Teleprompter
The rise in technology is now so fast paced, that with a small financial outlay and a few hours spent watching tutorials on YouTube, it’s possible for anyone with an HD or 4K capable camera, a reasonable quality microphone and streaming hardware (or software) to broadcast a high quality video live to the world.
Having the technology is one thing but being able to talk confidently to your audience without having to look down and refer to notes is another, this is where the use of an autocue or teleprompter comes in.
Having the technology is one thing but being able to talk confidently to your audience without having to look down and refer to notes is another, this is where the use of an autocue or teleprompter comes in.
I remember some years ago, an autocue system I used, needed two people to move it into position and set it up, some years later my first ‘portable’ autocue system took 20 minutes or so to setup and needed mains power for the monitor.
With the advent of the full size iPad from Apple, it became possible to be totally portable and avoid the need for mains power. My first iPad version of a teleprompter was the DataVideo TP-300, it was bought used from eBay for £250, the new price was (and still is) over £400 + VAT.
This was a game changer for me, it could be setup in minutes and weighed next to nothing, I used an app called iCue on the iPad and the iPhone version of iCue on an old iPhone 4 as a remote control.
The clever bit of the system is the mirror glass allowing a reflection free view of the text displayed on the iPad for the talent to read and be looking direct into the camera lens.
I’m currently in the middle of a series of videos shot outdoors, that require a teleprompter system for the talent to read, each time I go out I’m paranoid about an accident (or otherwise!) of breaking the glass, which would mean not shooting that day and, acquiring a new glass screen from a DataVideo supplier at a cost of over £88 + VAT plus post!
So.....when I spotted a teleprompter system on www.latestdeals.co.uk for £40 (normally £99) I thought it was too good to miss.
It arrived next day on Amazon Prime, as you can see from the photo, it’s in a very neat case, the unit is protected by foam inserts and there is a foam cover over the glass. Once lifted out of the case, it unfolds in seconds and locks into place, attaching a tripod mount, a video camera and an iPad (or similar) takes seconds and then you’re ready to go.
In use, it’s identical to the DataVideo system, I have to say at this point, I’ve had to ‘modify’ the DataVideo iPad mounting system with 2 cable ties and some Gorilla glue on one nut as it wasn’t secure and the iPad could easily fall off, this new system has a much better mounting system for the iPad!
On my shoots, I have a backup of just about everything, a second camera, spare microphone etc so, if the worst happens now and the glass on the DataVideo system breaks, I have a spare teleprompter system that has cost me less than half the price of a new DataVideo glass.
