Churches come in all shapes and sizes, and that diversity helps the gospel to reach all kinds of people. However, there’s no denying it, larger churches have bigger budgets and that generally means they have the ability to achieve more with their production. Despite this, Barrett Navarre, pastor at Wisdom Church in Moss Bluff, LA, wasn’t willing to let the small size of his fledgling congregation limit his creative vision. That’s why his brief to AV systems designer Greg Stevens from Stevens AV was to create a mega church production in his 130-capacity church auditorium.
With plenty of experience in both church production and AV installation, Greg set up Stevens AV in 2018 as a full-service company offering system design, equipment sales and installation including rigging and electrical work. With a heart for the church and a passion for audio, lighting and video, his vision was to specialize in non-traditional projects that require outside of the box solutions. This was definitely the case for Wisdom Church, a growing Christian fellowship meeting in a worship space located in a commercial unit on a suburban strip mall. Greg was recommended to pastor Navarre by the owner of a Funeral Home in which he had recently completed a distributed audio installation. Stevens AV were contracted to install an audio system for full-band live worship as well as lighting and video production to create a ‘mega church feel’ in the intimate space.
The first way that Greg’s team achieved the brief was to augment the existing system of LCD TV screens with a video wall to serve as a backdrop as well as to display song words and verses of scripture. For this Greg supplied 28 of ADJ’s AV2X 2.97mm pixel pitch LED panels, arranged to create a 3.5m (‘11 “5) x 2m (‘6 “6) screen.
“For the video wall we were bidding against another supplier offering a significantly more expensive product. But when compared side-by-side the AV2X offered the same pixel pitch and brightness while coming in within the church’s budget, so the decision was a real no brainer. I think the AV2X is a fantastic panel – especially considering the price point – and it has proved to be the ideal choice for this project. Not only that, ADJ provides solid support which is also very important. Mike Turner [ADJ’s Regional Sales Manager in the area], came down to help us commission the installation and to provide hands-on training. He also stayed to attend the first church service using the wall to make sure everything went smoothly. The support we’ve received from ADJ really has been second to none right from start to finish.”
Another consideration in the choice of video panels was the church’s plans to install a broadcast-quality video system in order to stream services online. The AV2X offers video-friendly flicker-free operation making it ideal as a backdrop for video capture of sermons and worship sets, either for live IMAG or external broadcast.
Prior to Stevens AV coming on board, the church had invested in a modest lighting system comprising of six LED par cans mounted to a truss rigged in front of the stage. However, due to the low ceiling and their close proximity to the front, pastor Navarre told Greg that they were shining directly into his eyes while preaching.
To solve this problem, Greg and his team repositioned the truss further back in the room, extended it to 20’ and augmented the lighting with five of ADJ’s 5P HEX LED pars. Moving the lights back and spreading them out had the effect of creating a wider, more uniform and less intense coverage pattern, which prevented Pastor Navarre being dazzled. Meanwhile the additional fixtures meant that this was achieved without a reduction in brightness.
The lighting is also enhanced by a pair of ADJ’s popular UB12H linear LED fixtures, which were something of an impulse purchase for Wisdom Church, as Greg explains. “When Mike Turner from ADJ visited for the commissioning of the video wall he had a pair of demo UB12H fixtures with him and offered to put them out for the service. We positioned them under the LED screen pointing upwards to provide backlight for the worship band. Pastor Navarre liked the effect so much that he ordered a pair there and then!”
House lighting was also an area that Wisdom Church wanted to address. Prior to Stevens AV’s install, the room relied on regular fluorescent strips which were arranged in groups, but obviously couldn’t be dimmed and only offered a stark white light. Greg’s team installed eight of ADJ’s COB Cannon Wash fixtures recessed into the false ceiling. These now not only offer independent dimming control but also full color changing in addition to warm white.
The final piece in the puzzle of creating a mega church production in a small strip mall unit was the addition of an atmospheric generator. Greg recommended ADJ’s Entourage tour-grade faze machine, which combines a regular fog machine – that uses inexpensive water-based fog fluid – with a powerful fan to create a thin light-enhancing mist.
“We wanted a machine that offers DMX control over density as well as output, so that we could achieve just the right effect in the room,” explains Greg. “But I also liked the fact that the Entourage comes built in to a protective case. It just looks like a road case sitting off to stage right, so is inconspicuous, but is also protected if anyone accidently kicked it! The church doesn’t actually run the machine during their services. Instead they start it running beforehand to create an atmosphere as the congregation are coming in; this then hangs during the opening worship set but has about cleared ready for the message.”
Using the right tools for the job, Greg and his team from Stevens AV successfully created a system that is appropriate to the size and shape of the space while also realizing Pastor Navarre’s vision. Combining impressive visuals, vibrant lighting and atmospheric haze, the completed project has achieved its goal of bringing mega church production values to a small neighborhood church.
Church
Wisdom Church
Moss Bluff, LA
www.wisdomchurch.us
Installation Company
Stevens AV
www.stevensav.com
Photographer
Justin Toney
Gear List
28 x ADJ AV2X
8 x ADJ COB Cannon Wash
5 x ADJ 5P HEX
2 x ADJ UB12H
1 x ADJ Entourage
