Canon demonstrated MCO in a podcast-style studio environment, but the platform could also serve churches where sermon coverage requires cameras to respond to a pastor’s movement.
Auto-tracking and auto-framing are nothing new. Churches have used those technologies for years to keep a pastor centered, maintain headroom and follow movement across a platform. But those tools generally automate one camera at a time. Someone still has to decide where the other cameras should be pointed and prepare them for the next cut.
Canon’s Multi-Camera Orchestration application, or MCO, takes a different approach. Instead of treating each PTZ camera as an independent robotic operator, it coordinates the cameras as a group.
What happens when the cameras not on air are already preparing the next shot?
The church assigns roles to each camera within a predefined role set. As the operator changes the subject or composition of a designated main camera, MCO directs the supporting cameras to reposition into complementary shots. While the operator concentrates on one camera, the others prepare themselves as likely next choices for the director.
“One person can control all these cameras,” explains Michael Kearns, senior technical specialist with Canon. “They only have to focus on the one camera they’re controlling. They don’t have to worry about what camera two or camera three is doing, because the system is smart enough to know what to do.”
Preparing What Comes Next
Consider a church producing a sermon with three PTZ cameras. The main camera might provide a medium shot of the pastor from the center of the room. A second camera could be positioned for a tighter angle from stage left, while a third prepares a wider composition that includes the pastor, the platform and part of the congregation.
Canon’s MCO application could help churches maintain more consistent camera coverage when a pastor moves frequently during the message. Photo by Jason Jarrach at Unsplash
When the operator changes the main camera’s framing, the other cameras respond according to the roles the church has programmed. One camera might widen as the main camera moves tighter. Another might maintain a medium shot or frame the pastor from a different angle.
The system does not independently direct the production. Someone still decides which camera goes to air and makes the editorial choices about timing, pacing and visual storytelling. MCO’s job is to make sure the cameras that are not being controlled are still doing something useful.
That is the distinction between traditional auto-tracking and orchestration. Auto-tracking can keep one camera on a moving subject. MCO attempts to make the entire camera complement respond together.
“You have a bunch of role sets that you can define that tell the cameras exactly what to do, dependent on what your main camera is looking at,” Kearns says.
For a church with a limited production team, that could significantly change the PTZ workflow. Instead of manually recalling presets or reframing several cameras before each transition, one operator can concentrate on the primary shot while MCO prepares the alternatives.
Building Roles for Each Camera
A role defines what a particular camera should do within a given production arrangement. It can address subject selection, shot size, composition and headroom. One supporting camera might be instructed to frame a person at stage right, while another provides a wider group shot.
Those assignments are combined into role sets. A church could build one role set for a sermon, another for a two-person interview and another for a panel discussion or online program. Changing the role set changes the responsibilities of the cameras without requiring the operator to rebuild each composition manually.
MCO coordinates multiple PTZ cameras as a group rather than treating each one as an independent operator.
The church can also determine how supporting cameras respond when the main camera changes. “As you zoom in, do you want the sub-cameras to zoom in as well?” Kearns asks. “Or do you want those to zoom out as you zoom in?”
During a sermon, for example, the center camera might move into a close-up while the side camera remains wider as a visual reset. Another camera could maintain a medium shot that gives the director a safe transition between the two.
MCO uses two overhead cameras to determine where people are located within the defined production area. As subjects move, the supporting PTZ cameras can adjust while continuing to fulfill their assigned roles. Kearns describes this as a more advanced form of tracking because the system understands the position of multiple people rather than simply following one selected subject.
Protecting the On-Air Shot
Automatic repositioning creates an obvious concern: What happens if the system wants to move a camera that is currently on the air? Canon addresses that with a feature called Tally Lock.
MCO monitors the tally status of the connected cameras. If a supporting camera is feeding the program output, the system holds that shot rather than allowing it to move immediately. Once the director switches away, the camera can reposition into its newly assigned composition.
“The software says, ‘I know I’m supposed to move this camera, but we’re in program right now,’” Kearns explains. “‘I’m not going to move this until you switch to another camera.’” For live church production, that protection is essential. Automation is only useful when its movements remain invisible to the viewer.
Where MCO Fits in a Church
MCO was designed primarily for controlled productions such as podcasts, interviews, talk shows and small studio environments. That does not rule out church use, but it helps define where the platform is most likely to succeed.
Role sets allow churches to create different camera behaviors for sermons, interviews, panels and other productions.
A sermon may be a more practical application than a full worship set. A pastor, interviewer or small group moving within a defined area gives the system a manageable environment. A large worship platform filled with musicians, vocalists, instruments and constant movement presents a more difficult challenge.
Kearns describes an ideal working area of approximately 20 by 13 feet, with the upper practical range around 26 by 16 feet. He cautions that the system is not designed for every large church stage or every production environment.
Potential church applications include sermons, leadership interviews, podcasts, online devotionals, announcement programs, classes and panel discussions. A church might also use the system in a weekday studio while considering whether it could support portions of the Sunday service.
With MCO, compatible Canon PTZ cameras can respond as a group instead of relying on an operator to frame each camera individually.
Infrastructure and Setup
MCO requires Canon PTZ cameras, including two overhead cameras that monitor the production area. Those overhead views provide the spatial information the software uses to determine where each person is located, making camera placement critical. The overhead cameras must see the stage from slightly different angles, with enough overlap for the system to understand depth and subject position. Very high ceilings or difficult mounting locations may complicate the installation.
Tally Lock prevents MCO from repositioning a camera while its shot is on air.
The platform also requires Canon’s software and a sufficiently powerful computer. Kearns describes a core application that analyzes the images and directs the cameras, along with a control application used to create roles and operate the system. The applications can run on the same computer or on separate machines, although the core processing computer requires more substantial hardware.
The initial calibration and programming require time. Installers must define the production area, establish the range of movement for each camera and test the role sets until the resulting shots work as intended. Kearns says that setup is the hardest part. Once the cameras are calibrated and the role sets are established, however, the live workflow becomes much simpler.
“Once that’s done, once you’re live, it’s actually really easy to use, especially even for an untrained operator,” he says. Canon currently considers MCO an integration-oriented product and is training integrators to install and support it.
Weighing the Investment
MCO is not an inexpensive entry point for a church starting without compatible Canon cameras, network infrastructure or control hardware. Kearns estimated that a complete system built from the ground up could exceed $50,000, depending on the cameras and supporting equipment selected. Churches that already own compatible Canon PTZ cameras would face a lower barrier.
The promise of MCO is not just easier control—it is better-prepared choices for the director.
The potential return is not simply the elimination of camera operators. It is a more repeatable production workflow. Once the cameras are mounted, calibrated and assigned their roles, volunteers may not need to manually frame every camera or remember long sequences of presets. Role sets can be selected through the software or triggered from a Stream Deck with clearly labeled buttons.
The system does not eliminate the need for trained judgment. Someone still needs to understand composition, switching and the visual goals of the service. Automation cannot decide whether a close-up is appropriate for the moment or whether a camera cut supports the message.
What it can do is reduce the mechanical workload required to keep multiple cameras ready. For churches, that may be MCO’s most compelling promise: while one shot is telling the story, the cameras preparing what comes next are no longer waiting for an operator to tell them where to go.
