Lake Forest Park sets up cameras in Council Chambers

The camera operator sits at a laptop

Text and photos by Jerry Pickard

When Mayor Mary Jane Goss invited me to come down and take pictures of Lake Forest Park's new camera system I had visions of a large Video camera and a camera operator recording all the city council's proceedings for transmission to the public.

Cameras are wall-mounted

Turns out I was thinking OLD TECHNOLOGY. I must admit I was a little dismayed when I entered the Council Chambers Thursday evening and didn't see a single Video Camera or Camera Operator anywhere. What I did see was a man with a laptop sitting off to the side of the room.

Cameras on different walls to capture all angles

Turns out he WAS the Camera operator! He also was part of the crew that installed the system. I asked him about the cameras and explained that I had been invited by the Mayor to take pictures of the new camera system that would allow the city to transmit city council meetings to the public on channel 21 for Public Access on council meeting nights. He smiled and pointed out the new camera system to me.

Mayor Mary Jane Goss in Council Chambers

These are a few of the CAMERAS in the new High Tech system. Seems that the days of the large video cameras and camera operators are long gone. Instead of a cumbersome system of large cameras manned by cameramen, they have gone the way of the Dodo! Now one guy with a laptop can control Cameras from a small table at the side of the room. Makes me feel kinda' old, I've been left behind by all this newfangled technology stuff!