When to Hire an Audio-Visual Professional by Cameron Wicks
As we gear up for the event industry’s autumn busy season, planners will find themselves hiring an array of vendors to service all of their needs. Fromevent ven- ues and hotel room blocks, to caterers and transportation, vendors from all aspects of the industry will be asked to provide their services in order to make sure these events are executed flawlessly.
For the most part, event planners under- standwhen to involve these professionals. If you need a venue, you hire a venue. If you need to feed your attendees,you hire a caterer.
However, planners often find themselves at a loss regarding audio-visual services. For smaller events, they may be unsure if audio-visual services are necessary. For larger programs, planners may question exactly what kinds of audio-visual equip- ment and services they will need.
When deciding when to involve a profes- sional, and what kind of audio-visual serv- ices are needed for a given event, plan- ners often startwith howmany people are attending their event. While this is important to the details of audio-visual planning (screen size, number of speak- ers, breakout room technicians, etc.), it is only one way to determine your needs for an event. That’s not to say that numbers don’t matter,because they do,but a lot of that has to do with the increased need for audio-visual equipment as an event’s attendance number grows.
For instance, youmay be planning a small board meeting for 15 people. However, if you’re using video teleconferencing or webcasting, you definitelywant to involve a professional to manage the event. On the other hand, you could have 150 peo- ple at an event, but if you just want a flat screen monitor playing a DVD sponsor reel or a welcome video at the venue’s entrance, there’s generally no need to have someone there except to actually setup the equipment.
As you can see in these examples, amuch better measuring stick of when you need to hire a professional is what kind of audio-visual services and equipment you
will be using for an event. While this can depend on the preferences of individual planners and vendors, the following are some basic guidelines to follow, broken down by what kind of AV system (audio, video, lighting) is being used.
AUDIO
If you are using a basic set of speakers and one wired microphone, you don’t necessarily need to hire someone to run those systems. As long as the equipment is set and tested,and the setup technician tells you how to turn on the microphone, you are generally okay on your own.
However, if you plan on having multiple microphones running at one time,or even just multiple audio sources, a technician should be there to run the equipment. With multiple audio sources, you will want someone who can adjust the vol- ume of each presenter as they speak. If there is static or feedback, you’ll need someone to adjust the audio signal and help the presenter avoid these situations.
Audio also is one of those items in which a higher number of attendees can affect when you need to bring in a professional. More attendees mean you need more powerful audio systems called line arrays. Line arrays are the sound systems used for everything from large conventions to major rock concerts. They need to be setup, tested and run by someone who knows these systems well and has had training and experience in running them.
Finally, any time you are recording audio you should have someone on site tomon- itor the recording as it happens.
VIDEO
Often,video projection is the centerpiece of an event.Whatever is broadcast onto the projection screens or large flat screen monitors can grab the audience’s atten- tion, and the presenters can illustrate their points through graphics and videos.
If your event has multiple sources (i.e. Powerpoints, videos, etc.) or multiple pro- jection screens for guests, someone
should be on hand to facilitate that. Additionally, if you need to switch between different sources, you will need a switcher. A switcher’smain role is pretty obvious, but they often can serve other functions, such as fading out a picture, storing a logo, or sending a signal out to an external device. You should hire a technician whenever you have a switcher.
Finally,whenever you involve cameras as part of an event, a technician should be on site to make sure things go smoothly.
LIGHTING
Like speakers, as you bring in more advanced equipment, you should have someone at the event who understands the technology of working the lighting for the event. This is true if you are using moving lights, spotlights, or lights that need to change focus or color during the event. These also require a lighting control console,which is more advanced and requires more training than the con- soles used for a couple of stage lights.
If equipment is rigged or hung, you must have trained riggers and technicians to setup, test, operate and bring down the lights and truss. Hanging lights correctly - and ensuring that they stay hung - is vital to the safety of everyone at the event.
OTHER SYSTEMS
For newer technologies, it is best to hire someone to run everything. At Visual Sound,we insist that if a client wants to do a video teleconference or a webcast that they need to hire a technician to run these items. Such technologies use advanced equipment that requires appro- priate training to operate.
These technologies often also involve multiple entities, such as a bridging serv- ice, a streaming website, plus the other end of the video teleconference. With so many factors to consider, hiring an audio- visual professional is the right decision.
CameronWicks is an Account Manager forVisual Sound, Inc., an audio-visual company that is committed to providing its clients with the highest quality solutions through the design and application of innovative presentation and
communication technology.
www.visualsound.com Mid-Atlantic EVENTS Magazine 79
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84