A new professional recording studio in Atlanta, Georgia provides local churches, businesses and creatives a turnkey solution for producing high quality video content. Conceived by speaker, author and faith leader, Anthony Murray – founder of the Oasis Church in Greater Atlanta – the new studio is designed to provide individuals and organizations in the city with the tools to produce high quality video content quickly and easily. The facility is available for rent to anyone who wants to use it, but will also be utilized by Oasis Church, and others in the area, as a resource for recording video sermons and other faith-based media.
Anthony Murray Studios features a multipurpose space with a large ADJ high resolution LED video wall backdrop on one side and a green screen setup on the other. The studio is equipped with high quality video capture and editing equipment as well as a versatile lighting rig comprised of fixtures from ADJ as well as sister brand Elation Professional.
To design, supply and install the technical components of the studio, Anthony brought in AVL professional Matt Russom and his company Sound Principles Pro Multimedia of Atlanta. Having supplied the technical audio, video, lighting, and acoustical correction needs of churches, schools, performing arts centers, and live entertainment venues for over 20 years, Russom and his team had also previously worked with Murray on a small install project several years ago.
Following an initial consultation between Murray and Russom, where he outlined his overarching plans for the new facility and they agreed Sound Principles would be a good fit for the project, an extensive site visit was organized. Project managers Steven and Paul Shelton walked through, step by step, everything that would be required to allow the new studio to fulfill Murray’s vision. Central to this was an LED video wall backdrop that could be used to display custom backdrops and other bespoke graphical content. ADJ’s range of LED video panels was brought to the table early in the process as the solution to all of the requirements of this aspect of the project.
“We’ve previously used a lot of ADJ equipment across the board, both for installations and for live production work through The Show Business [the production company that Matt, Steven and Paul are also involved with], so we’re very familiar with the products and are big fans of the company in general,” enthuses Steven. “So, when this project came about, one of our starting points was to look at what ADJ had to offer in terms of LED video wall and the options available to us. We worked with Dustin Pesnell and Todd Small from Freed Sales [ADJ’s Southeast Sales Rep Firm] who helped us consider the options and select the best product for this particular application.”
Following this consultation process, the team decided upon the VS2 panel from ADJ’s Vision Series. Offering a tight 2.97mm pixel pitch and brightness of 1000 NITS, this model is designed for applications where a screen is to be viewed (or captured on video) from a relatively close distance. As with all the panels in the Vision Series, it is front and rear serviceable and comprised of four individual mini modules for servicing. All models in the series also feature retractable protectors that safeguard the corners while they are not connected. In addition, all models include magnets on the top and bottom of the panels that allow users to temporarily connect two panels together, let go of the panels, then securely latch them on the rear. This allows for a single user to install a full wall of panels.
“We selected the VS2 because Anthony Murray wanted the best pixel pitch possible for the available budget and that’s what those panels delivered,” explains Steven. “It’s a unique space, in that the video wall runs down the long edge of the room, meaning the cameras must be quite close. This meant a tight pixel pitch was essential to maximize the video wall’s usability and ensure sharp images could be captured on camera. The space is only just now being opened up for rental, but the video wall has already been used by Anthony Murray and his team for some in-house productions and they really love the quality of the video wall backdrop. We also found it a very easy system to work with in terms of actually assembling a wall of that size. During the installation process, we took it apart and rebuilt it multiple times, to get it exactly where it needed to be in the space, and that was surprisingly quick to do.”
In total, Sound Principles supplied and installed 126 VS2 panels to create an LED video display surface measuring 7 panels high (3.5 meters / 11.5’) by 18 panels wide (9 meters / 30’). This provides users of the studio a large and versatile video backdrop to allow complete customization of the background imagery for their live video recording projects. A NovaPro UHD Jr video controller drives the wall and provide versatile input options for the studio’s clients. For complex projects, an ArKaos Studio Server running Media Master Pro has also been installed, while for simple connectivity a laptop running (for example) a slide show can be connected directly to the UHD Jr.
Due to the shape of the space, the setup was configured to be installed floor standing. Russom’s team designed a cube-shaped truss structure which fills the room, providing a ground support structure for the video wall as well as rigging points for the green screen backdrop on the opposite side of the room and the full lighting rig.
Variable color temperature wash lighting is provided throughout the studio by an arrangement of TVL Softlight DW fixtures from ADJ’s sister company, Elation Professional. Meanwhile, color washing is facilitated by 22 of ADJ’s 12PX HEX LED pars spread throughout the space. Each featuring 12 x 12-Watt 6-in-1 HEX color LEDs and a concise beam angle of 30-degrees, these compact yet potent fixtures are designed to have smooth color mixing for selection between a vast palette of hues and shades. In addition to general color washing, they are used within the studio on the green screen side to counterbalance any green light bouncing off the screen onto the backs of the performers.
“I love the 12PX HEX,” enthuses Steven, “it is a fantastic color mixing LED wash fixture. We use it for a lot of live production work as well, so I have plenty of experience of using it in various different settings. It generates a good clean color wash and does a great job of filling the studio to provide users the ability to dramatically change the color of the space. I have nothing but great things to say about it!”
Completing the studio’s lighting rig are six COB Cannon Wash fixtures, used for house lighting between shoots, and four Vizi Wash Z19 moving head LED washes, which are mounted to the upright trusses in each corner of the room. Offering motorized zoom, with a beam angle range of between 10 and 60-degrees, combined with 19 x 20-Watt RGBW color mixing LEDs, arranged into up to seven individually controllable zones, these are extremely versatile fixtures. At Anthony Murray Studios they are used to create dramatic effects as well as for additional washes where specific coverage is required for a particular shoot in an area not already covered by the 12PX HEXs.
“The Vizi Wash Z19 is a great wash fixture that is very flexible,” confirms Steven. “The large beam angle range means that it can be used as more of a tight beam effect or really opened up to light a wide area of the space. I really like the zone control, which allows for the creation of some great effects. The output is also really impressive; honestly, the four of them are almost enough to wash this studio all on their own!”
With a comprehensive lighting system, huge LED video wall, green screen setup and complete package of cameras and other equipment, the new Anthony Murray Studios complex is designed to provide a full turnkey solution to its users. From the simplest of presentations to the most complex video projects, the studio is ready for video producers to bring their creative ideas to life.
