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Production directors wear a lot of hats, and we tend to only be experts (or just functional informed) under one of those hats. For me, that’s video. I do pretty good with audio, too, but if I’m being honest, I’m not really a lighting guy. I understand it enough to help manage it and make purchasing decisions, but it’s not my creative outlet. I tend to see someone else doing something I like and then copy-cat it based on my budget.
So, if you’re like me and need some creative “inspiration” for your next lighting overhaul, here’s how to copy this great lighting look from Bethel Church for around $5,000.
For around $5,000, you can replicate Bethel’s clean, simple stage look—without needing a mega-church budget.
Caveats
I won’t be covering two things in this breakdown: the LED wall and a lighting software/controller. I’m going to assume that you have those two parts of your FOH look sorted. You probably don’t need an LED wall, so maybe you’ve got a large projection screen on the center wall, and you could also replicate this LED look with a few synced projectors.
If you need a new lighting console or maybe you don’t have one, we can help you with that.
Your church doesn’t need to match the big guys. Find the look that works for your space and your budget.
In the meantime, this article will just cover the lighting fixtures needed to make an affordable version of this clean, simple stage look Bethel is rocking right now.
Also, your setup doesn’t have to look just like this one. In fact, I’m going to suggest fewer fixtures than you see in the photo of their stage because less is more. This is about finding a look your church likes that fits your budget, with some inspiration from Bethel Church.
Slim PAR LEDs: $3,499
"These things [Chauvet SlimPar LEDs] are perfect for making an affordable color palette because they offer the entire color spectrum without being overwhelmingly bright....," shares Joseph Cottle.
I freaking love these things are perfect for making an affordable color palette because they offer the entire color spectrum without being overwhelmingly bright (don’t use them as a front wash, obviously).
Chauvet offers these at just a tick under $100, but you can get four-piece kits on B&H Photo Video for $350, which includes DMX cables and a bag. This look has, by my count, 53 of them (not counting the lights below the wall because you can get by without those). Yes…. that’s most of the budget, so don’t buy 53 of them.
There’s an odd number of lights on top of the LED wall, so even that out and you come to 52 lights, or 13 four-packs. The two rows of overhead lights are also a bit extra, so if you don’t really need those (most churches won’t), that knocks it down by another twelve lights, which gets you to just 10 of those four-packs. Brothers and sisters in Christ—that’s $3499 shipped, with cables. Let us rejoice in song.
Bethel’s room isn’t massive—it’s a gym with carpet. Great production isn’t about size, it’s about creativity.
Panel Washes: $880 - $1,760
You might have to dig around for the right fixture that fits your exact look, but I did find these for $110 per unit.
SHEHDs LED panels are available at https://shehds.com/ for around $110 per unit.
If you want to exactly replicate Bethel’s look on the side walls, you’ll need sixteen, but you could get away with just four on each side wall, bringing your total to 8. Just keep your PAR lights evenly spaced in a 4x4 matrix, and it will still look great.
Pardon…how do we mount these?
I’m glad you asked. It appears that Bethel mounted theirs on black trussing, but that’s not necessary. Trussing is cool and convenient, but it’s also expensive. So, don’t use it.
Less is more. You don’t need 53 lights to achieve an excellent look. A scaled-down version can be just as powerful.
One of the things I love about Bethel’s stage sets is that their stage isn’t actually that big. Their whole room isn’t that big either. Infamously, it’s just a multipurpose room that spends most of its life as a carpeted gym. They do a great job of making it feel pretty big on video, but if you take a minute to look, people are pretty close together on that stage.
Arrow's T59 Insulated Staples are also available at Lowe's, Ace Hardware, Home Depot, as well as on Amazon.
I point that out because I know that most people reading this don’t have much stage space (or budget) to spare on trussing, so head to Home Depot or Lowe’s (I’m a Menards man myself, but whatever does it for you…), get a big box of screws and washers, and then bolt those lights right onto your wall. The black cloth or paint will hide the cables, which reminds me: get something to tack cables to the wall as well. They make staples and staple gun specifically for that; just make sure the staples are black.
Will people see the cables? Only if they’re up close. The light coming from the PARS and panels will more than conceal any cabling tacked to the wall.
Go Easy On Yourself
I know countless production leaders scroll through their internet or social feeds and see epic FOH looks from big churches with big budgets. If that’s you, please be encouraged: you don’t have to be like the big guys. Be yourself in your context with your budget. You’re called to be faithful where you are at, and that will look different and that is good.
The Lord is with you. Take heart and go run this by your pastor.
