Eric H. Doss

Process Consultant and Coach

Hybrid Worship Resources

I’m often asked about my recommendations of products and services to make your hybrid worship experience better. Emails become dated and my recommendations change, so I created this page so I can update it as needed.

I also share recommendations in my newsletter, which is almost always published on Wednesdays, also with links to articles and other resources that I find helpful. You can sign up here:

Please take a few minutes to read my notes on this equipment. In most cases, I’ve listed a few options at different prices and I always try to suggest a lower-cost option, including repurposing equipment that you may have access to already.

Another note: so much of what folks have learned and applied to virtual and hybrid worship has come from video streamers. If you didn’t know, there is a huge community of folks that stream themselves playing video games and have very complicated recording and broadcasting setups. Some of the videos and tutorials I share below are tuned towards game streamers, but we can learn a lot from their work.

Cameras and Camcorders

Before you start investing in new equipment, check with your congregation to see if they have access to anything that you can repurpose. For example, I use my Canon 60D as my primary webcam and it makes a great streaming camera. This is a 10+ year old semi-professional DSLR, so nothing cutting edge. Canon released software during the pandemic to allow most Canon DSLRs to function as webcams. It’s called the Canon EOS Webcam Utility. This camera also has an HDMI out, but it’s not clean, so it requires some tweaking to get a Clean HDMI out, or the use of a capture card.

It’s worth asking if any members have cameras or camcorders that you can use to test your setup before committing to a purchase. Even if you don’t use them forever, you can test your processes and physical setup.

Below, I’ve recommended a few camcorders, a few APS-C sensor cameras, a few PTZs, and a few full-frame cameras. Here’s a great tutorial on the difference between APS-C and a Full Frame camera.

Congregation Camera and Display

When some are able to return to the sanctuary, you don’t want to lose the community feeling you had during strictly virtual church. Consider how to broadcast the Zoom service into the sanctuary so folks in the building can see those at home. You can repurpose an old computer and use an existing projector, likely at little cost.

If you choose to purchase equipment, modern 4K televisions are almost as cheap as projector bulbs and provide a much better experience. You can frequently find off-brand televisions for under $400. Add to that a GOPRO Hero 7, a small tripod, and a computer and you’re up and running. The computer can be quite old, since it only needs to run Zoom, but it will need an HDMI output. If you don’t have one, consider a “thin client”, a very small desktop that is dirt-cheap. Make sure you get something with at least 8GB of RAM and an Intel i5 chip, or the AMD equivalent.

Mics and Audio Capture Tools

One of the best investments you’ll make is a better mic. If you’re back in the sanctuary, then you can likely use the existing audio infrastructure and then bring in the audio from the soundboard. To do that, you can use either an audio interface or a simple cable adapter. Those are the last two links in this section.

If you want to invest in higher quality sound before returning to the sanctuary, or if you need to upgrade some of your existing equipment, consider a few of the mics listed below. The USB mics won’t be useful in the sanctuary; they can only be 8-12 feet from the computer and don’t connect to a soundboard, just a computer. The XLR mics use a standard mic cable connection and can be fed into any soundboard or audio interface.

Video Capture and Processing

If you are using a camera or camcorder that doesn’t have a clean HDMI out, you can use a capture card to grab the signal, strip out all the extra info, and output that video to a computer via USB. The first link is for a cheap knock-off of the Elgato. It actually gets good reviews, especially if you’re not using it to stream video games in very high resolution. The Elgato is the most common capture card, however I recommend you consider upgrading to the ATEM Mini or Mini Pro, based on the very low cost. The ATEM Mini is a video switcher that accepts up to 4 HDMI inputs and outputs those via USB to a computer.

The Elgato Stream Desk is probably too much for most churches, but it has programmable buttons that you can customize to control OBS, cameras, and so many other things. Here’s an intro video that’ll help you understand what it does.

Lighting, Cables, and Accessories

Lighting is one of best bang-for-the-buck investments you can make. If you properly light your subject, you’ll be amazed at the improved quality of your video. Here’s a great tutorial about improving the lighting for your meetings and video calls.

All the cables I’ve linked to below are from Monoprice.com. They have high quality cables and they’re warrantied for life. They ship from CA, so if you use free shipping, it takes about a week. Be careful if you need something in a hurry!

Software and Downloads

There are so many options for editing your audio and video. Both Macs and Windows 10 computers have decent built-in programs. If you want a more powerful audio or video editor, there are some free options for all platforms. Davinci Resolve has a free version and a paid version, but is a very complicated program and may be too much for your needs. Adobe Elements are pared down versions of Adobe’s flagship products, Premier and Photoshop. The Elements version are downloadable, so you pay once and can use them forever, vs. the subscription model for the flagships.