Rode VideoMic

Anymore sound can be recorded directly onto the camera however most DSLRs have a very poor performing on-board mic system even on cameras like the 5DMII and III. Audio is something most people take for granted while in reality a lot of the time audio makes or breaks the film. The most common thing said about student films is that there sound is the worst part. There are a lot of ways a beginner can get good audio though without dishing out thousands of dollars for a Tascam and a nice shotgun microphone. One of the most renowned onboard shotgun microphones is the Rode VideoMic series.

This is the best comparison video I could find. The main difference between these two models are the size. The Rode VideoMic costs about $150 and the VideoMic Pro is about $230. There is now a newer model of the VideoMic that has fixed the wobbly shock mount and is the same price.

(Newer model of the VideoMic)

 I hope to invest in the VideoMic within the next few days. I plan to use the microphone for interviews for short documentary and feature type work. I'm on a limited budget and this is part of the reason for not going for Pro version and in reality I don't really believe that the $70 dollars is worth the size difference which is the big difference between the two models. Eventually I hope to invest in some lavaliere microphones  and eventually a zoom H4 recorder for this type of work. But for now I believe this will suffice.