There are a wide variety of teleprompters on the market, though not all of them are the right choice for video productions. In fact, two types of teleprompters are particularly effective at allowing speakers to read their script without having to break eye contact with the audience watching at home. This guide will take you through the different types of teleprompters that work best with video productions. That way, when you finally buy a teleprompter kit, you can outfit your set with the right gear to get the job done.
Camera-Mounted Teleprompters
This is one of the most common types of teleprompters on the market, especially when it comes to video productions. Camera-mounted teleprompters are so prominent in video production because, as mentioned above, they provide the speaker with a way to read his or her lines while also making it appear as if they’re speaking to the camera at all times.
These teleprompters create this effect by placing the camera behind a beam-splitter glass. The teleprompter monitor, on the other hand, sits below the camera. The beam-splitter glass reflects the words from the monitor below the camera so the speaker can read them but at the same time, the screen won’t reflect those words back into the camera lens. This means that although the speaker sees words scrolling in front of the camera, the audience watching at home doesn’t.
iPad Teleprompters
If you want a camera-mounted teleprompter setup that is more easily portable because of its light weight, you should consider iPad teleprompters. This means that instead of a normal teleprompter monitor emitting the script onto the beam-splitter glass, your iPad will do it for you. All you need is a teleprompting app for you to put the script into and teleprompter gear that is optimized for tablets. With the right gear, your iPad will slide right in and transform from a normal tablet into a fully functioning teleprompter in no time.
Searching through all the different types of teleprompters on the market is difficult if you don’t know what you’re looking for. Thanks to this guide, you should have a better understanding of which teleprompters are best for video productions. At Ikan, we can provide you with a variety of gear for putting together a high-quality camera-mounted teleprompter. However, if you’re looking for something with a bit more portability, we outfit many of our components to work with an iPad teleprompter as well.