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Understanding IMAG

What churches need to consider as they contemplate image magnification.

by Trevor Boyer

Image magnification, or IMAG, is the live transmission of a video image to a screen with the goal of generating a larger-than-life image of the natural object of an audience's vision. The point is to allow audience members, especially those sitting near the back of an auditorium or other space, a detailed view of a presenter that their eyes would not otherwise perceive. In a church, a typical IMAG application will involve several live cameras trained on the pastor and the choir or band, a video switcher, plus at least one projector and large screen. Facial expressions are an important factor in conveying a point, signaling a joke, or transmitting any emotion. For many churchgoers, these crucial subtleties are some of the key reasons they attend a live service rather than simply listen to a sermon on the radio or read a pastor's book. But the larger a live audience grows, the more likely it is that a significant portion of the members will be unable to grasp the visual subtleties of a pastor's sermon. As the cost of video equipment falls almost across the board, more churches are adopting, or at least considering, IMAG in order to serve their congregation members better — especially those in the back rows.

Consider that the back row of any sanctuary is often filled by those who are new to the church. They might not know to show up earlier for Sunday services, or they might feel more comfortable near the exits. In either case, holding the attention of these audience members should be a major concern. If the back row can't grasp your pastor's dry wit — or absorb his infectious positivity — based on his vocal inflection alone, they might feel alienated.

Who needs IMAG?

So how does a church determine whether its sanctuary needs some sort of image magnification of the pastor and musicians? According to church media consultant Anthony Coppedge, there's no mathematical formula. "Clearly if you're four thousand, five thousand, six thousand seats, it's a given," he says. "But—I've seen churches that are 800 that could use IMAG based on the layout of their room. I've seen churches that are 1,500 that don't even need it."

Steve Reed, senior consultant and vice president with Acoustic Dimensions in Dallas, Tex., agrees. He describes two forms of room layout, "presentational" and "community-oriented." Presentational rooms have straight seating rows, and the pastor doesn't move around the stage too much. Community-oriented rooms have wrap-around seating. "The room might not be that large, but they lose the connection to the pastor, not being able to see his face," says Reed. "While that might be a smaller room, we would think that for a room like that it would be pretty important to have IMAG, just so there's connectivity between the person speaking and everyone else."

But what if your sanctuary's size and shape seem to put it on the fence for IMAG? Coppedge suggests two things. First, listen to feedback. "You're going to hear the anecdotal stuff," he says. "You know, 'Since we built this building I just can't see the pastor like I used to.'" Second, have lay leaders and staff members sit in the back row during services and see what they experience. (Media team members can be biased toward acquiring more and better technical gear, according to Coppedge, so don't consider them an objective source regarding IMAG needs.) Because of the cost and effort involved, Coppedge advises that churches avoid IMAG unless they truly need it and they're willing to do it correctly. That means making it compelling, with multiple camera positions in order to keep the pastor square to the camera as he moves, and actually magnifying the subjects. Without multiple cameras, the only options are seasickness-inducing camera movement and zooming, or a single wide shot that covers everything but doesn't magnify anything. "My joke for that is it's de-magnification," Coppedge says.

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Trevor Boyer is a freelance writer living in Brooklyn, New York. He likes to write professional A/V and video production stories (like this one) that can be reported via subway travel.