Church Projection System Design: Sample Purchase

Below is a spreadsheet showing some equipment for a design that I did for a small church. This may give you an idea of what might work for you. This certainly won't work for all churches. If you plan to submit a proposal to your local church then I recommend that you submit something at a higher cost than this. Leave yourself some room for unexpected expenses in case you have some problems. WARNING: This budget also does NOT include the cost of electrical work, labor and other factors. You may have to rent scaffolding or even a lift to safely install your equipment. I also don't list the cost of a computer, software, PowerPoint or song projection software. The projector you need may cost more than the projector we listed.

If you skipped to this page and failed to read the previous pages then I strongly encourage you to go back and read the other information. There are LOTS of ways to fail in installing even a simple system. I have tried to give you many practical suggestions in this guide. You can save a lot more time by reading the guide than by trying to correct your problems later on.

A lot of companies provide good technical information on their websites. Take the time to read up on the equipment that you plan to buy and install. Become familiar with the capabilities and installation requirements of what you think you may use. Visit similar installations and talk to operators and salespeople. Go on discussion groups like the one linked to on this page and ask questions. You can save yourself a lot of grief in the process. Expect some problems along the way but if you persevere you may be able to save lots of money and be intimately knowledgeable about the system you have installed.  

Tips

1. Note that the projector MUST be flipped upside down when hung from the ceiling. You will use the menu control on the projector to tell it to invert the image. First try the projector on a cart on the floor to determine how far back you can place it then flip it over and mount it on the ceiling. The projector should hang down from the ceiling about as far down as the top of your projection screen.
2. However low down you hang the projector is how high the top of the projected image is. Don't set the projector as far back as the zoom lens will allow or as close as it will allow. . . Set it about midrange. That way you can change the image size later if you change your mind. One very important consideration is to get ambient light off of the screen of the image and ADDING light to the speaker. MOST churches I check do NOT have enough light on the speaker. You should probably add a couple of 100 watt halogen spot lights at 45 degree angles down & 10-15 feet in front of the speaker. The lights MUST be spot lights and not flood lights so that they will light up the speaker without putting light on the projector screen.
3. Your current speaker lights are over the top of the speaker which is incorrect for this application. But you might be able to use the electrical power and controls already there. In the church in Missouri, the projector probably needs to be mounted about over the front pew.

I hope you have found this guide useful. I would like to continue to improve it. Write me about your church experience. Tell me what you think I should have included in this guide. I would even like to know if it worked out well for you! Let's work together to help small churches. Contact me.

More on Designing a Video Projection System

• Introduction to Designing a Video Projection System
• Cable, Power, Location
• Controls & Lighting
• Screens & More
• Common Issues
• Sample Configuration/Purchase