Setup The Eye to Eye Video Conferencing System

[@sfbaylover]

Thanks for the great video. Couldn't one just use tablet as an external monitor?

[@organizedimages]

Excellent system and components! This tripod is very stable for it's size. After watching this I now realize why the angled HDMI cable is needed - without the angle, you can't move the tray as close to the glass. I've now ordered that as well. I have a Windows desktop with 2 monitors and it took me a while to figure out how to connect the external monitor (I had 2 monitors coming out of my graphics card, external could not daisy-chain with them, but did work when I connected to the HDMI port on the back of the computer - so into the motherboard vs the graphics card - then was able to mirror my primary monitor). This reduced Zoom fatigue for me on a 2 hour call I made right after getting everything set up. Highly recommend!

[@brightonwestvideo]

Thanks for sharing! Glad it’s working well for uou

[@jerrybromenshenk1971]

I too tried more than one monitor and did not find one that could invert and horizontally flip the image. I ordered a Lilliput, got it, and heeded your warnings about factory default settings. As delivered, the monitor aspect was set to an odd ratio. The image was very squat and wide. Once I found the proper aspect, it filled the screen and the flip worked! This monitor was much thinner and fit my teleprompter tray much better than others that I tried. Thank you for the specific recommendations.

[@110tonyg]

Can you use the slightly smaller TMP100?

[@jacquelynnacopoulos1278]

Hello, Congratulations. Cool. 👍. Thank You For Advice and Explaining Us. Awesome. I am impressed. I learn from you 😊.

[@keithkeith2106]

Hey! Thanks for the video. I am having great success using Zoom with prospects. Even without turning on my video but now that I have my Excel presentation fine tuned I am ready for video. I use Excel live with prospects based upon several data points which they share w me on the call. The monitor I use is 45 inch wide. Every once in awhile a prospect will say it is too small and the can’t see it. Any thoughts on how I should mix up the screen sharing w video? Any other guidance would be appreciated.

[@brightonwestvideo]

Great point - I always try to zoom in on my screen when I'm sharing - just assuming the other person has a smaller screen than me. With Zoom, when you are sharing your screen, you'll be really tiny on their screen. Plus they won't be looking at you. So just be sure to start and stop screen sharing when it's appropriate. You could also looking into "virtual webcams." mmhmm is one option that I tried in the past (but didn't want to contiue paying for. It would allow you to be much bigger on screen - overlayed over the excel window. It would be very eye-catching.

[@berylvaughan]

Link to something more current in terms of equipment? This is a pricey setup. On the other hand I got 2 sets under $150 and used my own tripod. The bracket to "hang off the monitor" (version) snapped immediately, one didn't accommodate a wide angle camera and finally required a phone interface which is not what I was looking for eye to eye contact. A frustrating process so far...but not $400 in the budget for a setup. Any other ideas?

[@peterramsay3706]

Thanks for the great videos. I checked the price of the Caddie Buddy Professional and Portable Teleprompter on Amazon Canada - and it is around $540 plus tax here in Canada. Do you have any similar product to recommend that would be less expensive? Thanks

[@brightonwestvideo]

Peter - there are two options. One without a case, which is a bit less expensive. You can also contact Mike at Caddie Buddy. He ships internationally and the price may be better directly through him. caddiebuddy.com/contact/. If that doesn't work, this one looks like a good option (but I haven't used it) amzn.to/3iBHv45

[@peterramsay3706]

@@brightonwestvideo Thanks so very much for your immediate response. Thanks for being helpful - not just in regards to your response above - but also in your helpful videos.

[@toddwhalen7825]

Thank you! great ideas.

[@kristiclover]

Your Amazon link is broken. I'd love to check out the products you recommend.

[@brightonwestvideo]

Thanks for letting me know. I just fixed it. www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1O3TMN4GVN629

[@aweddingbreeze]

Great video...thanks! Hey Brighton, do I really need that monitor or can I use an old iPad mini (that has to be constantly connected to power)?

[@brightonwestvideo]

Sorry for the later reply. To mirror the text you'll need this monitor. But if you are only using for Zoom where you look at the other person, the iPad will work. If you want to read text, that you'll need this monitor.

[@yoboverthetop]

You can use your iPad for Zoom/Skype calls to achieve this effect. To read text, just run a prompter app on the iPad. I'd suggest PromptSmart Pro for its cool voice AI feature.

[@ytruthmatters11]

Hi Brighton, great video - in fact, all of your videos are really helpful. The link to Amazon doesn't have details of the tripod. Could you say which make / model you use? Thanks, Robin

[@CodingDojoVideography]

Hi thank you for this helpful video. The amazon affiliate link leads to an empty list. Can you please re-link the buys?

[@brightonwestvideo]

Thanks for letting me know. Updated now. amzn.to/3g9cbIp

[@CrystalReikiHealer]

This is fantastic, thank you so much! I happened upon your videos and they are such a wonderful support as I navigate doing better quality online conferences, interviews, and lives. So grateful for you! Now how to add a teleprompter with the screen monitor, ha! I need to look at both the webcam, their face, and have scripts in front of me. Thank you!!! Subscribed!

[@brightonwestvideo]

Check out Speak Flow. I'm just starting to work with it, and it's very promising. I'm working on a video about it now. It allows you to put Zoom on screen behind your script (in the paid version.) You can see more here (this is my affiliate link) www.speakflow.com/?via=brighton

[@Nickd778]

Great video. Does this work w the MacBook Pro and it’s lack of connection ports?

[@brightonwestvideo]

Yes - you just need hub like this: amzn.to/3iK0RSw

[@CodingDojoVideography]

Excellent video! You rocked this instructional content! I needed this.

