And if yes, what? No, I am not suggesting there are obscure or hidden Bible verses mentioning digital audio consoles, DMX, or large sensor camera imagers. But I’ve heard (usually from church tech-arts brethren) that the Bible has little to say about technology. Maybe that assumption should be challenged? In 1st Samuel the Bible reveals to us a story which has technology at its core, throughout, from beginning to end. It’s a story about the longing for better technology ……
Last week was a perennial event called “Bridgefest” hosted by a regional radio station the church I attend operates. They typically have Christian artists and presenters in a historic 125 year old auditorium seating 6,250, located in Ocean Grove, New Jersey. This year Pastor Pancho Juarez spoke, Matt Schuler and Big Daddy Weave shared the stage with … well … me. You see, I volunteered to run camera and that turned into me operating handheld, so at times I was…
No, this post is not about identifying cables. We who are involved in technical arts are taught to label everything. Run a cable, label it. Pack a roadcase, drawer or storage shelf, label it. Have a broken piece of gear, put a huge warning label on it. You get the idea. But there is a downside to our propensity to label everything. Volunteers who are always late or do not respond to Planning Center requests may get labeled. Band members…
Alan Lockwood, live Video Director & production junkie shared the following video on Facebook, “Mastering Composition + Cinematography with Will Smith.” I thought it was interesting and helpful. So here you go! Or, for more in depth information on church multi-camera shot composition check out this controlbooth.tv post. Tom D'AngeloTom D’Angelo has worked in television production and AVL corporate theater for nearly four decades. He is Emmy Award nominated (Best Director category, Mid-Atlantic) and has been part of various teams…
Have you ever seen a behind-the-scenes video from a feature film and the movie Director is walking around with what appears to be a film camera’s viewfinder attached to a film lens with a pistol grip? That’s called a “Director’s Viewfinder.” It allows the Director to see for himself/herself what a particular lens’ focal length will produce in field-of view. They use this to visualize a scene, insure that the lens will capture the view needed, as well as to…
One of the best skills you can develop as a live video director is the ability to clearly and concisely communicate your wishes to the rest of the crew. The pressure of a live performance or a church service – in the moment – or “calling the show,” makes things that much more stressful for directors as well as potentially unclear for the show technical staff listening for instruction. If you come out of a legitimate theater or AV background…
This past Monday through Thursday was NAB 2019, held yearly in Lost Wages Nevada, the trade-show of trade-shows for all things video and broadcast production topics related. For three days prior to NAB I attended a meeting in Reno with senior level network executives from Disney/ABC/ESPN, AT&T/Warner/Turner, NBC/Universal, CBS/Viacom, etc., discussing the future of video production, OTT (over-the-top web based content delivery), streaming, cable and broadcasting. Prophetically, one technology executive was heard to say, “in the next sixty months we…
Advice received from tech conferences, magazines, websites, discussion boards and even from fellow technical-artist friends can be wonderful; but have you ever wished you could get your hands on scientific research regarding competencies using video communication technology? I have. Recently a DeGroote School of Business research study regarding the effectiveness of conducting job interviews via video-conferencing was published. While admittedly not identical to producing a multi-camera broadcast or I-mag presentation at your church, I am impressed by how similar the advice the…
This meme has been making the rounds on social media. As you can imagine, it has generated many comments. One person responded, “No thanks, rather be at the bottom one.” Another commented, “We started years ago, I think we may have had no more than two dozen parishioners at that service, but today I run a Yamaha CL5 console for a mobile campus that has two morning services and approximately 300 people per service. God is good!” A third, “This…
Do you know how to clean your camera’s or projector’s lens the correct way? We have a really good post on the subject here on controlbooth.tv which includes a detailed kit list in case you want to put together your own lens-cleaning go-to bag. To augment this post I recently found the following video from The Black and Blue below. How to Clean a Camera Lens Without Damaging the Glass Tom D'AngeloTom D’Angelo has worked in television production and AVL…