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

Preparing a PowerPoint Slideshow for Video Editing

If you're a presenter or public speaker and you intend to videotape your business presentation, including your PowerPoint slide show (or Keynote slide show for Mac), here are a few tips for getting the best results and saving time (and money!) on the editing of your video.

Video Framing and adjusting

First, it should be noted that the best looking videos are with the camera frame on a medium close-up of the presenter (mostly, but wider shots for variety) and the slides with the text leaving some room for the video to be superimposed onto it, rather than the video camera trying to capture the speech and the slides all at the same time (the camera will have to continually be adjusted to get both light and dark areas and be focused every time). (Sample listed below).

Pre-editing the Slides

The font should be as simple as possible and large enough to see when the video frame is reduced in size for playback (the large screen in the meeting room will look very different from a DVD or video file playing back on a TV or computer).


As mentioned, leave room for the video image to appear on the slide (this is where the medium close-up will look best as it will be shrunk, usually). Avoid using the whole slide for text as some TV's will cut off borders of the final image (use two slides, in that case, but do it before in case any viewer is reading the slide show print out along with the video).

Using Microphones

Podium microphones - speaking loud and clear at a podium will allow you to be a foot or two away and still get great results in both the meeting room and on the video. If you aren't loud enough, but stay far away from the mic, the sound of the room will be picked up too much and sound noisy on the recording (and in the room, but not as much since the people are already in the noisy room).

Don't leave the podium mic unless you have a lapel mic as back-up. If speaking really close to the mic - avoid popping P's and T's, by aiming the mic up, so it sits just below your mouth - this will look better on video as well.

Lapel microphones - the best position for lapel mics (or 'lavalier microphones' or 'lavs'), is about a few inches below the knot of a tie, in the middle of the chest (for men) and the lapel that is closest to the screen (for women). Try to avoid hitting the mic during the presentation and consider removing anything that may interfere with getting a clean sound. The microphone should be unobstructed at all times.


For a video example of Better Presentations - see below!

Q&A Sessions
Always ask attendees to 'please use the Q&A microphone' (usually a wireless hand held or mic on a stand for political meetings). If they refuse, or suddenly burst into a question, reiterate the question for the benefit of the viewers (and it helps the editor spend less time on subtitles - or, they will have to listen to the words and spend much time figuring out a 'lost voice' in the background).


Before the Q&A session, it may be wise to ask attendees to refrain from long dialogue that can be dealt with in a one-on-one meeting, especially if they go on and on without the support of a microphone or simply do not include the Q&A session on the final video and treat it like a 'you'd have to have been there' experience.

If You Have a Cold

Always leave a second or two before and after you cough or clear your throat so the audio waveforms can be easily seen on a computer and dealt with quickly. This will save an incredible amount of time during editing. Also, avoid saying 'sorry' or 'excuse me' right before and after coughing or clearing as the waveforms will be jumbled together and take longer to identify. Instead, simply let the audience know that you will cough from time to time before you present.


Have great presentation! - Buck Moore  (watch a sample of edited video)

Five Tips for Better Presentations

Instead of writing a whole bunch, I am posting this video with five quick presentation tips. It is a part of my 'Better Presentations' package which will be available soon for either download or ordering a hard copy. To sum up the tips:

1) Choose a font that can be read from a distance. This usually means a big, bold font that can be read from the back of the room and even in brighter rooms. Stay away from fancy fonts, especially, when they are small.....people cannot read them from the back.

2) Choose a background color that does not interfere with the font & works in bright rooms.

3) Use as few words as possible. The slides themselves can serve as 'spark words' that can set you off on a topic. The less people have to read, the more they can listen to your message.

4) Practice as much as possible. People want you to do well, but you don't have to be the perfect presenter, you just need to be able to get the message across and be as smooth as possible. Practice speaking in your car, in a quiet room where you can't be disturbed and even consider recording your speech on a voice recorder, then listen back to it as often as possible.

5) Practice 'microphone technique'. Actually learn how to use a microphone. Sound silly? Well, a lot of people don't know how to use one properly. It's not hard, takes some time and it's easy to master the very few principles involved.

There is much more in the full package available soon. I'll cover such things as audio & video playback from a computer, presentation technology, video recording, how to make a video demo, advanced lecture tips, back up plans, DVD compatibility and a whole lot more. Enjoy the video and stay tuned for Moore!

- Buck Moore