As houses of worship grow, these facilities are using technology to spread their mission and message in a contemporary and inclusive medium. A skilled AV service can design and build an AVL project that delivers an immersive and engaging experience to all worshipers, offering them the opportunity to observe, listen and interact with their fellow gatherers.
The Role of Tech in Worship
In many religious centers, the tech is just as important to the worship as the worship leader and musicians. The responsible and respectful inclusion of audiovisual equipment into a worship service can create an engaging experience for worshipers. Proper lighting effects can add contrast, depth and dimension to set the tone of the service or song. Appropriate graphics, music and video elements can also lend an additional layer of engagement during the service.
AVL technology is a versatile tool that can be effective in worship. However, like any tool, its misuse can negatively impact a worship service. Whether you decide to employ a full AVL installation or use a simple setup of audiovisual tools, it’s critical for all equipment to be high-quality. This principle also applies to the features of the tech: The AVL equipment should complement the service, no more and no less. The best AVL implementation still places the worship service front and center.
House of worship AVL techs must not distract from the service. One crucial role the worship AV team plays is not to be seen or heard. Whether from technical failure or human error, mistakes during a worship service can negatively impact the environment. Audio levels that are unbalanced, too low or too high can be a distraction, as can interfering frequencies and audio spikes that create a “pop” sound. Even a quality sound system can perform poorly if an inexperienced person uses speakers, microphones and soundboards incorrectly.
As technology increases in nearly every facet of our lives, it’s natural for more and more religious organizations to consider adding AVL equipment to their worship services. Technology can enable the mission of the church by increasing communication, growing the community and offering worshippers a contemporary way to engage in their worship services. This technology, combined with the guidance of AV techs and worship leaders, can have a profound impact on worship services.
Tips for Building Your Church AVL
Regardless of whether you’re renovating an existing AVL setup, or if your church is deciding to construct a new worship space that includes lighting, audio and video projection, it’s critical to plan the project responsibly.
Orient AVL technicians prior to the project construction. Although any construction is a huge undertaking, it shouldn’t distract from the overall goal of the project: building an amazing AVL setup for your worship. An experienced team of design and integration professionals will understand your goals and advise you on the most effective way to reach them. They’ll ensure all equipment will fit in your space, detail power requirements for specific machines and execute the build properly from design to completion.
Identify how AVL will satisfy your ministry values. As you define what your AVL equipment will provide, you should also explain why the AVL build will achieve the ministry’s vision while encompassing its values. What needs will AVL satisfy that aren’t currently being met? How will AVL transform the worship space into the desired environment? Will this equipment be satisfactory as the ministry grows? Knowing how and why an AVL installation will meet the needs of worship and the church’s overall mission will keep the project in focus.
Detail the master plan. You know the goal, now divide it into phases. Each step of the plan should have clearly defined benchmarks. Knowing how to organize the implementation and what each phase requires for completion will ensure you’re fully aware of how your expectations for the build, and any limitations, will impact the final product.
Most importantly, you need to remember your ministry does not have to design a complete AVL build alone. There are teams of talented design and implementation specialists that can adapt your worship vision to your unique church’s needs.
This article is courtesy of Illuminated Integration, www.illuminated-integration.com. They know how vital AVL is in worship, and they are committed to bringing that element to your church services. Their creative staff has decades of combined experience in design and consulting, sales, production, implementation, integration, education and training.
