Since the introduction of video capability on the DSLR, more photographers are incorporating motion pictures with their still images, and these moving images can sometimes have some very moving sounds attached to them.
For instance: wedding vows, the cry of a new baby, family singing, or the sound of a skateboarder hitting a tree. The DSLR camera all have some form of in-built microphone but in some cases this is hampered in its operation by the rest of the camera. It might seem like a quite thing to operate when you are moving the lens zoom in your fingers or breathing into the back of it, but the microphone might exaggerate these sound - drowning out the bride or the artillery fire that you are trying to record.
Savvy videographers have long taken to separate microphones some way from the camera, in the hands of assistants who point them toward the sound source. These are the people who fill the interminable credits after a cinema film as you go out to the loo. They are a luxury for the DSLR shooter as there may be no way to put the microphone signal into the camera short of a long cable or and expensive transmitter. And assistants cost - if not money, patience.
The answer has been to provide a good quality stereo microphone that can be attached to the top of the DSLR and plug into the camera directly - but one that is insulated against machine noise created as the camera functions. This is done by suspending the microphone in a cradle with rubber bands - a neat solution.
There is a further reduction of noise provided by a deadening windsock put over the body of the microphone. This is generally a fluffy thing and has garnered the industry nickname of a Dead Cat. You can get other sizes for different microphones that have been referred to as Dead Kittens and Dead Wombats. The Dead Gorilla is out of production.
Please look at the images on this post - we have some lightweight Promaster Vectra MIC-1 units for as little as $ 119 that are perfect for use on smaller cameras chasing kids around the park.
For more professional work, the Røde Videomic and Stereo Videomic are capable of excellent recording with the larger DSLRs. Of course they are a little heavier, but the user is likely to be supporting the camera on a tripod or at least a dedicated shoulder mount.
One final note - the purple tripod and mount in the images is a separate item made by Cullmann - perfect for off camera work on small cameras or microphones.
