Tech Forum

I've been impressed with the knowledge in this forum, hopefully someone here can steer me in the right direction.

This is something I've always wanted to find a better way to do. Currently I've been using hand signals, but this only works if the crew member you wish to communicate is watching when I signal. Do any of you have any ideas of what I can use that is inexpensive yet effective to communicate to remote camera operators from the main switcher. I'd like to be able to give directions like when/where to pan, zoom, etc from the video switcher to each remote camera operator instead of using hand signals or having the camera operators just wing it.

I thought about using those small family walkie-talkies with an earphone connections on the two camera crew operators while the lead controller at the board has a headset with a boom mic. I'm guessing that I'd need to find a mono headset for these radios with a mic. Not sure where I'd find something like that.

Any suggestions for an inexpensive way to communicate without being distracting?

Do you think the transmission from these family radios to the crew members would interfere with the camera video or sound?

Should the camera operators be able to talk back using boom mics on their headset too?

I thought about this too and actually brought in some commercial radios with headsets to use, but one of our crew suggested using text messaging with our cell phones set to vibrate. That worked perfect and was much quieter than speaking into a headset. It also worked well in communicating problems from building to building.

I'd think in terms of cost, it's going to be hard to beat FRS radios with headsets. While the headsets are not as common as the radios themselves, they can be found.