Our articles appear about once a day and look at how live shows are planned, cut and delivered. Browse the latest below for practical points from rehearsals and control rooms.
Technical direction
A practical guide to what a technical director needs from you before show day, so talkback, camera cues and the running order stay calm from rehearsal to transmission.
Control rooms
Oliver Hartley sets out the questions to settle before a control room is designed or rigged: venue, power, cabling, desk layout and crew, so nothing surprises you on show day.
Replay
Most replay errors happen before the cue is called: poor angle choices, thin preparation and unclear talkback. Here is what goes wrong in the gallery and the habits that prevent it.
Streaming costs
A plain look at how streaming an event is priced, which choices add cost, and which questions to settle early so the quotation you receive matches the show you plan.
Customer case
Hannah tells the story of Marcus, who ran a one-night concert on six cameras, and how careful planning of the vision mixing kept the gallery quiet.
Training
Practical advice on planning operator training and rehearsal in the coming months, so your own team can run a switcher and control room calmly when the busy season arrives.
Trade terms
A plain-words explanation of talkback, standby and cue calls, the short phrases a technical director uses so cameras, mixer and stage all act on the same instruction at once.
Control rooms
A comparison of a rigged flight case control room and a permanent installed gallery, with a plain recommendation based on how often your venue goes live and who operates it.
Behind the scenes
A look at how replay and slow-motion operation works during a live show: the preparation, the cueing habits and the talkback that let a moment return to air within seconds.
Live streaming
The question we hear most is how a live stream gets from the stage to the audience. Here is the chain, link by link, and what each stage needs from you.
Company news
A look at how our vision mixing team gets ready for a concert or festival stage in these autumn weeks, from camera plans and source lists to the switcher layout.
Training methods
A look at the kit, rehearsal material and teaching methods we rely on in operator training, and why we practise on a real control room layout rather than slides.
Technical direction
A practical list of questions to settle before you book a technical director and crew: talkback, camera cueing, schedule control and who answers when something goes wrong.
Control rooms
Most control room problems begin long before doors open. Oliver Hartley goes through the planning and rigging errors that cost time on temporary and permanent sites, and how to head them off.
Replay costs
A plain breakdown of how replay and slow-motion operation is priced for stages, sport and party broadcasts, and which choices on your side raise or lower the figure.
Customer case
Hannah recalls a small autumn event where a community group asked for a stream their relatives abroad could watch, and how the encoding, graphics and monitoring were set up.
Seasonal advice
Short days, indoor stages and heavier lighting rigs change how a multi-camera show is cut. Priya Nair shares what she checks before the autumn and winter run of events.
Training terms
A plain-words guide to the rehearsal terms we use in operator training sessions, so your team knows what each one involves before anyone sits down at the desk.
Technical direction
Two ways to cover talkback, camera cueing and timing on a live show: bring in a technical director, or lead it from your own team. A comparison, with a recommendation.