photo credit: Natalie Wright

by Dallan Wright

Sometimes it seems life doesn’t move along at an even pace but instead rapidly increases as we increase in age. Add a child to the mix and that feeling is multiplied by a factor of two. With life speeding along we focus our time on the realities in front of us, and sometimes we let very important things slip away.

What am I talking about? I’m suggesting we don’t take enough time preserving our family history for our children and grandchildren. I love audio and I love my family. Because of that I wanted to share with you a way of preserving your family history for the ages other than the traditional journal entry. (Check out my example at the bottom of this post).

1) Grab a digital recorder.  You can spend a lot of money on equipment, but even the little digital business voice recorders can do a great job.  I recorded this interview of my grandparents using the Zoom H4 and two external mics, but you don’t have to spend hundreds of dollars.  For around $30 you can get a little Olympus recorder from Amazon and you’ll be in recording business.  If you want to go nuts I suggest the Zoom H2… you see it being used a lot by professional reporters.

2) Write down your questions and review them beforehand.  You can read them off to the person you’re recording but they’ll feel more relaxed if you don’t have a piece of paper in front of you.

3) Record the interview.  Have fun, ask questions, and don’t go over an hour.  I believe that no man is made to sit longer than an hour in one spot at a time and that goes for interviews and church meetings.  Remember, the longer you record, the duller it will get and the more work you make for yourself at the editing stage.

4) Take pictures!  You’re on site with your subject so you might as well whip out a camera and take some news worthy photos.  These are a couple fantastic shots my wife took of my Grandpa and Grandma.

photo credit: Natalie Wright

4) Edit the audio.  Use a free program like Audacity to cut out pauses, poor sound, or just plain boring parts.  The dullest thing about home videos is not the fact it’s not your family but the fact they’re not edited.  Use the same rules.  Keep it to the point, interesting, and relevant.  I won’t go into how you edit audio here but Audacity can show you the basics.  I’ve used a couple programs but I prefer to use Garageband on the Mac.

Throw in transitions if you want.  I included them in this interview instead of having my questions voiced.  I kept it pretty plain but you may want to throw multiple song clips or sounds into yours.

6) Share your interview with family members on cd’s and through online resources.  Your older audience will appreciate the cd’s and your hip young nephew will appreciate your online prowess.

My grandparents made a large impact in my life and I love them for the time and attention they paid to me.  I thoroughly enjoyed talking with them and I hope they like what I’ve thrown together.  I hope you find a way to preserve your family history, and if it’s through the medium of audio I cheer you on in that effort.

 

 Family Interview - Art and Jan Wright [23:43m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download