church video

Your pastor is always juggling his time. Pastoring is a thankless job with hundreds of people vying for his precious little time. It is challenging to have so many people in need; setting priorities and boundaries can be difficult. He wants to make everyone happy but he still needs to prepare for Sunday and lead the church.

Stewarding church funds well is no simple task. Chairs and communion cups are straightforward purchases, but there is no easy strategy for making technology decisions. By watching those who have gone before and seeking wisdom in planning, spending, and utilizing technology to glorify God, churches can avoid pitfalls and make the right purchases for their ministries.

How many types of media does your church store? Just in my office alone, I have eight types, not counting hard drives and an solid state drive (SSD) or two. VHS, S-VHS, 8MM, DVD, Mini-DV, DVC-Pro, Zip disk, and SD cards. I might even have a VHS-C tape around here somewhere, if I looked hard enough. You might have more. Maybe it’s BetaCam, 3/4”, or even various film stock.

Yup, it’s a busy time of year. I get it. But don’t confuse “being busy” with being productive. And definitely don’t forget to properly prepare your tech team so that they can be productive. Sometimes the most beneficial thing we can do is step away from the hectic schedules and incessant demands for attention, and instead turn our energy to engaging with our fellow team members.

There’s nothing quite like learning how to use a new piece of gear or practicing a new technique, and then having to train someone else on your team how to be proficient with it! The great thing about this is that it forces you to truly grasp the fundamental concepts of what you’re doing and why. In order to teach something effectively, you need to distill the complex variables of your task into manageable concepts that your student can comprehend and then put into practice.

The Internet has had quite an impact on the Church. According to a Faith Communities Today survey, the number of congregations across America using email more than doubled between 2000 and 2010. Ninety percent of congregations had embraced this technology, while just 35 percent had done the same a decade earlier. On top of this, the number of congregations employing websites in their daily operations had jumped from 33 percent to 69 percent in the same space of time. As with many other groups and organizations, the Internet allows members of the Church to share their message and maintain contact at any time, any place.

An often-misunderstood aspect of video production, color correction, should always be part of your post production process. I want to demystify the process and help you plan your shoot to make color correction work for you. Before diving in let's define some terms: Color correction and color grading are somewhat interchangeable terms. However, there are subtle differences.

Live streaming is becoming less of a technical novelty and more a requirement for many churches--something that makes a lot of sense. Sure, online live streaming technology allows you to broadcast and distribute your message around the world, but it also allows you to reach local community members that may not be able to make it to church every week (or at all). The question is, can they hear you? You know that audio is the most important part of any live stream, right?