#Tip: Producing multimedia with online in mind

By dominicotine on Flickr. Some rights reserved.

Journalism academic and founder of the Online Journalism Blog Paul Bradshaw put together a Storify last month looking at different ways news outlets have presented multimedia online. In the Storify Bradshaw highlights some of the key features of video and audio made with online in mind, compared to coverage on more traditional broadcast platforms.

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Tip of the day for journalists: Recording good audio as a self-shooter

A video on the BBC College of Production website offers tips from Helen Hutchinson of the BBC Academy on how to ensure good quality audio when working as a self-shooter.

See the video here.

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link.

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#Tip of the day for journalists – making audio slideshows

Image by j_baer on Flickr. Some rights reserved.

Digital and online journalism lecturer at the University of Central Lancashire Andy Dickinson yesterday blogged about how journalists can use Slideshare and Windows Movie Maker to produce audio slideshows. Dickinson outlines, for example, how to combine a presentation file with an audio file (via platforms like AudioBoo or SoundCloud) to produce an audio slideshow in Slideshare.

See the full post here.

On this topic, Journalism.co.uk’s latest tool of the week was Story Wheel, which enables users to create audio slideshows.

Also, our podcast last week, which looked at visual storytelling, included some pointers on producing audio slideshows from Peter Sale, a multimedia producer at the Guardian, where he said they tend to use SoundSlides or in some cases Final Cut Pro.

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link.

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#Tip of the day from Journalism.co.uk – advice for using Skype and recording calls

Freelance journalist Christopher Goodfellow has written a blog post recommending Skype for interviews.

His post recommends a call recorder and details the cost-saving potential.

It’s also worth reading:

• 10 fantastic apps, tips and tools for recording audio
• How to record a Skype call on an iPad / iPhone
• How to record phone interviews

Tipster: Sarah Marshall

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link.

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Tip of the day from Journalism.co.uk – improving use of audio in multimedia reporting

On Poynter there’s a detailed ‘how-to’ by Casey Frechette which runs through 10 tips on improving the way audio is produced and presented in multimedia output.

He writes that “sound can make or break a multimedia production”, and as a result offers a collection of tips on getting it right, from understanding and using four different types of audio in projects to introducing “layers to create richer sound”.

Here is his full list.

Tipster: Rachel McAthy

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link– we will pay a fiver for the best ones published.

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#Tip of the day from Journalism.co.uk – how to set up a recording studio

If you are interested in advice on how to set up a studio in order to record podcasts or audio interviews, this post from Transform.org has some valuable advice.

Tipster: Sarah Marshall

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link– we will pay a fiver for the best ones published.

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Audio Notetaker, software for adding notes to audio, launches Mac version

Audio Notetaker, software designed to help journalists record interviews, organise quotes and add notes and images to specific points in a recording, has launched a Mac version.

The software, made by UK-based company Sonocent, has previously been available for PCs.

It is also aimed at students attending lectures and people attending meetings with a need to record and navigate through audio.

Both versions offer a 30-day free trial, which allows you to test it out before you buy.

The platform allows you to import or record audio, displaying it as bars (see picture below). The spaces between bars signify pauses where the speaker has taken a breath between sentences.

Audio Notetaker also allows you to re-order and edit the recording.

You can highlight various bars, making it easy to find a quote in the recording, no doubt a useful feature for journalists working on a complex and legally sensitive story as audio can be labelled.

The free trial version comes with a lengthy tutorial introducing you to the platform.

After the month-long period trial expires costs are £47.99 for a once-year licence or £95.99 for a a full licence.

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#Tip of the day from Journalism.co.uk – using online audio platforms

In a Poynter how-to Jim Colgan gives a useful run through of three tools being used by journalists working with audio online – SoundCloud, AudioBoo and Broadcastr – and as well as giving pointers on the different ways these can be used for reporting, Colgan also offers plenty of links to examples of how news sites have used each to produce content. Poynter’s post can be found here.

Journalism.co.uk also has more on SoundCloud and AudioBoo at these links.

Tipster: Rachel McAthy

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link – we will pay a fiver for the best ones published.

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App of the week for journalists – iSaidWhat?

App of the week: iSaidWhat?

Operating systems: Apple (iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad)

Cost: £0.69

What is it and how is it of use to journalists? iSaidWhat? is a well thought out audio app that allows you to record and edit clips.

It allows you to alter the recording input level, write a script that you can access from the main recording screen and edit by trimming and arranging clips. You can share clips via email (via m4a or wav formats) or over a wireless network.

Reviews: It gets three stars in iTunes App Store.

Recommended by: ABC NSW political reporter @MarkTobinSydney, ABC news reporters @RyanSheales and ABC journalist @Wendycarlisle

Have you got a favourite app that you use as a journalist? Fill in this form to nominate an app for Journalism.co.uk’s app of the week for journalists.

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#Tip of the day from Journalism.co.uk – audio and photo slideshow inspiration

If you’re interested in creating audio and/or photo slideshows on news events you may find some inspiration in the selection collected here by the Online News Association.

The ONA’s post also features a link to a previous article which outlines how to use Final Cut Pro to produce such slideshows, as a possible “alternative to Soundslides”.

Tipster: Rachel McAthy

If you have a tip you would like to submit to us at Journalism.co.uk email us using this link – we will pay a fiver for the best ones published.

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