The 'Flick-Flick'

Hello there everybody, Nat the junior tech-boy-in-training here, bringing advice about a funny little trick that will make your lives a little easier...

Have you ever gone out to camera - the lights lowered, the five-minute call DVD playing, the congregation gathering - and put your cans on your head and thought, 'I can't hear the director!'


Well, my friends, there are three possible reasons for that:

1) the camera is broken, in which case you should be very afraid of what Andrew will do to you when he catches you! (just kidding)

2) the talkback is turned down - which should always be the case, every time you leave the camera, turn the talkback volume down... and so it follows that every time you go on to camera, you will have to turn the volume up. For those who don't know, the volume control is the TOP dial in the photo, labelled 'intercom'. This is on the side of the camera. or...

3) you need to do the 'Flick-Flick'. The flick-flick is simply a way of re-setting the talkback so that the whoever is speaking can be heard by you.

Look at the photo. The top switch, labelled 'talk', is your talkback switch. It should always be in the 'off' position. If it's 'on', then of course everyone can hear you breathing and snorting and the drums banging away in the background. (often someone - usually a handheld - will knock their switch into the on position, causing every camera-op, tech and director to jump and the director to start yelling 'SOMEONE HAS THEIR MIKE ON!'). Otherwise, leave it in the 'off' position.

When you come out onto camera, if you need to do the flick-flick, simply flick the switch into 'on', then flick it back to 'off'. Then you should be able to hear the director. Also, as Tech-Boy has pointed out, sometimes if that doesn't work, flicking the 'CH' switch from '1' to '2' and back again can also solve the problem.

Easy!