Reddit reviews Pearstone Acrylic Dry Erase Clapboard with Color Sticks (9x11 inches)

This is the one I use, and it's always worked great:

http://www.amazon.com/Pearstone-Acrylic-Clapboard-Sticks-inches/dp/B0064T1LWC/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417573410&sr=8-1&keywords=film+slate

Seeing as this has been a problem since they first started making "talkies", you might consider an old school solution.

I second what Qualsa said. Don't feed into cameras when you can avoid it. hopefully you can get someone to slate and log the shots down. it'll save your lives and make things SO much easier.

notice how your Zoom writes the file names. I think they are usually STE-000 or MONO-000 depending on how you record it (haven't used 4 channels yet) and then write that on the slate. I also have an h4n so the naming conventions might be a little different. for films i'd recommend it naming by the shot or take over by the date. it'll be easier, trust me.

next: don't worry about lavs. Not yet. you have enough to worry about and lavs and 50 cables are going to tie you down, OR you're going to have a hell of a time trying to figure out what frequencies are usable and not. plus you can even still get interference on frequencies that you thought were empty, but they actually weren't. So, please avoid that for now. You need to set aside non-project time to get that stuff right. Even then, it's different in every county or city.

now, Learn what your mics can and can't do. This is essential. The Zoom has great warmth, so maybe for closeups in the studio, you might get better audio using the zoom's sensitive microphones verses a shotgun or something with a long pole, but I can't know for sure without being there, so that one is up to you.

third, back to the slating, if you've never slated before, here is a good one we are using for a feature we are filming. God it has helped out tons:
Right here

if you want to make things a little easier, you can get some [Gaff tape]9http://www.amazon.com/Pro-FLGRN250-Gaffers-yards-Length/dp/B000SYYIGU) to write down things that wont change. IE director, production name, etc. that and a sharpie will save a lot of time.

But what's a slate without a log book? We've been fine with just:



Roll | Scene | Shot | Take | Audio File | Good/bad/fair
----|-----|----|----|----------|-------------
01 | 1 | 1 | 1 | STE-000 | **
01 | 1 | 1 | 2 | STE-001 | (train horn)
01 | 1 | 1 | 3 | STE-002 | (distant horn during whispering line)
01 | 1 | N/a | N/A  | STE-003 | ADR - Whispering Line
01 | 1 | 2 | 1 | STE-004 | (actor fell down)
01 | 1 | 2 | 2 | STE-005 | (might have clipped)
01 | 1 | 2 | 3 | STE-006 | ****
01 | 1 | 2 | 4 | STE-007 | Safety
01 | 1 | 3 | 1 | MONO-000 | Wide

This is how we've been slating: http://i.imgur.com/dMVsGbp.jpg

It's pretty simple and saves a ton of time when editing. If you don't have your own adaptation of logging things, this is a great time to get in the habit. If you think you can handle not logging it, at least make sure to see if you can call out your audio file name and get a loud CLAP once the camera has started rolling and before the director calls action and definitely before yall both cut. that way the editor can know what file to look at.

if you cant get it during the shot, try and ADR. If you can ADR on set in between shots or once yall wrap up, please do. it'll be so much easier to do while everything is fresh on the actors minds. Don't be afraid to get everyone quiet. sometimes you can't get in that sweet spot where you know it sounds the best, but they gotta get the shot. So pull the actors aside and get their audio if you need to. But try try try and get the audio as best that you can so you don't have to do the extra work and can move on to other things.

DEAD CAT'S for the external mics. Find one that fits your setup.

and RED HEADs for the zoom.

Those will save your life.

feel free to correct me. I am just another dude learning his craft. I told you everything to the best of my current knowledge. I'm sure that eventually I'll find better methods than what my crew is currently using someday down the road.