VIDEO EQUIPMENT FOR THERAPISTS

Greetings AEDP enthusiasts! Since video recording client sessions is a part of the work of AEDP therapists, it is my intention to assist you all in assembling an easy video work flow.

Let me say upfront that I have the most business & personal experience with Mac computers. I will, as always, be a valuable resource in assisting the research of PC/Windows issues even though the bulk of my experience is Mac based.

If your eyes are already rolling back in your head, please call me. Part of my business is to talk people like you through all of these decisions & assist in installing & setting up your systems.

The first thing to consider in assembling your system is whether you are wanting a one camera system or a two camera system (like Diana Fosha & some others).

Here is renowned AEDP therapist David Mars' take on the two camera system;

"A two camera system (dyadic video) matches the context of AEDP’s right brain to right brain, heart to heart intention to dyadically attune to the patient’s movements, body language, expressions, pacing, voice prosody. The accompaniment of the patient and the sense of seeing and being seen, feeling and being felt are better tracked for supervision and training purposes if both the therapist and the client are “tracked” on camera compared to if only the client is on screen."

Basic components for any system will be camera(s) & computer (for edit, playback, & transfer to DVD), microphone(s), edit/mix software and back-up hard drives.

The two camera system I recommend begins with a Mac computer. (All Intel Multicore CPU based Macs with discrete graphics, as well as MacBook Pro's starting late 2007.) Your computer should have at least 8GB of RAM & be using Mac OSX 10.6.4 or later.

We will be mixing together the pictures from the two cameras in BoinxTV video record/mix software. http://www.boinx.com/boinxtv/overview/

If you have a MacPro Tower (desktop) or MacBook Pro 17inch you can use (2) Cannon ZR960 cameras and connect to your recording computer via two separate firewire inputs. For the MacBook Pro 17 inch, you'll need to purchase the Firewire Express card to gain a second firewire input.

If you have an iMac or MacBook Pro 15 inch you'll need 2 different cameras so that you can connect one of the two cameras via USB. I recommend the Logitech 960-000665 TV Cam - Webcam (for USB) in conjunction with the Cannon ZR960 (for firewire).

For sound, a single stereo microphone can be placed between you & the client. I recommend the AUDIO-TECHNICA U841A - UNIPOINT BOUNDARY MIC.

If you have a particularly noisy NYC office (lots of street noise, air conditioner etc) I recommend two clip-on lapel mics like the Shure SM-11 in conjunction with the Behringer XENYX 802 8-Channel Compact Audio Mixer. The mixer's output will connect with your computer's audio input to supply sound for the video recording.

For a one camera system, I highly recommend the Kodak Zi8 camera (now discontinued but you may be able to find one) The newest version of the Zi8 is called the"PlayTouch" and it has the all important external mic input. Both of these Kodaks have a removable SD card slot for storage of large video files. This card can then be plugged into the SD card slot on MacBook Pros for a very easy workflow (USB file transfer is also an option). Here's a link to the "PlayTouch"; http://store.kodak.com/store/ekconsus/en_US/pd/PLAYTOUCH_Video_Camera/productID.200992300.

For single camera sound, a single stereo microphone can be placed between you & the client. I recommend the AUDIO-TECHNICA U841A - UNIPOINT BOUNDARY MIC. If you have a particularly noisy NYC office (lots of street noise, air conditioner etc) I recommend two clip-on lapel mics like the Shure SM-11 in conjunction with the Behringer XENYX 802 8-Channel Compact Audio Mixer. The mixer's output will connect with your single camera's audio input to supply sound for the video recording.

In assembling your system, you should count on purchase of enough additional hard drives so that any vital videos exist on at least two drives at once. I recommend drives of at least 1TB in size. In addition you should count on approx $50-$200 for connector cables & adapters.

Editing of your videos can be performed in iMovie (any version). I'm sure there are a number of PC editors which will do the trick too. I also do professional video editing & DVD transfer at reasonable rates. Again, no need to feel overwhelmed, part of my business is personally assisting people. I can assist you in making system choices & will also come to your location to install everything & teach you how to use it. In the meantime, feel free to call (917-364-1866) or email (ricksavage34@yahoo.com) with a question or two or find me on the web at www.savagetunes.com

VIDEO SYSTEM PRICES

Estimate for the two camera system (not including Mac computer) is $1515.00

Estimate for a one camera system (not including Mac computer) is $415.00

These prices do not include tax or shipping or external hard drives for backup.

Savage Tunes A/V will come to your place of business & set up your system for $250-$300 (depending on location). This installation includes a pre-purchase conference call, up to 2 hours of on location set up/equipment instruction and one hour of telephone/email follow up. Please contact Rick Savage at 917-364-1866, ricksavage34@yahoo.com or www.savagetunes.com