Sunday morning services in the huge Vue theatre are co-ordinated by a large team of volunteers, led by Sakkie Erasmus and Glen Trollip, which mans SD and HD cameras, numerous laptops, live streaming, audio control and vision mixing. The church has just invested in an Edirol V-440HD multi-format video mixing system to help them step up their video presentation from standard to high-definition.
Says Erasmus, "For the last three years, we've been using a pair of Edirol V-4 video mixers in all our locations, but we wanted to upgrade and exploit the potential of the amazing cinema screen here in the O2 Vue, which is the widest in London. This entailed a move to the high-definition format, which will be fully realised when we add two extra cameras, including one that roams on stage."
The Edirol V-440HD can mix both HD and SD, up to four channels of each simultaneously, so it is the ideal device to give CRC London a smooth transition. "The V-440HD upscales standard definition, and makes it look better on the wide screen," adds Glen Trollip.
Erasmus and Trollip work with a group of volunteers, none of whom had any previous AV training. "We start them on cameras and gradually bring them closer and closer to the mixers. Some have used the Edirol V-4s in other locations, but all find the V-440HD an agreeably intuitive interface, very easy to use. Besides, Edirol runs great 'how-to' videos on its website, which provide a comprehensive overview of operation."
The Sunday service in the O2 venue is relayed live to CRC's sister locations in Wimbledon and Brentwood, and recorded for later replay in other CRC ministries in Sevenoaks and Birmingham. Typically, the V-440HD vision mixer will be accepting up to four RGB laptop inputs, including announcements and extracts from the bible as well as song lyrics, and two camera feeds.
The V-440HD unit outputs to a laptop and, using Wirecast webcast software, is streamed to a server and onto the internet. Services can be viewed at www.crclondon.com, downloaded onto iPhones, accessed by CRC's TV channel on YouTube, or listened to as a podcast. "The city and residents of London are central to the growth of the ministry," says Sakkie Erasmus, "and, in our experience, Londoners are more receptive to multimedia than most. It is a young church, with a young congregation, so we maximise all the social networking opportunities and make the most of our big band and big screen."
(Jim Evans)
