Using iphone with Zoom H5

[pmarc]

I recorded a video of my trio by connecting an iPhone 14 with a Zoom H5 on a fixed tripod. Came out great but I need another.

This time I'd like 1 fixed tripod with the phone + Zoom, and simultaneously a 2nd fixed tripod in a different position (for angles) with only an iPhone, no Zoom. How do I ultimately synch recordings from the two phones? (And also exclude the lousy audio on the single phone).

I could fairly easily just move the zoom/phone tripod in the second song set to get angles. But obviously this would omit some potentially good footage.

Hope I explained this right.

[adrian_k]

You’ll need some video editing software. I use Shotcut, it’ll do what you want, but there are many other options.

In terms of syncing the two, start with a clap or something similar, that’ll help you line them up. You might find they drift over time, but as you will be cutting between them it’s fixable.

[James Perrett]

As Adrian says, you need some kind of video editing software and match things up using the soundtracks. I use Reaper for video editing because it is what I am familiar with but I have also used Shotcut and Da Vinci Resolve in the past and they are both very capable (and free).

[pmarc]

Thanx all. So you're saying all the pre-editing recording hardware I'm using is correct?? No other hardware considerations?

I'd expect the editing / synching challenge to be more complicated when adding phone #3 and #4.

[James Perrett]

I'd expect the editing / synching challenge to be more complicated when adding phone #3 and #4.

Maybe slightly more complicated but not ludicrously complicated with Reaper.

[pmarc]

How important is it to start all phones at the same time?

[Drew Stephenson]

Not important. Just do a clap or a finger click once they're all running and then you'll have a nice visual and audio trigger to line everything up.

[pmarc]

So you want all the phones to hear the clap. It's a point of reference. So I could actually start the phones 20 sec before the band starts, and start them at slightly different times. The clap bonds them in time.

[Drew Stephenson]

Exactly, the clap gives a really obvious and short transient to line everything up in the video editor.

[pmarc]

I'll have 1 iph14 plus buying two iph 7's now. Will all phones be able to run at 24bit / 44.1kh ?

Or at 48kh if that's better...?

What minimum storage on the 7"s ??

[James Perrett]

I'll have 1 iph14 plus buying two iph 7's now. Will all phones be able to run at 24bit / 44.1kh ?

Or at 48kh if that's better...?

It doesn't matter with Reaper - it will automatically convert the sample rates as needed. It is probably best to set the Reaper project sample rate to the sample rate of the H5 as that is the audio that you will be using for the final mix.

To be honest, I don't think I'd even bother hooking the H5 up to the iPhone. Just record its audio internally and then transfer it to the editing computer.

With most digital audio recorders you can assume that the clock speed is fairly constant so all you need to do is to slide the recordings about until they match at the start and then adjust the speed of each recording (from the F2 dialog in Reaper) so that the ending matches. It might be a good idea to do a clap at the end as well as the start just to be sure.

[pmarc]

Thanx. How bout minimum phone storage? 32 GB will do it?

[James Perrett]

Thanx. How bout minimum phone storage? 32 GB will do it?

It very much depends on how the phone encodes the video. I have no experience with iPhones but I would always record in the best quality possible. Here's a page with storage demands at various settings -

https://larryjordan.com/articles/iphone ... ile-sizes/

.

[pmarc]

Thanx. Looks like a 32GB phone would exceed even the most demanding recording in that graphic. Doubling to 64GB would certainly take care of it.

[Mattsong]

Yes to using a clap to line up the audio and video. Some editing programs, like Premiere and DaVinci Resolve, can sync based on analyzing the audio waveforms.
For any iPhone video recording I highly recommend the free iPhone app, Blackmagic Camera. It maybe a little more than you are looking for but it gives you great control over the video recording. It is quite remarkable.
I would also go with 64 GB if possible.

[pmarc]

64GB good idea. I'm running all 3 phones for the entire 3-hr gig. Afraid to pause during breaks because I might neglect turning one, or all, back on.

I'll download Blackmagic. See what it is. Thanx.

[adrian_k]

To be honest, I don't think I'd even bother hooking the H5 up to the iPhone. Just record its audio internally and then transfer it to the editing computer.

Yes, I agree. This also allows you to place the H5 in the best spot for audio, and freedom to put the cameras where you’ll get the best shots.