Here at DIYP HQ, we are using a teleprompter to cut down on takes and have a more streamlined “talking head”. Using a prompter has significantly improved our workflow and cut down on recording and editing times. In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to add a remote control to almost any tablet prompter software which will streamline your workflow even more.
The FLEX teleprompter works both with your camera and for speeches with a live audience
Teleprompters are valuable tools for anybody who creates video-based content. They allow you to easily script that content and read it while talking directly to the camera. As creating video content for platforms like YouTube has become more popular this year, so have teleprompters.
This one popped up on my feed recently from the folks at Prompt-it launching their new FLEX 2-in-1 teleprompter on Kickstarter. It works both on-camera with a tablet and a large piece of glass for easy reading, or you can mount it to a stand for use when speaking to an actual live audience – a new trick for a teleprompter intended for use with cameras.
Desview’s low-budget T2 teleprompter takes up to 8″ tablets and costs only $119
Teleprompters have seen something of a surge in popularity over the last couple of years as more and more people have hopped onto YouTube. They’re invaluable for saving time when you regularly want to put out content. No longer do you actually have to try to memorise a script and shoot the same sequence 15 times because you keep messing it up.
The leader in low-budget teleprompters has been the Parrot 2. The Parrot’s seen a little bit of a price drop since its initial release, but now there’s a new contender in town, the Desview T2, which can accept smartphones and tablets with screens up to 8″ for easier reading and only costs $119.
How to make your own DIY HDMI teleprompter from an old laptop screen
Since we posted about Manny Ortiz’s use of the Parrot 2 Teleprompter a few weeks ago, I’ve been developing my own that I can 3D print (more on that in a future post), but I’ve also been keeping an eye out on YouTube to see what others have done with their own DIY teleprompter solutions.
Then, this morning, I spotted this video from Electronoobs on my feed, where he builds his own teleprompter from scratch. It’s a pretty simple build that plugs straight into a desktop or laptop’s HDMI output, allowing for some level of easy remote control.
This is the easiest way to stop screwing up your lines on-camera
Speaking to a camera is rarely an easy thing. Even for seasoned professionals, it can take several takes to get all the words out without screwing something up. Most YouTubers understand this problem intimately. But there is an easy tool to help you stop flubbing your lines, shoot in fewer takes and ultimately take less time to shoot your videos.
In this behind the scenes look at how he shoots his videos, YouTuber Manny Ortiz walks us through the gear he uses to create his videos, including his favourite tool to stop him messing up his lines, the Parrot Teleprompter 2.
The mPrompter is a new teleprompter for everything from phones to cinema cameras
If you regularly speak to camera, teleprompters can be absolute lifesavers. You don’t need to remember scripts, or keep glancing off-camera at a printed sheet or a computer monitor telling you what you’re supposed to say next, it’s all just right up there on the screen, right in front of your face while your eyes remain pointed towards the camera.
But they can get very expensive. The mPrompter, currently running on Kickstarter, hopes to fix all that with a low budget option that works with everything from a phone for smartphone vloggers all the way up to high-end cinema cameras.
How to build your own DIY teleprompter for less than $10
I’ve been following The King of Random on YouTube for a few years now. Most of the stuff they do on there is, as the name would suggest, kinda random and often a little bit weird. Every now and again, though, they post something quite useful for photographers and filmmakers – even if it’s just how to do something that would make a cool practical effect.
This video, though, is definitely useful for anybody who has to sit and speak in front of a camera. Here we see how to make a DIY teleprompter using just a sheet of acrylic and a few pieces of black foamcore. The total cost is probably less than $10 – not including your phone.
Build your own large DIY Teleprompter for under $40
If you speak to camera often, then there’s no getting away from the value of a teleprompter. But, those things can be expensive. There are less expensive options out there, but what if you need something a little bigger and want to spend even less money?
Well, that’s where this video from Skeptically Pwnd comes in. With a clipboard, a couple of L brackets, and a piece of glass (well, and a couple of other bits), we get a fully functional teleprompter that can handle a large tablet.
Turn your phone into a teleprompter with the new Parrot Teleprompter 2
As somebody who speaks to camera now and again, having a script is great. But, I still mess up lines and may end up shooting the same few sentences half a dozen times each. That’s a lot of wasted time, and more footage than I want to have to sift through in post.
So, teleprompters are amazing, but they can also be expensive ranging from a few hundred dollars to over $10K. The Parrot Teleprompter 2 is an exceptional and very inexpensive solution to the teleprompter cost problem. Built for the smaller cameras many of us use for video today, the Parrot 2 utilises your mobile phone to display the content.
How to build a DIY Teleprompter
Anyone who remembers my early videos knows that my command of the english language is far from perfect extremely creative. It was after several long days with many takes that I decided to test using a teleprompter. My first test was just placing an iPad with a teleprompter app and giving it a shot. We went down from million takes to three after 15 minutes of fiddling.
There was one caveat though, it was looking weird as my eyes were not looking at the camera anymore. This is when I decided to build a teleprompter. (In whole honesty, after living with my wooden, handcrafted prompter for several months, I did go for a more streamlined option. But for testing sake, several months of usage and about $15 I was quite happy.
If you think that you can benefit from a magical device that whispers your next line when you are doing video, hit the jump button for instructions.
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