How to record a clean voiceover at home
A voiceover is narration recorded separately from the picture. It lets you get the words right without performing to camera, and it is the backbone of tutorials, travel clips and storytime videos.
Make a small quiet space
Soft furnishings absorb echo. Recording in a wardrobe full of clothes, or under a duvet draped over a chair, sounds surprisingly professional.
Choose the quietest time of day and switch off fans. Record ten seconds of silence first so an editor can learn the room noise if you need to reduce it.
Phone technique
Use the phone's voice recorder app rather than the camera, which often adds processing. Hold the phone about a hand's width from your mouth and slightly to the side so breaths and 'p' sounds do not hit it directly.
Speak a little slower and more clearly than in conversation. Narration that sounds natural to you usually sounds rushed on playback.
Record in chunks
Read one paragraph at a time. If you stumble, pause, then restart the sentence; you can cut the mistake later.
Clap once at the start. The spike in the waveform makes it easy to line up multiple takes.
Fit it to the picture
Edit the voice first, then lay the clips over it. Cutting picture to the rhythm of the narration feels smoother than squeezing a voice to fit fixed clips.
Keep background music well under the voice, around a quarter of its loudness, and duck it further under important lines.
Frequently asked questions
Where at home can I record a voiceover without echo?
Somewhere with soft furnishings, such as a wardrobe full of clothes or under a duvet draped over a chair. Pick a quiet time of day and switch off fans.
Should I record voiceover with the camera app?
It is better to use the phone's voice recorder app, since the camera often adds processing. Hold the phone a hand's width from your mouth, slightly to the side.
Should I edit the voice or the clips first?
Edit the voice first, then lay the clips over it. Cutting the picture to the rhythm of the narration feels smoother than squeezing a voice into fixed clips.