Production - Do you set up the speaker prior to recording?

It is vital to have the speaker ready and equipped prior to recording. There are a number of things that need to be done to make sure the speaker is ready for recording.

Here are the steps to follow when preparing the speaker for recording:

1. **Attach the mic to the speaker  ** Assuming you are using a lapel microphone, make sure that it is attached to the speakers' shirt or jacket. For each speaker you need to adjust the sensitivity of the microphone. Do this according to the instructions provided by the manufacturer. As a general rule, test to see that the mic input level does not peak (the audio meter on the device will reach the top). Adjust the mic sensitivity using the device until the input meter does not go past the 2/3rds point. Doing so will create distortions which are difficult to repair in post and waste time. Look at this video to understand more in-depth the correct way to set up a lapel mic system:

2. Tell the speaker that they need to paraphrase any questions During the presentation a number of guests will ask the speaker questions regarding his or her talk. If you do not have a multi-camera setup with multiple mic inputs, you cannot always guarantee that the audio from the people asking questions will be audibly clear when picked up by the speakers mic.

The people who watch your video need to know what the questions were in order to understand the context of the answers. The best way to do this is to ask the speaker to paraphrase the question in his or her answer. A simple example would be:

Figure: Wrong way to respond (viewer will not understand what the context of the answer without knowing the question.)

Figure: Correct way to respond The speaker arrives to the venue with a mindset that they are speaking to a room of about 25 - 30 people. It is important to us and the audience at home who watch this online, that the speakers' mindset changes from presenting to a room of people to an audience of thousands

3. Do you enable presentation mode in Visual Studio.
4. Tell the speaker to read Rules to Better PowerPoint Presentations.
5. Assume the speaker will need to play sound through the speakers, even if they say they won't, and set up to allow for it.
6. Explain to the speaker that you will give them a 5-second countdown when you are about to start streaming them and that they should face forward when this happens, instead of looking sideways at you