Showing posts with label Audio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Audio. Show all posts

Thursday, April 30, 2015

A Practical Perspective: The Importance of the Audio/Video Ministry within the Local Church

1:49 PM by Maximizing Media MinistriesNo comments
A Practical Perspective

 Throughout this blog, we have seen multiple methods for expanding the audio/video ministry within the local church. Today, we will be looking at the importance of this ministry through the eyes of the pastor. For this interview, we specifically chose Pastor Chad Prigge of Fellowship Baptist Church in Watertown, WI for his love for the ministry and his interest in technology.

What value do you place on the audio/video ministry at your church?

The A/V ministry is important for any church seeking to expand its influence by getting out its message, an opportunity that is ripe for our media-saturated society.

 It is also important as it seeks to ensure a pleasant, non-distracting listening experience for those attending the services.

How large is this ministry within your church?

In terms of our annual operating budget, our a/v ministry is not very large. In terms of equipment, we have several wireless and hard-wired microphones, a video camera, an analog soundboard that will soon be replaced by a digital board, two recently installed monitor speakers above the platform, and a couple of computers to process the recordings.

How many individuals are involved in this ministry for a morning service? Evening service? Mid-weekservice? What is each one doing?

There is usually one volunteer overseeing the audio during our church services. We no longer video record our services for broadcast on local cable tv.

 We recently had several seminary students preach in church for a class requirement. The requirement included that the sermons be video recorded and then uploaded to the internet. One of our members operated the video camera and another uploaded the sermons.

What do you see as its primary purpose or goal?

First, as already mentioned, the audio ministry exists in order to ensure a pleasant, non-distracting listening experience for those attending the services. Since faith is the result of hearing God’s Word (Romans 10:17), it is imperative that everyone who comes to church be given the opportunity to hear clearly what God is trying to say to them.

What services does this ministry provide to the members?

One of the greatest benefits of our a/v ministry to church members, especially members who are physically unable to attend church, is recording and distributing the sermons or lessons to them. The sermons are available for download from our church website, or they can be transferred to a disk and distributed upon request.

Does this ministry give your church more or less outreach opportunities? Why or why not?

We recently decided to discontinue recording and broadcasting our Sunday morning service on local cable tv for two reasons: it was becoming too great of a time commitment for our volunteer staff, and there were no significant measurable results from it. We concluded the program was making very little impact in our community. A likely reason is that the low quality of the program made it unattractive to the average viewer.

 I believe a church’s media presentation must conform to the personality of the church if it is going to be effective. We struggled to do this well.

What do you see as the Biblical basis for the audio/video ministry?

Romans 10:17 emphasizes the importance of hearing God’s Word which has the power to convert souls and change lives. The fulfilling of the Great Commission to the church hinges on the communication of truth. We should use every resource available to aid and enhance that communication.

What might be some areas that you might expand this ministry in the future?

We hope to purchase a digital soundboard to replace the current analog in the near future. In addition, we have discussed the benefit of installing large tv screens on either side of the platform in order to broadcast the text of various musical numbers (e.g. instrumental offertories, unfamiliar choral texts, etc.) and possibly the significant points of sermons.

What advice do you have for someone wishing to expand their audio/video ministry?

It is important to evaluate and take inventory of your a/v equipment regularly to see what technologies may be growing obsolete or to discover any technology gaps that should be addressed.

What final thoughts would you like to share?

We should strive for excellence in every aspect of ministry. This is especially important in the area of a church’s A/V production. It is better to produce no medium than to produce one that misrepresents or detracts from the reputation of our most excellent God.

Conclusion

Thank you, Pastor Prigge, for your willingness to let us interview you. We greatly appreciate the time that you were willing to invest so that we might gain a better understanding of how the pastor views this vital ministry.

 You can visit Fellowship Baptist Church at: http://www.fbcwttn.org/

 In this interview, we saw several additional areas in which a media ministry could expand. In addition to these, what might be some more? How might we go about expanding in that area?

 You can respond via the comments section below. Also, feel free to comment on other topics as well!

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Monday, April 27, 2015

Looking Ahead: Future Developments for the Media Ministry

9:05 AM by Maximizing Media MinistriesNo comments

So, now that our audio/video ministry is actively live streaming our services, what might be some areas that we could improve as we go forward? We do not simply want to remain stagnant with our technology and practices, but we want to keep pressing on to provide quality video streaming to our live viewers. In this post, we will be looking at what we can do better now and soon.

What we can do better NOW

First, we will be looking at areas that we can do better now. While it may not seem normal to start implementing improvements immediately, there are certain improvements that are too important to not implement. These vital improvements consist primarily of how we handle our equipment. Here, we will be looking at various techniques that will improve the quality of both our audio and video.

Improving our audio

There are two primary things that we should take note of when we are running the sound board. The first is that when we are running the sliders, we need to move them smoothly yet confidently. In other words, when we see someone step to the pulpit, we need to confidently push the slider to approximately where we think this person will need it. While this may take some getting used to, it is a vital element in running the audio because the audio will sound much better when we confidently move the slider to the right spot.
 
The second area that we should note when we are running the sound board is that we should remain active at our post. We are not to simply set the volume when someone starts talking or singing, but we should remain ready to adjust the volume if the person should get quieter or louder. Our prompt response to the changes in an individual’s voice will directly impact the audio feed. In contrast, if we did not adjust the volume, those watching the live stream may not be able to hear what the individual is saying. In summary, being confident and active are vital characteristics for the person running the audio.

Improving our video

In addition to improving our audio, there are also some simple ways in which we can improve our video. These consist primarily of how we zoom and pan. In other words, how we zoom and how we move the video camera will directly impact the video quality. The first thing we should do here is to do it slowly. Moving slowly is important to not make the broadcast jerky. Similarly, the second thing we should do is to move smoothly. When we move both smoothly and slowly, we are providing our viewers with a quality video feed. Also, we are actually helping ourselves when we move slowly because that gives us more time to find the exact place to be zoomed in on rather than being so hurried that we accidently take the viewer across the room unnecessarily! One thing I like to add when talking about this topic is that we can pretend that the viewers are actually sitting inside the video camera. But, rather than actually being at church, they can only see what you let them. As such, we should be sure to give them a smooth and comfortable ride. It may seem like an odd comparison, but I believe that it helps give the proper perspective when running the video camera.

What we can do better SOON

While we have looked at various ways to improve our techniques, there are also some other important areas that we can improve as well. These consist primarily of improving our hardware and improving our video cameras.

Improving our hardware

When we go about improving our hardware, the primary piece of equipment that we see here is the computer. The computer is the tool that links the video feed to the internet. Because this piece of equipment is so vital, we will have to ensure that we have a fast and powerful computer that is capable of live streaming our video feed. While our current computer may work for what we do right now, updating our computer will enable us to broadcast a better feed because it should be able to handle a higher video quality.
 
Another extremely vital element for having a good quality video feed is the internet speed. While this may seem like a no-brainer, we must be sure that we get a high internet speed that will enable us to live stream high quality video. While we do not have to initially get high speed internet, we will have to have it if we want to ever really improve our video quality. If you want to check your internet speed, you can visit:

Improving our video output

While we have looked at the various hardware perspectives for improving our video feed, none is more important than the cameras themselves! Here, we see two primary avenues for increasing the quality. The first route we can take is to use quality cameras. While there are many different cameras available, High Definition (HD) cameras can provide great quality for our video broadcasts. There are much better cameras available, but HD should be sufficient for live streaming.
 
The second avenue through which we can improve the quality by the cameras themselves would be to purchase additional cameras. Utilizing additional cameras increase the number of angles and provide variety for the video feed. While adding cameras may seem like more work, it provides the viewer with a much better broadcast. Also, having multiple cameras enables one camera to be moved while a different one is being used. This process provides a much better view because the cameras can pan or zoom while not being used. Also, it is important to note that if we are going to use multiple cameras, we will need multiple video inputs on our computer or a video data board to mix the signals in order to efficiently stream from multiple cameras.

 Conclusion

In summary, we have seen various ways to improve the live streaming environment. There are things that we can do now, and there are things that we can do soon! So, let us get busy and improve our video broadcast because there will certainly be people who will appreciate any improvements that we make!
 

Here is checklist based off of this post for you to implement at your church:

  1. Improve our audio
    • Are we confident when we run the sliders?
    • Are we active when we run the sliders?
  2. Improve our video
    • Are you zooming and panning slowly and smoothly?
    • Are you pretending the viewers are sitting inside the camera?
  3. Improve our hardware
    • Is your capable of processing high quality video?
    • Have you secured a high Internet speed from your provider?
  4. Improve our video output
    • Have you added additional cameras?
    • Do you have HD cameras?

