To support live production of weekly worship services, the church has invested in seven Panasonic AK-UC4000 4K/HD/HDR studio camera systems, as well as an AW-UE150 4K/HD pan/tilt/zoom camera and two PT-RQ22KU 4K+ large-venue laser projectors.

Long Hollow’s 42,300 sq. ft. broadcast campus houses the main sanctuary, which can hold up to 2600 people.  This location’s Sunday services are broadcast live to a satellite campus in Gallatin, Tenn., as well as to Facebook Live and the church’s web site.  Entire worship services and the pastor’s messages are available on-demand on the site as well.

Three AK-UC4000s now reside on tripods in the main church auditorium, two are used handheld on the stage, one operates on a jib in the house, and the last is used as a roaming camera to produce bumps/intros/outros for on-line use. The AW-UE150 robotic camera provides a life-size lock-down shot of the pastor that is transmitted to the Gallatin campus during the sermon. The PT-RQ22KU projectors are positioned in the house to transmit to two 21’ by 12’ IMAG screens. Long Hollow’s current production format is 1080/60p.

Tyler Hirth, Long Hollow’s Production Manager, said the upgrade was long overdue. With the imperative to put entire services online - live and for VOD, they needed a new production system that was robust and flexible enough to support the many conferences and events they host in the worship center.

“The UC4000 could deliver superb HD production now, with a streamlined path to eventual 4K HDR video capture,” Hirth said.

Take One Film & Video (also in Hendersonville) provided design and system integration services for the upgrade. Chad Hall, President/CEO, Take One Film & Video, said they conducted a camera shoot-out, and the UC4000 was the only camera that could provide a seamless upgrade to 4K HDR with no requirement to purchase additional hardware or licenses. Couple that with the camera’s compatibility with the UE150 and the projectors, and Panasonic provided a turnkey 4K solution.

“I’m a camera shader by trade,” said Hall, “and I’ve suggested that the church take full advantage of the UC4000’s Dynamic Range Stretch (DRS) function, which, given the worship services’ LED walls, high brights, dark areas and overall concert feel, is delivering tremendous detail in the darks and mitigating hotter spots. It looks amazing.”

Hirth added that Long Hollow’s in-house congregations have commented on a much-improved worship experience since the Panasonic equipment was installed in early summer, and that streaming and on-demand video were both “dramatically improved.”