Shotgun (boom) mic at a park

[myadpass]

Just curious - I had a sony voice recorder without a mic and had little success with it until ironically an accidental recording (it's last) in a park. I have a newer Olympus WS700M, and have a small cardioid (lapel style) mic that I have used with it with pretty good success. It really provides pretty good clarity, but you still have to be within a few feet to work decently. However, I was just wondering (hypothetically speaking) if one could attach a boom mic to the recorder and potentially pick up sounds in a park. What distance would you have to be within to get similar quality to the cardioid at a few feet away. I know that a boom uses essentially the same technology, but many have "zoom" features. Is anyone familiar with these? Would it be worth the investment? Some real damage could be done from a distance of 30-40 feet or greater. I know some of these claim distances of greater than 100 feet, but I'm sure that's in an ideal condition and not with the ambient noise that exists in a park.

[mjj9994]

I have a shotgun w/ zoom capability, but not for camcorder use (may be wrong, but pretty sure they make those specifically for each camcorder type). Plus camcorder mics are usually a bit pricer than 'generic' type shotguns (picked mine up for around $65 on amazon).

Through my 'testing', have found shotgun good for at least 60-100 feet even with background noise, so would guess that for quiet setting like a park could improve that to maybe even 200+ feet (more if amplified).

[myadpass]

Just curious - what brand/model do you have?

[mjj9994]

Wow, didnt think they would still carry it since mine is like 7 yrs old.. but here ya go

http://www.amazon.com/Technica-ATR-55-C ... B00006J04Z