By: Allie Gavette

Organizations large and small are realizing the benefit of video as perhaps the most effective way of communicating to large and remote groups of people. Video can be multi-dimensional, dynamic, compelling and interactive in ways other forms of communication simply cannot match. More and more companies are adding video services in-house but those without the expertise often turn to specialists like PrimeImage Media who can very quickly provide precisely what they’re looking for at a reasonable cost.

PrimeImage Media is a video production company based in Gilbert, AZ, which mainly works on corporate events for their clients, covering conferences, symposiums, and trainings. Though most of their end products become video on demand for clients, Chief of Production Ben Freedman estimates that about 30% of their videos are live streamed. He has seen that number steadily increase year after year as people become more aware of the technical possibilities. PrimeImage Media anticipates clients’ needs while also making the job easier on their production team by strategically updating their equipment.

PrimeImage Media serves a range of corporate clients both nationally and internationally, ranging from high-tech corporations like HP to large construction companies like Kiewit, as well as other organizations like the International Association of Functional Neurology and Rehabilitation (IAFNR). Most videos produced by PrimeImage Media are used for internal purposes.

Streamlined Production

PrimeImage Media has strategically chosen the equipment they use in order to streamline their production workflow, while making travel easier on the crew.

Instead of lugging around a lot of equipment to remote locations in vans or on airplanes, Freedman can fit everything into a Pelican case. Because they travel light, the team can tackle anything their wide variety of clients throw at them.

For what they lack in size, they don’t sacrifice quality. A benefit to a smaller switcher, for example, is that in a confined space, its fan is much quieter than a larger switcher. The devil is in the details, and thinking about things like that, which can detract from the video’s content, is what makes PrimeImage Media’s clients some of the happiest.

It’s a win-win scenario: the team can provide a high-quality product for their clients in a way that’s much more simple and effective for the team to handle on the road.

Workflow

Most PrimeImage Media productions have two to four people working on the crew: two or three people operate Sony cameras that plug into the TriCaster Mini multi-camera production system operated by one person. The fourth input on the TriCaster Mini is usually a direct feed from the presenter’s laptop that displays their PowerPoint presentation. This is done through a scan converter, like the Datavideo DAC-70.

The production team switches cameras live and records both internally and externally for backup. The external recording goes through an external quarter lightning to an Atomos Ninja backup recorder.

The show switches between a wide shot, a close-up shot, an audience shot, and a full-screen view of the PowerPoint. The team will often create a picture-in-picture that has the PowerPoint shot and a close-up of the presenter at the same time, which they can choose at certain points during the presentation.

Freedman and his team also offer live streaming to their clients. In those cases, they will provide an embed code to the client so they can put it directly on their website.

When the event has wrapped up, the production team takes the recording to the editing phase. Usually, something on the recording needs to be tweaked–whether it’s trimming a little off the beginning or end, or just balancing the audio a bit. The recording is returned to the client within a day or two.

All About the Customer

Because PrimeImage Media has established itself as an expert in the video production industry, they have won over clients who come to them for both recurring and one-off projects. Every three months, they stream town hall meetings in San Jose—an event they’ve been covering the past three or four years. PrimeImage Media also covers a symposium in San Jose called Tech Field Day, which happens seven times each year.

“We do all these because clients know what to expect and that we’re reliable and consistent,” said Freedman.

Although customers don’t tend to notice what type of equipment they’re using, the team at PrimeImage Media knows they’re giving the customers what they want. Some customers don’t even consider live streaming, or don’t ask for it on behalf of their attendees, but as time goes by, people are becoming more aware of the benefits of this technology.

“People see Apple live streaming their keynotes, and CNN live streaming the debates on TV, and they begin to see something that’s valuable for their attendees,” said Freedman. “They ask us about it, and the fact that we’re able to do that without changing the equipment is a good feather in our cap.”

Unlike their competitors, PrimeImage Media productions often end with a big hug from their clients. When a company puts customers first, the result speaks for itself.

Workflow

• Production crew of 2-4 people: 1 operating the TriCaster Mini, 2-3 people operate Sony cameras.
• The cameras plug into 3 of the inputs on the TriCaster Mini while the 4th input is usually a direct feed from the presenter’s laptop, which displays their powerpoint presentation. This is done through a scan converter, like the Datavideo DAC-70.
• The production team switches cameras live and records both internally and externally for backup. The external recording goes through an external quarter lightning to an Atomos Ninja backup recorder.
• The show is switched between a wide shot, a close-up shot, an audience shot, and a full-screen view of the PowerPoint. The team will often create a picture-in-picture that has the PowerPoint shot and a close-up of the presenter at the same time, which they can choose at certain points during the presentation.
• In cases where the client wants the video live streamed, PrimeImage Media will provide an embed code to the client so they can put it directly on their website.

• When the event has wrapped up, the production team takes the recording to the editing phase. The final recording is returned to the client within a day or two. Equipment:

• NewTek TriCaster Mini
• Sony Cameras (NX3, FS5, NX30, etc..)
• Shure Digital Wireless Microphones
• Lights from Lowell and Source Four
• Manfrotto and Sachtler camera support
• Sennheiser Boom Microphone
• Datavideo and Black Magic video converters
• Atomos Ninja backup recorder Learn more about Corporate Video Solutions

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Broadcast - Web, Corporate Video, Customer Stories, TriCaster, Feed,

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