A live streaming strategy is an integral part of video marketing in 2021. Organizations of all types and sizes are looking for live video ideas to reach new customers, deepen customer relationships, and get the word out about products and services. When getting started with live streaming, there is a seemingly endless list of details to think about.
One critical component to consider is the quality of your cameras.
To bring your live video ideas to life, you will need some kind of video camera to capture the action. There are more options than ever when it comes to cameras to use as part of your live stream strategy. However, which cameras should you use?
Depending on your software and other hardware, you can choose anything from a built-in webcam to a consumer-grade camcorder, all the way up to professional broadcast cameras. There is no reason to spend more than you need on a top-of-the-line camera. However, if you want your live stream to look professional, you will want to be sure that you get a camera with the quality and features to fit your needs.
What Do Professional Live Streaming Cameras Offer to Bring Your Live Video Ideas to Life?
There is nothing wrong with inexpensive cameras as long as they have the quality and features you need. There are even some situations when a lower-priced consumer camera might be all you need.
However, for certain types of events such as music concerts, sporting events, and even more personal, up-close live streams like cooking classes, more expensive cameras are worth it.
If you want the best possible results for your live stream strategy, professional-grade cameras are worth the investment. Several features set expensive cameras apart from cheaper consumer models.
Benefits of Professional Cameras
1. Better Lenses and Sensors
The most significant difference between less expensive consumer products and their more expensive counterparts is the quality of the most critical components. When it comes to cameras, the two most vital components are the lens and the sensor. In absolutely perfect conditions, it may be difficult to tell the difference between cameras of different quality. However, live streams rarely happen in ideal conditions.
Instead, most presentations have changing light conditions, including low light or backlighting. Events usually have some movement that can move subjects in and out of the frame and field of focus. The right camera, usually the more expensive camera, can handle these conditions. Less expensive consumer models may output images that are grainy and blurry.
2. Resolution
While UHD (Ultra HD) 4K resolution is making its way to lower-priced cameras, it is now standard on more expensive professional cameras. Even if you are not yet streaming in UHD, the higher resolution will still give you a clearer, more detailed image to work with, especially when using digital zoom to get closer to the action. It also means that you won’t need to upgrade your cameras when you make the switch to 4K UHD.
3. Performance
Professional cameras perform to the standards required by professional videographers and broadcasters. Even if you are just getting started, you will find that these things make a difference when bringing your live stream ideas to life. These more expensive cameras offer higher frame rates, advanced exposure control, better autofocus technology, and professional-grade connections like SDI.
These more costly cameras also don’t suffer from the performance issues that plague some consumer and prosumer models. Some of the less expensive cameras are not designed for the rigors of live stream production. Some can overheat with continual use. Others might automatically shut off after a preset amount of time. In some cases, these cameras won’t work as part of a live stream strategy since they offer no clean output.
This means that your video signal will include some of the items you would usually see through the viewfinder, like composition frames, status indicators, and exposure levels.
4. Features
Professional cameras come with standard features designed to bring your live video ideas to life. For instance, professional PTZ (pan, tilt, zoom) cameras offer features like video over IP, allowing signals to be sent using standard ethernet connections. This makes wiring for multi-camera setups far easier. These also offer remote control options allowing all the features to be accessed from a central location or smartphone app.
Let BeLive Help Bring Your Live Stream Strategy to Life
You have live video ideas, and BeLive Technology can help make them happen. Learn how their end-to-end services take the hassle out of streaming. BeLive already powers some of the most popular live streaming services in the world, and they can help you.
They offer end-to-end services so they can handle all aspects of your live stream strategy. You and your customers will experience fast, reliable, low-latency video with powerful tools and features. They can help integrate live video into your website or mobile app and offer detailed analytics to help you understand your audience. BeLive also offers a large pool of resources including video production houses available to help elevate your live stream production.
Get started today and see your video marketing in 2021 help you reach new customers and grow your business.
