In our last article, we discussed some of the technical aspects of using video backgrounds for projected worship lyrics or scriptures. Now let's look at some basic principles for increasing the effectiveness of motion backgrounds.

Principle #1: Know your audience. Video backgrounds are tools that are intended to help move the congregation into a place of true worship. To that end, you must tailor your selection of backgrounds to appeal directly to the folks that will be present for the particular service you are planning. For instance, your selection of backgrounds for a youth service should be radically different than for a Sunday morning worship service, and your selection for a Sunday morning service will most likely be different than your selection for a seniors' event.

Obviously, it is more difficult to plan for a multi-generational service (such as a Sunday morning service). Our experience has been that using a cross section of video styles is acceptable, as long as you stay clear of the extremes on either end of the spectrum.

Principle #2: Match the content of the music to the content of the video, when possible. Some songs, such as Let the River Flow or Shout to the Lord lend themselves very easily to this - others do not. Which brings us to our next point...

Principle #3: ALWAYS match the tempo of the song with the tempo of the music. Even though you cannot always match the song's content, you should always match the tempo. Putting a fast-moving background with a slow-tempo song, or a slow-moving background with a fast-tempo song will seemed out of place - to the point of distraction. Tempo is at least as important, if not more important, than content.

As a side note, we should not confuse 'fast motion' with 'a lot of motion'. Too much motion can and will distract from, rather than aid worship (again, know your audience!)

Principle #4: Avoid images of animals or the faces of people. There are different schools of thought on this topic, and I certainly respect differing opinions. However, our experience is that showing either of these two types of images causes the audience to begin to intently watch the video and lose their worship focus. In the shots that we use of people, they are either out of focus or in the distance, so that they do not become the focal point of attention, and we usually have them in a worshipful pose.

A final note: I firmly believe that we can worship with our eyes, and that there are times when we want to focus the attention of the congregation on the screen in order to present images that inspire them to greater worship. At those times, the video should be absolutely captivating, and could include a lot of motion, faces, animals - whatever is appropriate to your audience and message. However, video that is meant as a background for worship serves a significantly different purpose, and its purpose should be reflected in its content.