The new realities of working from home and remote meetings mean that we have started discovering that the tools we might have been using in a pinch before leave us wanting much better quality now that we are relying on them every day. The five products listed here will take your online presence from grainy, blocky and washed out, to something spectacular, and you don’t need to be a tech wizard to use them.
Camera
Webcams and integrated phone or laptop cameras are pretty terrible. Upgrading to a better camera will make quite a bit of difference in your video quality.
Sony a6400 w/16-50mm Lens
Sony’s small format mirrorless cameras are some of the best selling and feature rich available. You can use this camera for taking photos and video of products as well.
$998.00
Capture Device
Getting your new camera to show up on your computer might seem daunting at first, but it can be as simple as plugging in a single device. No messing around with settings or drivers. Just plug and play.
Magewell USB Capture HDMI Gen 2
While not the cheapest capture device available, it certainly is the simplest to use. Plug it in and you are done.
$299.00
Lights
More light = better image. It’s that simple. The Onyx 240 2 point light kit is affordable, and powerful.
iKan Onyx 2-point Kit
This kit includes 2 lights, batteries, charger, A/C Power, mounting hardware, stands, and a carrying case for storage and portability.
$399.99
Shotgun Microphone*
The microphones built in to computers and phones are barely adequate, and capture a lot of noises you don’t want. Adding a shotgun microphone to your package is a simple way of getting much better audio of what you want, and less audio of what you don’t.
Rode Video Mic Pro
The Video Mic Pro mounds directly on the camera and feeds into the camera. No extra cables or devices needed.
$194.62
*Audio results can vary greatly on the environment. This product might not be the right one for your particular situation. Z Systems can help determine if this is the right product for you and offer alternatives for any situation.
Desktop Tripod
Now that you have your new camera and microphone, you need something to hold it up at the appropriate height.
Manfrotto Desktop Tripod Kit
This tripod kit lets you put your camera at the right height and sits on your desk.
$134.76
And that’s it. With these five products you can go from our before image, to our after image. Stay tuned for a short, step by step video on getting each of these items set up so you can look your best.
