Really, Beware of Thunder!
Before you plan a shoot, record the ambient sound from the location and go somewhere else and really listen to it. Make sure you aren’t missing something that’s going to bedevil you later, such as an elevator, nearby crowd noises, crashing sounds from across the street, whatever. It’s usually easier to find a new location than to clean up crap audio.
If you can’t change the ambient sound, maybe you can work with it. Whatever’s making sound in the area, film a few minutes of it. For example, if there’s construction going on, film the crew. That way, if
you find you can’t get the sound out, you can always arrange for the construction to be a part of the scene.
Having a minute of clean ambient audio is better than nothing, but having clean audio to start is better still.
(thank you for that tip, Brad Mays!)
