Collide Magazine

Visual Media on a Small Church Budget

Chip Garrison - Originally posted Thursday, November 1, 2007 -

When it comes to media, we’ve all seen what churches with a lot of resources can do. As the leader of a small church, or perhaps a small ministry within a larger church, you may believe that a tight budget means you’ll never be able to incorporate media into your services. That’s where you may be incorrect.

Of course, you have a desire to be relevant, to use the methods of the next generation to teach and impact people with the timeless and ageless message of Jesus Christ. But you can’t afford the necessary equipment, and just as important, you may not even know how to get started.

For some, the thought of using a video in worship means pressing play on a TV/VCR combo, but things have come a long way in the last few years. Did you know there are several Internet sites that provide downloadable video clips to use in your church services? Some sites may offer free videos, but the majority cost $10-$20. Once downloaded, these clips will play back via presentation software on your computer, which is directly connected to a projector.

A lot of people can make recommendations about incorporating visual media at your church, but most overshoot the capability and budget of the small church. As I mentioned earlier, you need three basic things: a projector, presentation software, and a computer.

Projector
It’s not difficult to spend a lot money on a projector, but if you know what to look for, you can get a great deal on an adequate projector. Before you buy, you need to know how far the projector will be from the wall or screen and how bright the room or area is where the projector will be used, and then you can select a projector that meets those criteria.

My favorite place to purchase projectors is TigerDirect.com, but I’m sure there are many other sites through which you can get a discount on a projector. For example, I recently found a ViewSonic PJ506D projector on TigerDirect.com for $499. According to the specifications, the ViewSonic can be placed anywhere from 39 inches to 390 inches from the screen. Of course, the farther the projector is from the screen, the less bright it will be.

The second important number regarding this projector is that it projects at 2,000 lumens. Lumens is a fancy term that indicates the projector’s brightness. In many churches this projector would be too dim, but our church uses two projectors with these exact specs for our sanctuary. We can pull it off because our screens have very little light shining on them—we use a dark sanctuary and bright stage.

In a more traditional setting, you can still have a light sanctuary but achieve a similar effect by putting your screen by the baptistery or in a corner where a couple of lights can be turned off. Ultimately, if you have more than $499 to spend on a projector, you’ll certainly benefit from a more capable machine. But when we started using multimedia, we used a 750 lumen projector. Although it was dim, we turned off the lights during videos, and the result was better than not having any projection at all.

Presentation Software
In order to project images or video, you will need presentation software. PowerPoint has been common for years, but has serious limitations such as the inability to display text over video. It is, however, cheap and likely already owned by most churches.

A better option is to use presentation software designed for churches. MediaShout is the most popular, but there are many other software titles to choose from. When choosing between PowerPoint and church presentation software (which typically costs between $200 and $400), remember, you get what you pay for in terms of functionality.

One key advantage of most presentation software packages is dual monitor support. Dual monitor support allows one monitor to display a control screen and the second monitor to display what is being projected live onscreen. The control screen allows the user to change mid-course or skip back when the worship leader changes a song’s arrangement on the fly.

Learning new software can be tricky, but most of the programs come with tutorials and/or help menus. It is worth your time to play with the software until you have it figured out. If you aren’t sure what software is right for you, take advantage of the free 30-day trials offered by most software companies. Use the trial period as an opportunity to evaluate the features and ease-of-use of each title, then purchase the one that is the best fit for you.

Computer
Presentation software is useless without a computer on which to run it, but do you need to spend $1,000+ on a good computer? Probably not. Each presentation software has different system requirements, but most likely you’ll need a PC with a Pentium 4 or Dual Core processor, one or two GB of RAM, a CD/DVD drive, a hard drive with enough space to store your media library, and a 128 MB or higher video card that is DirectX 9-compatible.

PriceWatch.com and TigerDirect.com will allow you to put together a system that meets these specifications for less than $400, although you’ll need to add a cheap monitor if you don’t already have one. As with projectors, better quality, capacity, and performance are available to you if your budget will allow. If not, a machine that meets the minimum requirements is where you’ll have to start. If you’re interested in a Mac, specs, pricing, and software options will vary.

The Grand Total
Using a $499 projector, a copy of PowerPoint you already own, and a $400 computer will allow any church to venture into the realm of multimedia for less than $1,000! If you choose to upgrade to church presentation software, the total cost to get started can still be under $1,500. We found someone willing to donate the funds to get our church started using multimedia, and our services have never been the same.

Pastor Chip Garrison is the lead pastor of New Hope Family Church in Sioux Falls, SD.