Here we have a Pye ‘Lynx’ camera, and cost £150 when new back in 1963 (almost £3,000 in today’s money)
AP Films used this camera to assist in the puppeteers in seeing what the puppet they were controlling was actually doing. Rather than looking at the top of the puppets head the puppeteers could look straight ahead and look at an image on a TV monitor.
The picture they saw was the same as that being filmed by the normal 35mm camera.
The picture was also relayed back to the offices of the producers so that they could see what shots were being filmed at any given time. I expect some spying also went on!
This way of operating was developed further over the years, mainly by AP Films director John Read.
Later this became the norm for most feature films and tv series.
Further development came and Thunderbirds are Go was the first feature film to be shot using the newer “Livingston Electronic Viewfinder Unit”, also known as “Add-a-Vision”.
The “Add-a-Vision” system was also heavily used at Elstree Studios on shows such as “The Avengers”.