also tend to have excellent cameras.

At home I have a monitor with my desktop Apple computer that does not have a camera built in.  Thus I bought a clip-on camera that attaches to the top of the monitor.  I think I paid $60 for the camera (which connects to a USB port on the computer) and the picture quality is pretty decent for Skype purposes.  But a friend of mine bought a $5 camera over the internet and it is pretty terrible.  Buyer beware.

Since for most Skype purposes the camera is located on or in the computer monitor, it generally captures a good head and shoulders “portrait” as you converse.  It is straight on, much like Richard Avedon portraits, but is what most people expect for an interview.

However, remember what I said above about the microphone placements.  A microphone attached to a monitor may be too far away for the best sound unless the room is extremely “dead.”  Also, the quality of built-in mics may not always be high (though if you are using a smartphone the mic might be pretty good).

Skype has become the “picture telephone” that was envisioned in futuristic articles for decades.  For professional applications, such as network television, there are better solutions in my opinion, but they are more expensive and used by fewer people.  With care, however, a Skype call – audio and video – can be pretty good.  Just try to use it with a high-bandwidth internet service.