JVC helps transform Above & Beyond Fellowship Church with its latest NDI-enabled Remote Production Solutions
As a television news reporter and producer in the 1990s, Andre Bruce worked with some of the best cameras in the business. At the time, he was so impressed with the JVC S-VHS cameras that when he needed to purchase his own camera for freelance work in the early 2000s, he chose the JVC GY‐HM100U.
After Bruce started attending Above & Beyond Fellowship in Spring, Texas, his video expertise became a valuable asset to the congregation. “I offered to share my videography knowledge to train volunteers in television production and help grow the church’s services,” Bruce explains. “After a while, techs at other churches started to reach out to me for training and advice in setting up their video systems.”
"I’ve been a fan and user of JVC since 1978, and at some point I started saying: ‘Nothing comes between me and my JVC.’” - Andre Bruce
Bruce was eventually appointed as Video Ministry Leader at Above & Beyond Fellowship and quickly discovered that the church’s AVL system was pieced together with a variety of gear from different brands and eras gone by. Most frustrating for Bruce was that much of the equipment was the cheapest, off-the-rack solutions available to get the job done — a fact that became even more problematic when it came time to integrate video streaming. Bruce also found it difficult to find volunteers to man the cameras.
“We considered purchasing PTZ cameras, controllers, and a switcher to get around this problem,” he explains, “but it was difficult to convince church leadership of all the benefits of the investment.” Opportunity came knocking for Bruce when he saw an article on the Church Production site about the Aspire Program — a partnership between the media platform and JVC Professional Video to raise awareness about the benefits of PTZ camera production.
Formed as a means of researching and communicating best practices for using PTZ cameras in churches, the initiative opened a dialog between the brands, church techs, and creatives on the unique needs within the worship market. To kick off the Aspire program, JVC launched a giveaway to supply a church with a multi-camera PTZ streaming system.
“I thought it was wonderful that JVC put forth this opportunity, which I knew would allow me to demonstrate the benefits of investing in a PTZ camera/streaming system to the Fellowship’s leaders,” Bruce says.
“I entered knowing that if we were selected, I would be able to use the equipment to help improve our livestreaming capabilities as well as the production skills of our volunteers. I also looked forward to the opportunity to showcase the benefits of such a system to my colleagues at other churches, with the hopes of encouraging them to embrace PTZ cameras for their streaming needs,” Bruce explained in his application.
Bruce’s words resonated with the JVC team, who selected Bruce and Above & Beyond Fellowship as the finalist. The result: a generous package, complete with the brand’s latest NDI®-enabled solutions, including handheld and PTZ cameras and complementing production equipment, which offer easy integration with the church’s existing infrastructure and are perfect for remote production over the internet.
Included among these were two KY-PZ200NBU PTZ Cameras equipped with NDI |HX and SRT streaming capabilities for optimal streaming image quality and performance. JVC also sent one GY-HC500UN CONNECTED CAM Camcorder, an NDI®|HX-enabled handheld 4K camera with a one-inch CMOS sensor that offers seamless live production capabilities.
In addition to the cameras, the Fellowship also received an RM-LP100U Remote Camera Controller, which provides complete IP control of JVC PTZ and IP-enabled camcorders from the facility or anywhere in the world.
JVC also included two of its newest workflow solutions in the package, a KM-IP8 CONNECTED CAM vMIX Studio Switcher and an RM-LP350G CONNECTED CAM vMix Control Surface. Designed specifically with church users in mind, these affordable new production tools are ideal for budget conscious facilities with smaller production teams. The KM-IP8 can manage up to eight NDI |HX inputs and comes standard with vMix 4K licensed software for Windows 11 Pro. Created for use with the KM-IP8, the RM-LP350G enables traditional-style switching in the vMix environment.
In addition to providing this full remote production setup, JVC also covered all installation costs, hiring broadcast integration specialists TWIST IST for the task. TWIST IST managed the integration, setup and testing of the equipment.
Bruce is thrilled with the system and says it does everything that he hoped for and more. He is especially fond of the NDI features. “The NDI system is great because it requires less cabling—when you consider that it’s just one cable sending power, network capabilities, and connectivity to the cameras, that’s a big plus,” Bruce enthuses. “This gift from JVC has really been a blessing. It has more or less confirmed a lot of what I was trying to show to our church leaders. This is especially evident with the PTZ cameras, which are easy to use and integrate well with our existing system. They also don’t require many people for operation, and the quality of the video matches what we are used to seeing from other houses of worship, including large churches that likely have invested $500,000 or more in their system.”
Bruce says many church members have also recognized the positive changes in the live stream, which are attributed to these improvements in the production. He recommends other churches make the investment in JVC Professional Video. “Take the leap. Sit with a professional person who understands broadcasting. Select a system that’s cost-effective and future-proofed, so it can grow with your church as needs evolve. Invest in a JVC system and you won’t regret it. I’ve been a fan and user of JVC since 1978, and at some point, I started saying: ‘Nothing comes between me and my JVC.’ ”
Headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey, JVC Professional Video is a division of JVCKENWOOD USA Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of JVCKENWOOD Corporation. The company is a leading manufacturer and distributor of broadcast and professional video equipment, as well as D-ILA front projection systems. For more information, visit the JVC Pro Home Page or call (866) 582-8723.
