Posted by nobody special on 01/08/08 03:53

Meh, any brand tripod of the right size will work more or less, you
should expect to pay at least as much for sticks and a good fluid pan
head as you do for a pro lens and a pro camera. It's actually a better
value as you buy sticks once and they last forever, unlike cameras
they support. That said, my favorite brands are Sachtler and
O'Connor. Vinten heads are fine but I can't stand their legs.

If the prompters are only going to be in the studio, and never travel,
stick with older, heavier CRT-based heads fed via composite video and
you can put other things up there pretty easily, like the camera's own
output to get a mirror effect, text-based live cuing, powerpoint
slides or an incoming video feed to help make better eye contact...
and distribute the signal around the studio more easily. Stewart
Instruments makes inexpensive ones but they work. Twelve inch diagonal
is as small as I'd want to have in the studio, and I'd get bigger if I
could.

For the software, on PC I suggest DRS-Digitrax, check their web site
for a free full version to download and evaluate. Runs rings around
the other more well-known brands at less than half the price.

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