Lavalier microphone placement that survives the edit

A lavalier is a compromise you accept for intelligibility. It sits close to the source, so it beats the room, and it moves with the performer, so it never falls out of shot. The price is clothing, wind, and a tone that changes with every head turn.

The default position

Centre chest, roughly a hand's width below the collarbone, capsule facing up towards the mouth. Higher gives more presence and more clothing noise; lower gives more chest and less definition.

Controlling clothing noise

• Isolate the capsule from fabric with a mount, tape triangle or foam.
• Create a loop in the cable to absorb movement, never pull it tight.
• Treat noisy fabrics with anti static spray or moleskin behind the capsule.
• Test with the actual movement of the scene, not with the actor standing still.

Hiding without strangling

Under a shirt placket, behind a tie, in a hairline for period costume, in a hat brim outdoors. Whatever the hiding place, the capsule needs a small pocket of air; pressing it flat against skin or fabric kills the top end and adds handling noise.

What good placement means in post

Consistent tone across a scene means the dialogue editor can set equalisation once per character rather than per line, and can cut between takes without an audible change of colour. That is hours saved on a feature.

Each lav should be recorded on its own isolated track, so the editor can choose between microphones per line. That means the day ends with poly files that need splitting into named mono stems before the dialogue edit begins.

Radio hygiene

• Scan for clear frequencies at every location, not once in the morning.
• Fresh batteries per block, and a spare transmitter rigged and ready.
• Keep transmitter antennas away from skin, metal and other transmitters.
• Always record a boom as well; a lav is a safety net, not a replacement.