We've been in a bit of an odd stretch with the tech team for a while. A broken projector and summertime will do that I guess. Jonathan is on the computer all this month, but was in Maine Sunday so Shannon filled in. And Adam filled in for John. Hopefully we'll eventually nail down a set schedule.
Which brings me to my next point... WE NEED MORE VOLUNTEERS! We are (almost) in desperate need of at least one more person for the sound board and one more for the computer. This is especially true on the computer because come August, Shannon will be the only one on the team to run the computer since I'll be at home with little Tim and Jonathan will be going away to college. We won't even have a backup for her. We're looking for people who can be committed and dedicated, not just fill-ins. Adam has been doing a great job filling in with sound, but is involved in a lot of other things, and the last thing we want is for people to be stretched thin. If anyone who doesn't already have too many irons in the fire comes to mind, please contact John Roberts ASAP.
On to the review...
TEch - Visuals
During worship
Great job goes to Shannon and TW for communicating before the service about how the slides were going to go during communion. Slides were kept down during Alexis' solo, and during the second verse, as they should have been, and the chorus was put up for the congregation to join in. I even saw that Shannon made notes about it so she would remember... something I have a tendency not to do. Excellent, excellent. Can you tell I love communication?
The only things I really noticed during worship were timing issues. Most of the time it happened when switching slides within a song, as in it seemed a bit delayed. Often we were already beginning to sing the first line before the slide changed. This probably had to do with not being completely familiar with most of the songs. This is also one of the main reasons why it's important for the visual lead to be there at 8:45 for the second practice. Among other things, it will help get you familiar with the songs that are being played that morning, especially if there are brand new songs or we're changing up rhythms, etc.
The other timing issue is more of a personal preference, so maybe I'm wrong here. But if there is a musical intro to a song, try to wait until the intro is almost over before putting up the first slide. Again, this might have had to do with not being familiar with the songs and not wanting to be too late. I guess there's kind of a fine line between too late and too early! Thoughts on that?
During the sermon
Again, great job with communication. Brian let Shannon know beforehand which slides he had decided not to use, and Shannon wisely deleted them from the presentation instead of leaving them in, which is what I did a few weeks ago (and messed up!). I'd have to say that in general, I think all of our speakers are good about checking in with the tech team well in advance of the beginning of the morning if they need to adjust any of their notes. This is a great practice, so let's keep it up!
One main tip on putting up notes during the sermon that I don't think I've ever mentioned to anyone--so any fault here is mine. I noticed a couple places this morning where the slide went up quite in advance of Brian reading it. With scripture and quotes, it's important to wait right up until he starts reading the scripture or quote before putting it up on the screen. Why, you ask? Well, we have to be extremely careful in using projected notes so that they don't distract from hearing what the speaker is saying. If they go up too early, people will stop listening and start reading. We project notes to try to help people focus in on particular points or follow along during a reading, not to distract them from hearing what is being said.
TEch - Sound
I happened to be standing at the back of the room right at the beginning of worship and stayed there for a few minutes. Compared to the front of the room, where TW's voice sounded only slightly muddied when speaking, from the back of the room he sounded like he was talking with cotton in his mouth. I've noticed lately that volume-wise he's been harder to hear than usual when speaking, and now it seems to be compounded by the fact that his voice is muddied. Granted, he was sick this Sunday, so the issue may have been amplified, but I have been noticing it for the past few weeks. John, is there anything we can do to try to clear up TW's voice so people can better hear and understand what he's saying?
Levels on everyone else were good through the worship. I'm pretty sure I was able to hear everyone's voice without anyone being over anyone else.
Cues on the congregational mic were more than a bit slow throughout the morning. Sorry to keep harping on this. I'm not sure what the issue was. Sound guys: are there any procedures we can put in place to help you get the timing down?
I'm also not sure what the issue was with Brian's headset. I think either the connection into the battery box was loose, or the batteries were starting to go. TW confirmed that he saw the batteries get checked before the service. I know we've been trying to stretch the batteries to three or even four Sundays, but maybe we need to go back to two? Or, maybe it wasn't a battery problem at all, just the connection. John, what's the status on getting a few more collar clips for the headset since we're short one? The connection may have come loose because without the collar clip, the wire was essentially moving around with Brian. Or it maybe have been getting bumped because of where Brian had the battery box clipped. I think it works better off to the side rather than more towards the front. Maybe it would be a good idea for the sound tech to get the speaker hooked up either before the service or during the break so he can do a double-check on the mic connections. Adam did a great job of quickly following Brian's decision to use the congregational mic--muting the headset and unmuting the handheld without any feedback. An easy fix thanks to everyone being on their toes.
Lastly, remember that during the ministry time, the volume on any instrument being played should come down pretty significantly from where it is during worship, dropping to the background of the room instead of staying pushed to the foreground.
I think that about does it. Sorry for the long review. Please feel free to leave feedback!
