Speaking from the Podium

Should you speak from the podium or wander with a wireless lapel microphone?

Many presentation experts tell presenters to get away from the podium because it's too restricting and the presenter will be more casual with the audience by being on the floor rather than the stage (among other reasons). Those same presentation experts don't seem to understand about how open microphones work with different sound systems.

First off, when it comes to sound system configurations and room designs, there are many possible combinations and wireless lavalier mics don't work well with all combinations. Some systems are in the ceiling, some at the front left and right of the room, some in the middle of the stage, etc. Some rooms are dead-sounding, some lively and bright, some have low ceilings and some have flutter echoes (those repetitive echoes between hard, parallel surfaces - clap your hands in any room to find them).

Second, when it comes to presenters and public speakers, there are many different loudness levels, clarity and dynamic properties of the human voice. So, if a person doesn't speak loud enough or very clearly, wireless lapel microphones won't do much good. A presenter needs to be loud and clear, especially with wireless lapel microphones, because the microphone is under their chin and not directly in front of them.

A good podium microphone has the advantage of being directly in front of a speaker's mouth as well as being perfectly stationary, in an optimal, fixed position, away from loudspeakers; any roaming microphones will present problems if they are too close to a loudspeaker.

Let's look at the advantages of being behind a podium versus being on the floor in front of the audience:

Presenting from behind the podium

- you can hide your notes

- you can have a computer screen right in front of you

- the microphone is right in front of you

- there are no batteries to ever worry about

- a podium light can illuminate your face so you are visible from the back of the room

- you are a foot or so higher than the audience, so everybody can see you

- you can take your shoes off (okay, I threw that in just for a laugh!)

Presenting from the floor, in front of the stage

- wireless lapel mics may feed back when too close to a speaker

- you are not lit properly, sometimes (in larger rooms)

- if you don't project and enunciate, people at the back won't hear you well

- if you move your head to the side, you will be further away from the mic (because podium mics are right in front of you, you will never forget they are there; not so with lapel mics)

- if the batteries on the body pack die, well...

- if you make a point by hitting your chest, you will hit the mic

- your wardrobe or jewelry can hit the mic intermittently

- if you put it on your lapel, it is off centre, and therefore you are more likely to be 'off mic'

- if you forget you have it on, you might be in the bathroom with a live mic!!

 Anyway, hope this helps shed some light on the benefits of speaking from behind the podium. There is nothing wrong with speaking from behind the podium. If you must be wireless, a hand held microphone is a great option, because you are pretty much forced to keep it directly in front of you. Cheers!!

- Buck Moore

(Live Event AV Specialist with direct experience from over 4,000 events)

Last Minute Presentation? Be Prepared!

The beauty of the USB key is obvious - presenters can make last minute changes and bring their presentation to a host computer last minute (but, with virtually no time to check it out to make sure it works).

PROBLEM

Here is a situation from an event in September, 2011 where a PC-based PowerPoint show was created as a .pptx and handed in to the host computer the morning of the event with no time to check it out. The host computer was a Mac with an older version of PowerPoint that only reads .ppt (not .pptx).


The slide show was too big to email and there was not time to FTP.  The slide show was eventually transferred to another computer, which could save it in various formats, but ten minutes had passed (the error was discovered during the preceding presentation).

One might suggest that a presenter call ahead to ask what computer and software is being used, but there is no guarantee that the same equipment will actually be in place on the day of the event. A better solution is to have a plan B as well as a plan C.

SOLUTION

Save the slide show as .pptx, .ppt and .pdf, and put them on the same USB key. If the slide show has audio or video in it, the .ppt will still play the media, but the .pdf will not (unless something has changed recently that I am not aware of).

Another note about Macs - bitmaps need to be converted by Quicktime or else they won't show, so only use jpeg images (you'll still go through the 'converting metafile' process on the Mac, though, so allow a few seconds for the Mac to prepare the images for display).

- Buck Moore

When to Use Slide Shows for a Presentation

Some folks balk at the idea of using PowerPoint or Keynote for visual aids during a presentation. Such people are usually snobby speakers, frustrated meeting planners or jaded AV technicians who believe a person should just be able to jump up to a podium an deliver an electrifying speech.

Public speaking has come a long way and while it is true that many visuals shown to audiences are unnecessary because printouts are already supplied (that or the presenter reads the slides anyway), visuals have their place and often become a crucial method of idea support for modern audiences.

During such events as medical conferences, digital media summits or sustainable technologies meetings, slide shows are as integral to the experience as the person on the stage presenting. Great graphics and detailed pictures will help a presenter open a window into their industry sector that speech alone usually cannot accomplish.

So, the next time somebody suggests that a slidwshow presentation is a crutch, ignore them. BUT, you must know how to use the slides to facilitate a successful presentation.

Ask me, I can help!

- Buck Moore
buckmoore.net

Audiovisual Field Testing: Projection.

Report on AV Technology: What Works Well in the World of Multimedia Presentations (and What Could Work Better!).

CONTENT ASSESSMENT - PRESENTATION TECHNOLOGY - LIVE EVENT MULTIMEDIA

In my travels as a presentation AV and multimedia playback specialist, I continually face AV challenges and offer solutions during live events. During the last twenty years, I've been performing live, presenting material in front of groups and running the technical side of live performances, public speaking, multimedia playback and I know what works and what doesn't work.

Over these years, I've worked on many film and video projects as writer, director, camera person, actor and editor, and that experience has made me very interested in helping people assess their live presentation content. Whether it's a business presentation, live performance or film screening, I am very interested in what the end user experiences. In AV planning and content assessment, I am not a critic, I am the ultimate end user and I tell it like it is.

I'd like to start this AV field report with my technology choice for projectors:

Canon LV-7255 (and others in the LV series): This is my projector of choice. I've used several LV projectors and I like them all, especially the newer ones. The brightness is great for presentations of up to 150 - 200 people (with stereo screens on Dalite FastFold 7.5' x 10', front projection screens). I use longer VGA cable runs of 25 - 50 feet, so I use a Kramer D.A.(distribution amp) for the stereo display, but I have even run these projectors through a daisy-chain (one connected to the other) and a 50 foot VGA cable with no D.A. and I get great results every time.

I've really put these projectors through the paces and two of the reasons I rely on them are because of the manual zoom and the manual focus. It would be nice to have a horizontal keystone control, but the vertical control, especially auto-keystone, works very quickly and well.

Like many projectors I've used, when computer inputs are hot-swapped, you may end up with horizontal sync issues that result in the side of a presentation being cut off, but that is easily correctable with the 'auto PC' button on the top of the unit. I know it would be best not to hot-swap and have all computers hooked up to a seamless switcher and ready to go, with all resolutions set to the default 1024x768, but I am talking about the real world, where things are set up and swapped at a moments notice. Therefore, I need a projector which does not give me grief on the road.

Stay tuned for more!