When I was in high school I started playing around with video editing by using a camcorder and then starting and stopping the input on a VCR. A lot has changed since then! I have a preference for editing today with Final Cut Pro X because you can purchase it without having to pay a monthly subscription (for now) and it is optimized to run on Macs. I have worked with a variety of camera and lighting gear. I recently completed a project that is really the culmination of years of learning and studying how to get high quality recordings both visually and with audio to deliver a compelling message.
We used this video to launch our annual stewardship appeal campaign at Church of the Ascension. I shot the main footage of Fr. Gary Pennings on two Nikon Z6ii digital cameras with Atomos Ninja V recorders which allowed me to get high quality log video files. The main camera is shooting through a prompter which scrolled the script along while the pastor was speaking. Because we were in a big open space for the recording I pinned a lapel for his audio which recorded into a Zoom H1n recorder. I used a DJI Mini 2 for the drone footage. The B-roll was all shot with a Nikon Z6ii or a GoPro Hero 11. The Hero 11 has a flat profile and records in 10-bit just like the Nikon recordings from the Atomos Ninja V which allowed me to easily color grade all of the footage in Final Cut Pro X. You can see how the video was embedded into the layout of our online landing page for the campaign at kcascension.org/stewardship
Other Video Projects
- Camera Upgrade Screen Test– Embedded above…this was a test in my studio of the Nikon Z6ii’s that I upgraded to. I also was playing around with some fun graphics from Motion Array!
- Celebrate Ascension Invitation– Shot in a studio that I built, this was shot on two Nikon D7200’s and used a new RGB light on the background for a splash of color!
- ACS – Celebrating 25 years– This was shot with the Nikon D7200’s in the studio along with the DJI Mini 2 for drone shots. It was a project played at a 25th anniversary ceremony for Ascension Catholic School. I cranked this project out in about a week!
- Live Streaming– I’ve been live streaming church services at Church of the Ascension since 2016 and have upgraded the gear used over time, but this links to the YouTube channel where most of the streams are archived and watched from. In particular I am proud of the audio quality which is a challenge in large worship spaces. I added a room mic along the way to pick up the ambient sound of the organ and congregation.