Developing a systematic training plan for your volunteer worship video production team is important if you want to keep your IMAG video production looking consistent and professional from week to week.
If you’re like most churches, you don’t have the resources to have a full time worship video team and likely depend heavily on volunteers to run the worship video operations from week to week. And, it’s likely that you have enough people on your team so that not everyone works every week. (If you don’t, you should! Don’t burn out your team – they need time in the worship service, too.) Here’s a system we developed to make sure every director calls the shots in the same way from week to week, no matter how many different people you have.
1. Make a list of terms to use. Directors have their own personalities and skill sets. But having a consistent set of commands and prompts will eliminate confusion for camera and switcher operators from week to week. Some of the terms we put into our list are:
“Standby camera 1” – puts camera 1 in the preview monitor
“Take camera 1”- Puts camera 1 live in the program
“Standby computer/powerpoint/lowerthird”
“Take computer” – puts computer graphics on screen
You may have your own language you use when calling shots. That’s OK, just make sure your entire team uses the same language, this helps avoid confusion and embarrassing mistakes that everyone will see.
2. Everyone begins on camera. Period! Directors, switcher operators, and sometimes even producers. At my last church we had three positions for each service:
Camera operator – Hand held and on sticks (tripod). We usually had three or four operators.
Switcher – Operates the video switcher
Director – Directs the video production and calls the shots
We always recruited for camera operators first. Then, as people’s skill levels were assessed and proven, we moved them up to the switcher position, then to the director position.
All of our directors and switchers know how to operate and run a camera during a live service. We also put every director and switcher operator back on camera a couple times each year to help them keep their shooting skills sharp.
3. Train, train, and train your team. We trained all of our camera operators, switcher operators, and directors during Wednesday band rehearsals two or three times each year. Having something to shoot really makes a difference and is a lot more fun than shooting a static stage. Everyone is trained to set up their own camera (full studio configuration), operate it, and strike the camera gear as well. Switcher operators and directors-in-training actually get to go hands-on-the-gear without the pressure of an actual service. Note: Don’t use Sunday morning rehearsals for training. There’s usually not enough time to prepare for the services, and training someone brand new at that time is just a bad idea.
Finally, if you’re like me, you have a hard time letting go of something you take ownership in. I challenge you to let go! Train your team to do your job then step back and watch God work as people get excited to learn a new skill and become a part of your team. This should be the most important part of your job as a team leader: training and releasing people to do the work! You’ll sleep easier, and may even get to enjoy a full service once in a while.
Conrad Weaver
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