Build a Live Stream Your Congregation Wants to Watch

More than half of a typical congregation now watches online at least some of the month, and for a growing number of churches, the online audience has quietly grown past the number of people in the pews. 

Online attendance is not a problem to solve, but it's a ministry to support properly, which you can only do if the stream is good enough quality to hold someone's attention past the first few minutes. 

Getting there takes the same production discipline as in any commercial AV space, just aimed at a very different kind of audience. Learn more about live streaming capabilities for houses of worship below.

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Audio Comes Before Video, Every Time

A viewer will forgive a static camera angle, so don’t focus too much on dynamic video additions too early. What they won’t forgive as easily is muddy, out-of-sync sound. 

If the speaker’s voice lags behind the video or the worship team sounds a half-second ahead of the band, most online viewers will log out of the stream and be long gone before the first song ends. 

Getting a wireless lavalier mic on the pastor and a proper mix feeding the stream separately from the sanctuary's house sound is worth more than any camera upgrade a house of worship could make.

Cameras Shouldn’t Require a Production Crew

A well-placed PTZ camera, one that can pan, tilt, and zoom to preset shots, gives a small church a dynamic stream without needing a large volunteer crew to run multiple cameras every Sunday. Larger congregations running multiple services a week get more value from a multi-camera setup with a switcher cutting between angles, but it’s not necessary. It’s a scale decision, not a requirement for a live stream to look great for your online participants. 

Either way, the goal is an audio/video setup that’s simple enough that the same volunteer who ran the sound board last year can run the stream this year without a steep learning curve.

Church Live Stream Considerations Beyond Audio & Video

Most streaming problems trace back to what nobody budgets for. Revamping your audio and video setup is only one part of the equation. Other considerations include lighting: a camera needs light aimed at what it's pointed at, or the worship team disappears into shadow. Streams using the sanctuary’s Wi-Fi won’t work reliably, so a wired connection with ample upload bandwidth will keep the live stream online.

A control system ties cameras, audio, lighting, and streaming encoders into a setup that a volunteer can easily run, without requiring a technical background to operate it well. Crestron control systems are built for exactly this kind of coordinated, one-touch operation, which matters more for a church running on volunteer teams than it does almost anywhere else Elite Technology Solutions works. Once a system is programmed, starting Sunday's live service stream is as easy as pressing a button.

Create a Live Stream Your Congregation Enjoys Watching

If your local church wants to reach members who can't make it to the building, contact us today to request a church AV consultation.