Pastor David Wilkerson was first called to New York City in 1958 to minister to drug addicts and gang members. In 1987, Wilkerson––author of The Cross and the Switchblade––founded Times Square Church, in what was notoriously one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in town. Today, Times Square is transformed, and the church resides in the Mark Hellinger Theater, known for its art deco façade and baroque interiors.
During the height of the pandemic, the leadership at Times Square Church recognized the need to keep its online congregation engaged, as well as add the potential for its live streamed services to reach far beyond the boundaries of New York. The church enlisted SES Integration, an AVL design and integration firm headquartered in Concord, N.C., to conduct a comprehensive audio, video, and lighting systems upgrade including a new camera rig featuring a combination of Canon EOS C300 Mark III and EOS C70 cameras, and Canon Cine-Servo lenses.
Located in the Mark Hellinger Theater in the heart of New York City, and after being closed for more than 18-months during the pandemic, the team at Times Square Church partnered with SES Integration and Canon to upgrade their video capabilities and transition from a traditional broadcast to a cinematic look using 4K Cinema Cameras and Lenses. These enhancements, combined with upgrades to audio and lighting, have allowed them to utilize their new cutting-edge technology to elevate their message and online experience to help them grow their base.
Canon’s Auto Focus feature is very popular among volunteer camera operators according to Luke LaPrairie, production director at Times Square Church. “It’s a game-changer, because they don’t have to worry about whether they’re in focus anymore.”
“When we’re working with churches on a camera rig design, we need to determine what their creative goals are,” explains Travis Aultman, client relationship manager at SES Integration. “There are visual differences between broadcast cameras and broadcast glass, and cinematic cameras and cinematic glass. Through conversation we determined Times Square Church wanted a cinematic look, with a shallow depth of field, and, of course, the Cine glass.”
“The C300 Mark III is the ultimate camera for churches,” says Darren Fordham, national account manager for house of worship at Canon USA. “Number one, it has 16 stops of dynamic range, so it can handle the combination of high and low-lighting that’s common to worship environments.” He adds that Canon’s color science enables cameras to capture the lush palette found in Times Square Church, as well as skin tones. “Skin tone is a number one priority, and our color science really brings out the right skin tones. It helps make viewers feel connected to those they’re watching.”
Aultman says that one advantage of the Canon C300 Mark III cameras is that they can be used for post-production recording as well, which leverages ROI. “If they want to broadcast a service on the weekend and then cut a live recording, they can use the same camera bodies,” he says. “It works out well.” The church’s creative team has two additional C300 Mark IIIs and two C70s for shooting during the week, and will tap into the theater rig if they need more cameras.
Luke LaPrairie, production director at Times Square Church, notes that Canon’s Auto Focus feature is very popular among volunteer camera operators. “It’s a game-changer, because they don’t have to worry about whether they’re in focus anymore,” he says. “And the stabilization is really smooth.” He adds that the on-staff creative and production teams at the church were familiar with Canon technology prior to this project, which made adopting these news cameras easier because the manufacturer’s base menu structure is the same throughout its camera lines.
The upgrade at Times Square Church also included the integration of an L-Acoustics K3 loudspeaker system with KS-21 subwoofers. A new DiGiCo Quantum 338 audio console sits at FOH (with existing DiGiCo SD10s now at monitor and broadcast positions). SES also installed a Ross Ultrix Carbonite with a Touchdrive panel, and a grandMA 3 compact lighting console by MA Lighting.
Two Canon C300 MKIII's run on Ross Furio robotics systems. One camera is loaded with a Canon Cine-Servo 17-120mm lens and the second has a Canon Cine-Servo 25-250mm lens.
Aultman relays that SES Integration has worked with Canon on a number of projects, and notes the manufacturer’s commitment to support. “They go above and beyond to help us, as systems integrators, and their end users,” he says. “They do a great job of delivering support when we need it. It’s clear to me that Canon is strongly committed to the house of worship market.”
