Video, including live video, has played a key role in the development of online church. Video kept many churches connected with their communities during lockdowns and, for some, video has become an important communications tool that has continued to be used in ministry.
Video is also the most engaging type of content on social media. Thanks to improvements in technology and editing software, making good video content has also become possible cheaply and without the need for specialist skills.
This page contains useful advice and guidance on filming videos, video editing and livestreaming.
On this page:
Video Equipment
It may not be necessary for your church to spend money on expensive video production equipment. Mobile phones and tablets have video recording capabilities which can be used to make good videos.
However, there are two pieces of equipment it is worth every church investing in and which can be purchased very cheaply:
Tripods
A tripod will hold your phone or camera steady and make the world of difference to your video. You can pick up a perfectly good tripod for approximately £20. Many now come with fittings to mount mobile phones. Alternatively you can buy an adaptor to fit a mobile phone to a traditional tripod mount.
Mobile phone lapel microphones
Microphones are essential for good quality audio, especially where there is background noise or outdoors. You can purchase microphones which plug into mobile phone earphone sockets. There are also versions for newer iPhones which don't have an earphone socket.
Higher Spec Equipment
Parish Buying AV options
Parish Buying offer a range of solutions for audio-visual (AV) equipment for churches. Suppliers offer all the necessary equipment for sound and video, at the budget level required, as well as streaming services and equipment casing.
Making Video
Digital Church: Making Videos (from the Diocese of Manchester)
Video Editing and Live Streaming Software
Depending on your budget and skill set, there is a wide range of editing software available. Most software will also follow a similar work flow. You drop your footage and sound into a timeline where you can trim clips, merge them together and overlay sound. The following are popular examples:
Publishing Videos
How to upload a video to YouTube
The video below from HowTech explains how to upload a video to YouTube.
YouTube or Facebook Premiere
A Premier is a video that is broadcast at a certain time so that users can watch together online, however it is pre recorded rather than live. YouTube and Facebook both offer Premiers. Premiers allow you to edit and produce a higher quality video than a livestream. Those watching can still interact with each other using message facilities. However, those leading the service cannot interact live with congregation as they lead the service. Scheduling a service as a Premiere rather than just posting a video also helps you to reach more people as Facebook will priroritse your content in their newsfeeds.
Livestreaming
How to live stream services
The blogs below explain how you can get started with livestreaming a sermon or service:
Video Conferencing
Zoom
Zoom is a video conferencing tool. churches can use this to host meetings or online services. One advantage of hosting services on Zoom is that the congregation can interact by video.
The blog posts below offer more information on using Zoom for your church:
Training Webinars
The Diocesan Communications Team hosted a series of Online Church webinars to support parishes with using digital communications in their mission and ministry. Linked below are training webinars on how churches can get started with video and livestreaming, including using Youtube, Zoom and Facebook live for streaming and broadcasting services.
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Nuts and bolts: Video and livestreaming
This webinar covered the basics of video and live streaming including:
- Equipment
- Production
- Software for editing and streaming
- Live streaming, pre recording and platforms (Zoom, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram)
- Promoting online worship
- Licensing, safeguarding and data protection
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The Basics: YouTube and Zoom for churches
This session covered the basics of YouTube and Zoom and is aimed at those who are looking to use these platforms for the first time. YouTube is great for sharing pre-recorded services which means you don’t need an internet connection in your church. We went through how to set up a YouTube account, how to start recording and how to upload a video to YouTube, as well as how to promote and share the videos with your church community.
We also looked at how to create a Zoom account, how to schedule a Zoom meeting and top tips for hosting a meeting.
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The Basics: Facebook Live for churches
This session covered the basics of live streaming church services using Facebook Live on a mobile phone and is aimed at those who are looking to use this platform to live stream for the first time. We looked at how to set up a live video post, how to schedule a live broadcast and practical tips for going live on Facebook.
The full series of online church webinars can be found on the link below:
