Some people are blessed with the ability to present to a camera with fluent speech and a confident delivery. I do a lot of 'talking to camera’ video sequences for my Digital Camera World reviews but I often have to record 4 or 5 takes before I’m happy with my presentation. I often forget the precise name of the gadget that I’m reviewing which necessitates a re-take or two - especially if it's got lots of numbers in its name! I was therefore keen to test the Neewer Teleprompter X14 iii to see if it made my reviews easier to perform and record.
Traditionally presenters on ‘proper’ TV use a teleprompter (or autocue). This is a screen of scrolling text that reflects in an angled mirror. Behind the mirror hides a camera, so when you read the reflected scrolling text you’re looking directly at the lens and therefore appear to be making eye contact with your audience. I’ve seen presenters pop an iPhone on a stand just below their camera lens and set the text to scroll at a set speed. This technique can work but the presenter’s gaze is offset from the lens so they can look a bit ‘shifty’. They can’t control the speed of the scrolling text either which may affect their performance.
