Your Public Best - Lillian Brown [108]
Stay inside the space that has been lit for you. Moving in and out of the light can cast a bright reflection on the forehead. You cannot get up and move around unless the space has been especially lit for this.
Television Monitors. Television monitors are strategically located on the studio floor so that guests and “talent” (newscasters, interviewers, or other staff usually paid to appear on camera) can see the studio output. On live shows, those in the studio can see what even has preceded them and when they have gone off the air. The anchor can tell from the monitor when he or she is on camera, when the commercials are on, and when various film and video-taped pieces are cued into the broadcast.
Technical people, too, often need to use monitors to see what the cameras are seeing. By looking at the monitor, the lighting person can evaluate the lighting and make adjustments as necessary. The makeup person can see what distortions the lights and lenses are giving to faces.
As a guest, you can take a preliminary glance at the monitor before the show to see how you look, evaluate your posture, and make minor adjustments (such as removing a watch that flashes in the light when you gesture). After that, and throughout the show, do not look at the monitor because you would be looking sideways and losing eye contact with the camera or the person interviewing you.
Do not be disturbed by odd or unflattering color gradations that you may see in the studio monitors. For example, you might look pale or your blue dress may suddenly seem an odd greeny-blue on the monitor. No two monitors ever seem to match in color; in fact, even monitors on the wall of control rooms seldom match each other. On one, the face will be reddish; on another, the face will be pale, with the color of your clothes bearing no resemblance to what you are wearing. Never fear, the main monitor used in master control to adjust color output is accurate, and it is the only one that accurately shows what is being sent out on the air.
Microphones. There are many types of microphones and amplifying devices. As well as varying in size, they have different capabilities: Some are omni-directional, picking up sound from all directions; some accept sound only from the front; while shotgun mikes focus on one specific spot.
The best sound comes from a pair of small breastbone mikes clipped to your tie, jacket lapel, or blouse. This is the type of mike worn by most network anchors. When you see two mikes attached to the same clip, the extra one provides safety in case the other one fails.
The best placement for such mikes is about five inches below the chin, or about two shirt-buttons down. This maintains a maximum chest resonance and a uniform distance between mike and mouth.
Microphones are very sensitive—they pick up every sound, making a television or radio studio into one big sound stage. They pick up the sound of someone walking across the floor, of your fingers tapping on a desk, or the shuffling or turning of pages of your script. Sometimes a mike tucked under your tie or blouse will pick up the sound of rustling fabric. The sound of jangling jewelry—especially beads hitting the mike or bracelets banging into each other—is particularly distracting. When you touch a mike with your fingers, it makes an audible sound such as a scratch, pop, or click. Mikes can pick up the sound of a broadcaster’s breathing as he or she fills the lungs with air between phrases.
Sometimes a technician will “dress the cord” of one of these small mikes by tucking it out of sight, beneath the jacket, tie, or blouse, and securing it with a tiny piece of gaffer’s tape. For a stand-up presentation, he or she may pass the cord up the trouser leg, or conceal it in a skirt pocket or waistband.
You may be given an unmounted, hand-held mike, either cordless or attached to a long walking cord. This is the type of mike used by talk-show hosts who stroll through aisles taking questions from the audience, or during variety shows or telethons. Such a mike