Any comments or interactions? Feel free to comment below!


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Thursday, April 23, 2015

Physical and Virtual: Various Outlets for Audio Distribution

9:41 AM by Maximizing Media MinistriesNo comments

Audio… It is easy enough to record it, but how are we supposed to distribute the recording of the audio to others? Let us say that we recorded a sermon, and someone wants to listen to it again. Or, we recorded a special event, and everyone in the church wants a copy. How are we to effectively and efficiently distribute the recordings to those who want to relive the occasion? In this post, we are going to look at several different ways to distribute our recordings in both physical and virtual environments. We will be looking at the normal way, the new way, the easy way, and the better way.

Physical Distribution: CDs and FDs

When we decide to distribute audio physically, we have several different choices of physical devices. For instance, we used to have tapes, records, reel-to-reel, etc. But, in today’s constantly changing environment, which system should we use? The two most popular devices that are used today for distributing audio recordings are CDs and flash drives.

The normal way: CDs

First, CDs provide a standard convenience that almost everyone can easily utilize. In order to make the CDs easier to use, I use a program called “Slice” to divide the mp3 recordings into files of two minutes each. This procedure enables the listener to be able to jump to a certain track more easily. Once the files are all cut up, we then need to burn them to a CD. While there are many different programs available for burning audio CD’s, I use a program called “Cyberlink Power2Go” that enables me to easily burn mp3’s to a CD without having to do the converting process myself. In summary, CDs provide a standard method for distributing audio recordings to others. The programs that I mentioned above are available at:

The new way: Flash Drives

Whereas CD’s provide a standard method for distribution, flash drives have become a popular method for sharing audio files. One major convenience with flash drives is that the audio files can be easily and quickly copied off of the flash drive onto an mp3 player or phone to provide easy access whenever the individual wishes to listen to the recording. Flash drives can be especially useful when a certain person wants a lot of recordings. In summary, flash drives have been gaining popularity for their ease of use and their growing availability.

Virtual Distribution: Online Storage

In stark contrast to physical distribution, virtual distribution provides an easily accessible location where the most recent audio recordings can be located. One primary advantage that online storage has is that users can download the recordings at any time of day rather than being limited to a set schedule when copies can be made of physical media. In terms of distribution online, there are many different services we could use, but we be limiting it down to two services that are free to use: Dropbox and WordPress.

The easy way: Dropbox

Dropbox provides an easy way to share files. There are basically three steps to share files on Dropbox: signing up, uploading files, and sharing the files. Dropbox make their website so easy to use that the entire process is simple and can be done quite quickly. The first step is signing up. With their free service, they only give users an initial two gigabytes of space, but if you sign up with my referral link below, you can receive an extra half gigabyte of space. Second, we have the choice to download and use the installer or just use the web interface. Personally, I find it much easier to use the desktop application rather than having to always login to the website version. So, once we have installed the program, we can simply copy our audio recordings into a folder within our new Dropbox folder. Ideally, we want to name the folder in which we are placing the recordings to reflect what it is going to contain because others will be able to see the name. Finally, once the files are uploaded, share the folder by sharing the Dropbox link. The easiest way to do this is by going to the website and clicking “Share” and then “Send Link.” You can then either use the email feature offered within Dropbox or copy the URL and share it with those with whom you wish to share the recordings!

The better way: WordPress

While Dropbox provides an easy method for sharing our recordings, a better method would be to utilize WordPress. WordPress offers free websites as long as the website is a subdomain of theirs (***.wordpress.com). If your church already has a WordPress website, then you do not need to do the first step. If you do not already have a WordPress site, you have to go and create an account and a subdomain. Once we have that set up, we need to add the widget for sermons. Next, we need to upload the sermons. Once we have our new page up and ready, we need to simply share the URL to our new page! While this method may be a little more complex, it is a much better route to go that will enable users to listen to recordings directly on the website.

Conclusion

In summary, we have seen several different ways for distributing our recordings both in physical and virtual environments. While physical media provides a great resource for the local church, online storage with its ready availability is becoming a popular choice. Are you ready to distribute your audio recordings? More than likely, there are individuals in your church who would love to listen to a service they missed or one they want to listen to again. So, get ready and distribute your audio via one or more methods!
 
Did we miss your favorite method for distributing audio recordings? Please let us know in the comments section below!


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