A Cardioid Microphone, as its name implies, has a pick up pattern that looks very much like a heart (Kardia- Greek for Heart). This kind of pick up pattern is ideal for sounds coming from the front because it is Uni, or one, directional. This means that sounds coming from the front and sides of the microphone will be picked up, but sounds coming from behind will be eliminated.

Super-Cardioid Microphones have a similar heart shaped pick up pattern, but are designed to pick up distant sounds. These mic's have been described as the audio equivalent of a a telephoto lens. An example of a Super-Cardioid Mic is a 'Gun Microphone', which is ideal for recording dialogue in drama scenes, especially where the microphone cannot be seen in the frame.

Hyper-cardioid microphones are an even longer version of the Super-cardioids. Because of their length they have a greater range than the Cardioid, which means that you can record sound from a greater distance.

All three of these microphones are typical used in drama sequences were the microphone cannot be seen in frame. Any recording that requires a directional sound pick up.

Omni-Directional microphones, as their name implies, pick sound up from all directions. This makes the microphone, which is standard on most camcorders, the ideal microphone for social situations where we want the ambient sounds to create atmosphere.

Tie clip, or Clip mics, are also Omni-directional and are ideal for interview setups were it doesn't matter if the microphone is evident in the frame. Placing any other type of microphone in front of our interviewee can be distracting and draw our attention to the production process. Clip mic's, whilst in frame, are generally not noticeable (unless you place a flourescent green foam windshield over it) and provide excellent sound quality.

If we want to be more selective of the sounds we record, for example, we may want to interview someone and don't particularly want to pick up the people behind us, or the sound of the zoom motor, this is not the ideal microphone to use.

Basically a Boom Mic is a long pole with a directional microphone attached to the end, the mic cable is attached or wrapped around the pole for ease of use and for safety reasons. The boom operator extendeds out the microphone near or above the actor always out of camera's frame. The advantages of using a Boom is eliminating any concerns of hiding microphones and moving freely without disturbing the sound quality.

Microphones, like any piece of equipment, need to be chosen wisely. All microphones pick up sound, but they are generally specific to certain frequencies and uses. For example, some are better at picking up human speech than recording music.

Microphones, although very similar to our own ears, do not have the brain in between to interpret and filter the sounds. So don't forget, when you use a microphone, whether it's on board the camcorder or external to it, always monitor the sound with a pair of Headphones!