How to live stream an event or wedding
A stream for people who cannot be there is a lot of work to redo if it fails. The plan below is built around not failing.
1. Know the venue’s internet
Test the venue’s upload with the upload speed test well before the day. Venue Wi-Fi is often slow for uploads and shared with guests. Plan on a cable if there is a socket, and always bring a second connection (a phone with mobile data is enough).
2. Cameras
One camera on a tripod in the middle gives the main picture. Phones make cheap extra angles: a friend with a phone at the front, one at the back. Streamdzy turns each phone into a camera by scanning a code. See the multi-camera guide.
3. Sound
A microphone close to the speaker is worth more than any camera. A small wireless microphone on the officiant or a feed from the venue’s speakers into the laptop beats the laptop’s own microphone every time.
4. Make failure boring
- Turn on the Record first with 30 to 60 seconds of delay, so short drops never reach viewers.
- Add a second connection so the stream moves over by itself if the first fails.
- Record in full quality on the laptop so nothing is lost even if the stream is.
5. Test the whole thing
Do a full test an hour before: start the stream to a private link, walk through the cameras, listen to the sound on another device, and check the battery plan. Keep chargers on.
Questions
Can guests watch without an account?
On most platforms an unlisted or public video link works without an account. Send the link in advance.
What if the internet fails completely?
The recording on the laptop is complete. You can upload it afterwards, and with Record first and a relay a short outage is hidden from viewers.
Want all of this in one app?
Streamdzy is a free streaming and recording app for Windows: several cameras, your phone as a camera, going live to many places at once, and recording first so a bad connection never costs you the show.