State-of-the-Art Streaming at Saint Thomas Church Fifth Avenue

Recently I had the opportunity to speak with Blake Martin, Director of Communications at St. Thomas Church Fifth Avenue, and Jim Sapione of Iconoscope Productions, about Project Gabriel, their collaborative effort to equip the magnificent Manhattan church to produce live streams that capture the church and its services in all their majesty.

Like many houses of worship around the world, St. Thomas had to act quickly last March to bring services to a congregation that could no longer congregate within its confines. Their initial ad hoc efforts were two-HD camera simulive productions involving up to 15 hours of postproduction just to get each Sunday's services online. In an effort to make the the workflow more manageable, and align his efforts with the church's longterm vision for filming services and bringing the church's message to a larger audience, Martin enlisted the help of Sapione, a Brooklyn-based producer best known for directing Jazz at Lincoln Center, and with an expertise in large-scale installations, to bring that vision to life.

The result was a state-of-the-art installation featuring 11 mounted Panasonic 4K PTZ cameras that remained unobtrustive within the sanctuary but were strategically placed to capture it in all its glory, and film not only Sunday services but also the church's world-renowned choral and concert series.

Perhaps most importantly, the cameras' integration with Panasonic's remote camera controller and AV-UHS500 4K switcher enables Martin to operate the entire system as a virtual one-man band, with the able assistance of the church's audio engineer and streaming tech. Here's a look at how Project Gabriel came together, and how it helped bring the church's locked-down congregation back together, and extend its reach across the globe.