Pragmatic, Emblematic … Cinematic

Colorado church upgrades with a suite of Sony camera systems for consistent, cinematic capture.

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Two years ago, the tech team at Cherry Hills Community Church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado began planning for a three-phase upgrade of the church’s video systems. Phase one would focus on camera replacement, since Cherry Hills’ existing cameras were reaching end-of-life.

Then the pandemic hit, forcing the church into action. “Because of COVID, we had become a streaming church,” explains Chris Thomas, Cherry Hills’ technical arts director, adding that previously, the church did not do much in the way of streaming. “Therefore, with COVID, we were incredibly reliant on the video system to deliver services online, and the low quality of the image was becoming more and more apparent to those in leadership now that the internet was going to be our main outlet.”

While COVID accelerated the upgrade, Thomas, along with church leadership, already had a clear vision of what they wanted to achieve with the new cameras. “We wanted to get a more cinematic look, but we also wanted the cleanness of broadcast controls,” he relays. “A lot of times, integrating DSLR cameras into a weekend service workflow gets very, very messy quickly in order to make it work. We wanted a cinematic look and feel, at the same time knowing that every Sunday when we walked in it was going to work––I don’t have to worry about five different manufacturers and whether or not they’re going to play nicely together.”

In working with the church’s technology partner, Diversified––a global technology solutions provider headquartered in Kenilworth, New Jersey––Thomas arrived at the conclusion that Sony was his best option.

“I was looking for a manufacturer that could deliver good-quality cameras both in a studio package as well as a PTZ package,” he explains. “That way, as we were switching between camera sources, the quality of the image was very, very similar. Sony had all the products that we were looking for.” Sony’s solutions also addressed Cherry Hills’ desire for a more cinematic aesthetic: “The F55 camera had been used on some U2 video shoots, and Hillsong Church uses Sony all over the world to achieve a movie-like quality to their content, and we also knew that the F55 is very popular in Hollywood for its depth-of-field. But yet, there was also the option for that specific camera to deliver broadcast controls––specifically remote iris and CCU. As we started to put together our value list, Sony hit all of them.”

Cherry Hills’ new, all-Sony camera package is comprised of four HDC-3500L studio cameras, two F55 Live cinema cameras, and three BRC-X1000/1 PTZ cameras. All cameras are outfitted with Fujinon lenses.

“One of the things that is so unique about Sony is the quality they achieve in merging traditional broadcast cameras with cinema cameras and making absolutely beautiful pictures,” says Tim Corder, director of strategic accounts, House of Worship at Diversified.

“The industry has proven that in applications where you benefit from having a shallow depth-of-field, they have a camera that lets you achieve that. When the venue mandates placing some cameras further from the stage, you do not have to compromise a holistic system.” In Cherry Hills’ 2,500-seat worship center, the F55s are positioned close to the stage on a jib and an EasyRig for great shallow depth of field shots, while the 3500s sit up to 100 feet away to capture primary, establishing follow shots. The BRC-X1000 PTZ cameras are used for point-of-view shots on stage. 

Thomas notes that another important requirement was longevity. He needed these cameras to last 15 years. Scalability was another concern. While Cherry Hills currently broadcasts in 1080i, the church plans on upgrading to UHD down the road. “With Sony, we purchased a camera that can do 1080i right now, and without changing the hardware––just by purchasing a software license––I can then type in a code and the camera will now do 1080p or UHD.” He underlines that this ease of scalability was crucial in order to avoid having to perform another significant upgrade in the near future. “When you’re looking at technology that’s going to last for 15 to 20 years, you try to invest in gear that’s going to be scalable so you’re not locked into something, and then five years after that investment you’re already behind again.”

Corder recounts that the system integration took place over the course of one week. This was during lockdown, which meant that in-person worship was limited to drive-in church on the weekends, and Cherry Hills was broadcasting services from the worship center on a nightly basis. He says that when the cameras themselves were installed, they were required to be used that very evening.

“And all that had happened––I’m not exaggerating––was pulling the cameras out of the box, putting them on the tripods, attaching the lenses, and doing a simple white balance,” he recalls. “It was remarkable how great everything looked right out of the box before anyone had spent any kind of time seriously dialing in color performance. It’s a testimony to the way Sony goes about building their products.”

Craig Harper, national manager at Sony Faith, notes that the camera upgrade at Cherry Hills has positioned the church to address the evolving landscape, where congregations enjoy the ability to enjoy worship on any device, anywhere, at any time. “The way that preaching was done 100 years ago was different than it was 50 years ago, and it’s different now than it was five years ago,” he says. “It’s evolved into meeting people where they are. I think that you can be moved and hear the Word on your phone, on a podcast, on TV––wherever––and it’s just as effective. God has been preparing this for the last several years pretty intensely for a lot of churches, and now that infrastructure is being used for the next phase.”

An Option for Everyone

With its expansive portfolio of cameras, Sony offers solutions that are accessible to most budgets––even houses of worship who don’t believe they can afford them. “When people think of Sony, they think of ‘Saturday Night Live,’ they think of the Super Bowl, and they think of the Grammys,” says Tim Corder, director of strategic accounts, House of Worship at Diversified. “They don’t realize that Sony has products and options that a 2,500-seat church in Highlands Ranch, Colorado can afford. For Cherry Hills, Sony was a perfect fit for what they were looking for and what they wanted to do, and the end result has been amazing.”

Harper likens Sony’s camera lineup to a Craftsman toolset: the manufacturer makes the right camera that’s the right tool for the right budget. “At Cherry Hills, we applied that logic: a PTZ camera is being used where a PTZ camera really shines. Then the F55s––the cinematic cameras––are shooting worship. They’re up close, with beautiful Fujinon lenses zoomed out to capture the background. And then, to follow the preaching––which is the main focus of what we’re doing––they’re using the studio cameras that are easy for operators to use.”

EQUIPMENT LIST

Sony HDC-3500L Studio Camera x4

Sony F55 Live Camera System x2

Sony BRC-X1000/1 PTZ Camera x3

Sony HDCU-3100L Camera Control Unit x6

Sony RCP-3500 Remote Control Panel x7

Fujinon UA70x8.7BESMLO 4K Box Lens x2

Fujinon UA24x7.8BERD UA Series 4K Lens x1

Fujinon UA14x4.5BERD UA Series 4K Lens x1

Fujinon Cabrio 19-90mm T2.9 Lens x2

Ross Cambot 500 Series P/T Head

Ross Dashboard P/T Head Controller

Vinten Vector 75 Heads x2

Vinten HDT-2 Tripods (Box Lens Cams) x2

Vinten Vision Blue Tripods (PTZ’s) x3

Owner Provided Tripods x2

Owner Provided 30ft Jib x1

DSC Labs Color Calibration Card & Accessories

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