[@brightonwestvideo]

Glad it was helpful!

[@michaelgriego9719]

exactly what i needed. I just recently made a purchase for a new microsoft Surface 3 Business laptop it should be here in 2-3 days, i'm in the process of being trained for sales. And the script they sent for me to memorize is 3 pages lol, no way around it i'm going to need the set up you just explained to get that desired eye to eye contact and teleprompting concept. I'm wondering if i should of bought a docking brick that they also sell so i can plug in the camera and extra monitor or do you think the inputs on the laptop should be enough? Also where did you get that 90 degree hdmi cable.? Seeing how you already have this all down I would really appreciate the offer on getting assistance ensuring i'm getting best results out of the hardware i get. Once i get my laptop, ill make the purchases for the rest of the hardware i need. Thank you for the time you put in to get this point, this video has been a saving grace after surfing on the internet for a vew hours. Brighton West you the MAN!!!!

[@brightonwestvideo]

Glad to help Michael. I don't have a surface, so I'm not sure. It depends on what outputs are available without the extra brick. Check out my website and you'll find a link to the 90 degree HDMI on Amazon: www.brightonwestvideo.com/blog/tools/eye-contact-on-video-calls/

[@michaelgriego9719]

@@brightonwestvideo So i decided to pull the trigger on buying everything except for the light. After reading spec details on the camera it does have a mic i'm hoping that will be enough to hear me clearly on the other end. I should be getting everything by the 20th. I'll double back on the assembly video, Ill keep you posted and get a final assembly photo posted.

[@Its_amazingvideos]

Thanks for a great video and idea...I followed your advice and set up a system but using a Lilliputian A11 (10.1”) monitor. I have a MacBook Pro with a Thunderbolt/USB-C output with a converter to HDMI to the monitor. The quality of the display as a monitor, however, is not very good. I followed all of your setting recommendations but I am having trouble getting the sharpness and colors that I would expect from a 4K or 1080p computer monitor. Do you have any recommended settings to get the Lilliput to display properly? Is there a “computer monitor” mode? When I connected my DSLR directly to the Lilliput via HDMI the picture was much, much better but I need the monitor to act as a display so I can put my Zoom windows in the teleprompter. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

[@brightonwestvideo]

It might be in the settings of your Mac. You can select to optimize for your regular monitor or the Lilliput. Try optimizing for the Lilliput. It might be that the computer is sending way too many pixels and the Lilliput is trying to come up with something that looks OK. Your MacBook Pro probably has a much higher resolution. Let me know if that works.

[@michaelgriego9719]

I figured out the inputs on the laptop I'm getting, it will have an audio jack, USB A and USB C. so I got the needed adapter. I just want to confirm there would be no need for a mic, or should I get one because the camera and screen have no internal mics?

[@brightonwestvideo]

You can use the internal microphone on your laptop. And I'd suggest using the USB C port with an adapter like what's in the lower left corner of this page: www.brightonwestvideo.com/blog/tools/eye-contact-on-video-calls/

[@janetgonzalez798]

I just found your videos and they are very helpful and informative, thank you! I have to do a 10 min presentation, I'm just a beginner so this set up seems easy and affordable. Several questions is the monitor you are using an iPad, can you zoom and use the teleprompter software at the same time through the iPad. Why do you need both screens ie teleprompter and the computer monitor thanks do you do private classes, thanks J

[@brightonwestvideo]

Janet. Glad I can help. If you are using an iPad, then the image will be reversed. That's fine for seeing other people, but you won't be able to read a PP slide (or move your mouse around screen the correct direction.) I'm also not a fan of using a teleprompter live - they are great for recorded videos because if there is a problem, you can just pause, fix the problem and continue, later editing out the problem. Live if something goes wrong... there's no room for problems. And it would be hard to show both Zoom and Teleprompter on the screen big enough to be visible. I do consulting, which could be anything you need: www.BrightonWestVideo.com/consulting.

[@brightonwestvideo]

I see there is software for PC's to reverse a PowerPoint image. I haven't used it (I don't have a PC.) But it might help: www.ppt-mirror.com/

[@kendricklincolin4981]

​@@brightonwestvideo I am using the tool right now, PPT Mirror (cloud version) , it works on all iOS/Android devices and all versions of Windows/Mac in every browser and all MS office.

[@Vitalkinhs]

thank you for the video very informative

[@brightonwestvideo]

Glad it was helpful Angie

[@duncanpurves3407]

Brighton, this is a great video, the setup is exactly what I have been looking for! Only problem is the Caddy Buddy is unavailable on Amazon in UK - do you have any suggestions for an alternative? Thanks Duncan

[@princekameron8553]

pro tip: watch series on flixzone. I've been using them for watching all kinds of movies recently.

[@codynico90]

@Prince Kameron yup, have been using Flixzone} for since december myself :D

[@ramonavi4300]

@Prince Kameron yea, been using flixzone} for months myself :)

[@jorisbonson386]

And it's $200 - a bit expensive when this system can be DIY'd for a fraction of the cost!

[@NancyTucker99]

Thanks for this! Question: At 6:55 you mention another video that addresses how to configure the Lilliput. I don't see it in your video list, but I could sure use it. (I'm all set up and ready to go, but can't quite figure out how to get rid of the histogram that sits in a corner of the monitor screen.)

[@NancyTucker99]

Nevermind, found it! :)

[@brightonwestvideo]

Glad you found it! I'll try to make it more clear for other folks.

[@pbryan1967]

I’m pretty hopeless and connecting things together. For me, a visit to IKEA is a journey into hell. So this video is very helpful!

[@brightonwestvideo]

Glad to help. I’m similar in the IKEA world! I usually have to take apart something I did wrong at least 5-6 times with any “build.”