Camera for Streaming Video

hark

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My church is looking into offering streaming audio/video for their Worship services but someone mentioned they don't have a camera body. So my question is: what type of camera works best for offering streaming video? A DSLR? Web camera? Something else?

I have a D90 if that would work although I just don't know if a DSLR is the best option. They don't have a lot of money so anything that keeps the cost down would be appreciated. They do have a sound system although I have no idea what is entailed for streaming audio and video. Thanks for any ideas!
 

PapaST

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For streaming live? Or to record and then play later? "Streaming" is kind of a generic term nowadays I think.

I know budget is a concern, but what level of quality are they looking to achieve? Web cams and stuff I think are fairly limited and not great if you need to pan around.

Is there another church they've seen that is doing it? Maybe we can glean from their broadcast the best way to approach it.
 

Danno

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I do not know all the details, but my church uses dedicated video cameras to record the services and puts them out to youtube. In addition in the week leading up to the national day of prayer they live stream the reading of the bible from Sunday night at 8:00 PM. to Thursday Morning at 12:00 AM.

From what I understand it is not so much the camera as the network for streaming. A DSLR should be fine, but keeping it going for extended periods could be problematic. I will ask my friend Chad that does the recording etc and see what recommendation's he may have.
 

hark

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For streaming live? Or to record and then play later? "Streaming" is kind of a generic term nowadays I think.

I know budget is a concern, but what level of quality are they looking to achieve? Web cams and stuff I think are fairly limited and not great if you need to pan around.

Is there another church they've seen that is doing it? Maybe we can glean from their broadcast the best way to approach it.

Yes, they want to broadcast it live for members who aren't able to attend. I don't know of any churches doing this around here.

I do not know all the details, but my church uses dedicated video cameras to record the services and puts them out to youtube. In addition in the week leading up to the national day of prayer they live stream the reading of the bible from Sunday night at 8:00 PM. to Thursday Morning at 12:00 AM.

From what I understand it is not so much the camera as the network for streaming. A DSLR should be fine, but keeping it going for extended periods could be problematic. I will ask my friend Chad that does the recording etc and see what recommendation's he may have.

Dan, if you can check with your friend, I would really appreciate it. Thank you!
 

Nero

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Probably a dedicated video camera, unless there's a DSLR that doesn't stop recording automatically after a set amount of time.
 

PapaST

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I agree with Danno. Live broadcasting is likely more difficult than recording and then later uploading to a number of video hosting sites that can broadcast (youtube/vimeo). There are new methods for the budget minded, like Facebook's live stream but to the best of my knowledge you'd be broadcasting from a smart device (not terrific video) and it would be over FB.

As Danno mentioned, it's not so much the camera but the network in which you'll upload to "computer" then stream. Here's an article that may help, it's a little old (2013) but could point you in the right direction. Live Stream Your Church Services for Almost Nothing
 

hark

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I agree with Danno. Live broadcasting is likely more difficult than recording and then later uploading to a number of video hosting sites that can broadcast (youtube/vimeo). There are new methods for the budget minded, like Facebook's live stream but to the best of my knowledge you'd be broadcasting from a smart device (not terrific video) and it would be over FB.

As Danno mentioned, it's not so much the camera but the network in which you'll upload to "computer" then stream. Here's an article that may help, it's a little old (2013) but could point you in the right direction. Live Stream Your Church Services for Almost Nothing

Thanks for the article. I will forward this to the person who asked me. :)
 

Danno

Senior Member
@hark, it looks like @PapaST got you on the right track. I will say my church uses dedicated Panasonic Video cameras. They are not cheap. If you want to check out some of the Youtube videos they record here is their Youtube address. https://www.youtube.com/user/ccooper312

They have these posted every Monday. They could use live stream every week but they choose to do that only for special events given that they get the Youtube videos out so quickly.
 

hark

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@hark, it looks like @PapaST got you on the right track. I will say my church uses dedicated Panasonic Video cameras. They are not cheap. If you want to check out some of the Youtube videos they record here is their Youtube address. https://www.youtube.com/user/ccooper312

They have these posted every Monday. They could use live stream every week but they choose to do that only for special events given that they get the Youtube videos out so quickly.

Thank you for this info. Unfortunately my church doesn't have the money to fund a four-digit camera although the Panasonic's do look nice.
 
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