Shutterbug57

Looking for an economical way to set-up a video broadcast (youtube/skype/FB, etc) in a small auditorium. We can seat roughly 200 folks and already have an audio board that is well thought out. We are looking to put together an acceptable level of broadcast - think vlogger level - for folks who cannot make it to our events.

I am well versed in still photography, and aware that many vloggers use fairly affordable (sub US$2K) cameras to record their material. I am interested in what we would need to get and how to best set-up the equipment. I am thinking of a remote control of the camera from the sound booth and the camera mounted from the ceiling. Interested in thoughts from those who have actual experience in this area. Also, what is the easiest & cheapest forum to broadcast with?

I appreciate your thoughts.

alliebess Loc: suburban Philadelphia

The university where I worked once videoed and broadcast the ongoing restoration of a huge painting. The computer tech people set it up using an entry level Canon DSLR (probably about $500 at the time) on a tripod. I watched a few of the episodes and the quality was pretty good.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

jdub82 Loc: Northern California

The easiest and cheapest is using Facebook Live. This has become to go to way for many to broadcast live events. There is no broadcast cost except the equipment you are using, (Often a recent iPhone model such as the X, XS, or XR is used to film the action) to tune in one simply has to have a Facebook account. Believe it or not, you likely wouldn't need a ceiling mounted camera for this. If you prefer to use a Video Camera, it would need wifi capability, but it could easily be mounted on a camera mount near the sound board.

jgangjr

If you have the budget, I would use an NDI PTZ camera with Vmix software running on a computer. You will need to have them both on a network that is connected to the internet. You will also want to invest in a remote controller for the camera. This setup can be done way under $3,000 depending on the camera you choose.

Additionally, this would give you a path to easily add more cameras and capabilities down the road, including using a camera phone via the Newtek app as a roaming camera.

Here are some links:

https://www.vmix.com/

https://ptzoptics.com/NDI

https://www.newtek.com/ndi/