Do you use mostly stills or motion backgrounds with your worship software?

[Lucas]

We use 100% motions, for every service. I cannot remember the last time I used a image during worship that wasn't incorporated into a video somehow.
I usea lot of pre-made stuff for our tradition stuff, but for our youth events I use a lot of custom videos, and a lot of Digital Juice (often sped up).

Here is a few images of youth stuff. http://www.ssplash.com/SSPlog/tabid/...0/Default.aspx

[cheneye1]

We use a combination of stills and motion. We use during service mostly motion loops that subtle for backgrounds. The preacher picks his own stills. And we use video clips to illustrate the sermon.

[sempei13]

One loop for worship.

Another for drama.

Another for stories.

Another for sermons.

Paul

[rcourtney]

We use motion on music but stills on scripture.

We (mostly I) resisted the change to motion backgrounds
because they are hard (or next to impossible) to key over video.

It may impose restrictions on a cablecast ministry if you don't have
a switcher that can put text over motion background for IMAG
and clean text over video so you can see your musicians.

[FlamHappy]

Stills.

We are blessed with a photographer in the congregation who donated a bucket load of beautiful pics.

[Beverley]

We have a mostly older congregation at our church. The majority are still upset 7 years later that the screen that is used for projection covers the Stain Glass cross behind the choir seating. lol There are still complaints that we should move the screen up and down (without any noise and quickly please...) so they can see the cross during the offertory and the especially during the Lord’s Supper. It is quite a trying experience some days. The funny thing is they don't complain to me very often. I normally get it 2nd and 3rd hand. lol
We have moved to a power point for the Sermon but I try to keep the screens with lyrics lower key so everyone can see them. About the most we can add is screens for special music and before / after the service or for announcements and news.

[[Admin] osborn4]

Beverley,

I have treaded the same exact path as you. For years we would raise and lower the screen (it took 40 seconds, I timed it) so the stained glass behind could be seen. I even took a picture of the stained glass from the aspect of the projector and used that as a generic background. They thought I was trying to fool them and laughed it off. I was trying to find common ground.

Over the years we have moved from just the songs; to an announcement loop; to the sermon and now we leave the screen down for the whole service and I come up with something germaine or topical for everything; offertory, children's message, etc.

The song backgrounds went from black to a blue gradient to nature stills (and a few nature loops) to mostly topical backgrounds. Any motions I use are fairly subtle generally.

So take heart and keep trodding.

[Beverley]

I hadn't thought about the picture of the window.. ummm... That is a great idea. Not that they will like it but it will cheer me up...lol We had stopped putting it up and down for a while and then a few weeks ago I got it from the Music Director that they wanted it up for Communion.. and then back down for a song at the end.. But at the same time they wanted me out from the booth and in the congregation when they held hands and sang. lol If only there were three of me. My comment was "Choose your last song wisley" lol There will be noone to change the screen to the next verse. lol

Thanks Joel, I see some picture taking in my future...lol It will at least get a chuckle from some...

Beverley

[[Admin] osborn4]

Just make sure the pastor has a long enough prayer between communion and the last song to drop the screen. That's what I kept telling the pastoral staff when we were having to put the screen up and down.

[bpalermini]

Originally Posted by Beverley

We have a mostly older congregation at our church. The majority are still upset 7 years later that the screen that is used for projection covers the Stain Glass cross behind the choir seating.

Kind of like Joel at my former church we had a similar problem with the screen covering a cross on the back wall. We took a nice picture of it that showed it on the screen about actual size and projected that whenever we weren't projecting lyrics, etc. Not a perfect solution but it helped some people.

It was also kind of a neat effect when we went to that picture and then raised the screen revealing the real cross. The projected image then just became part of the lighting. The cross was far enough back from the screen position that the image was completely out of focus.

[Beverley]

I'm gong to get a few pictures this weekend and see if I can get view that will work. It may irritate a few of them but if nothing else it will make a good background to use for other things. I suspect some of them won't even realize it is a picture of our window. lol It will be fun to see if anyone catches on... lol

[wogster]

The problem with video is that when the background moves it can sometimes obscure the text, in that white text on a white background is hard to see. This is fine when the number of songs is relatively small and the congregation knows most of them from memory, so the occasional obscured word is fine. Using an outline works fine, with a younger congregation with good eyesight, however with an older congregation (the average age of mine is about 72), where a lot of people haven't updated their glasses prescription since Brian Mulroney was Prime Minister, anything other then black text on white or white on black, will receive complains.

I use still backgrounds for section titles, for example Congregational Prayer, Children's Moment, etc. These are backgrounds that I either have express permission to use, or are from my own collection, which consists of over 30 years of nature photography.