5 Things Your Tech Ministry Needs On Hand…At All Times (Plus A Bonus)
Perhaps there has been a moment when every tech director and/or tech team member has needed a small piece of equipment to achieve a major task, and he or she didn’t have it. I’ve been there too many times to count! But, those situations taught me to how to acquire a few staples or must haves to keep in my tech bag so that I’m ready to handle small and big media tasks/crises.
Please note: This list is not exhaustive and I’ll likely do more list like this one in the future, but for now, these should get you started.
1. USB-C Multi-Hub Adapter
I cannot tell you how many times this little device has saved my life! The multi-hub adapter for computers provides every port you could possibly need to transfer data, save documents, hook up external displays, connect to the internet, connect to projectors, etc. I keep several around our media lab, in my tech bag, and in my home. With the redesign of modern day computers, it is rare that I’m using a computer (especially an Apple computer) and don’t need to pull out this device. If you need one, you can pick one up here.
2. Portable Wireless Microphone
There are times when you’ll need to capture the moment when the moment is happening and there’ll be no time to setup a robust sound systems to capture audio. For this reason, keeping a portable lavalier lapel microphone within reach is a must. Something great happening around your ministry and you want to get people’s responses? Pull out this lavalier lapel mic and connect it to your cellphone. It is a great option for on the go professional grade audio. Here is a great option that can plug right into your cellphone and give you professional grade audio.
3. 3.5mm Headphone to Lightning/USB-C adapter
In the past, there were times when I needed this adapter and didn’t have it. Because smartphones no longer have headphone jacks, there will be times when you may need this adapter too. Time when you’ll need to connect a cell phone or an iPad/iPod to an external sound system. This adapter is the perfect solution. You can find one here or here.
4. USB-C/Lightning to SD card reader
For those who capture Sunday services, mission opportunities, outreach engagement, etc. on professional grade DSLR camera, you will benefit from having a portable SD card that you can connect to your mobile phone and gain instant access to your images. The ability to instantly share high quality photos with your online audience is always a plus. You can get one specific to Apple devices here or a universal one here.
5. Dropbox Account
Everything is digital these days and it is a MUST that you have a place to store your files digitally. Sermons, audio files, pictures, documents, etc., can, and I would add should, be stored in a cloud base service that gives you access to them from anywhere in the world. And a Dropbox account can do just that; it can give you and your team access to your entire media catalog from anywhere in the world. Open a Dropbox account here.
P.S. This goes without saying, but some files definitely need to be stored in a redundant matter. For example: I keep a sermon archive for our church in Dropbox, but at the end of each year, I move that year’s sermon files to a hard drive that remains in a safe place. This gives us redundancy and ensures that our files are always safe...just in case.
Here is a bonus worth noting
Velcro Cable Ties & Gaff Tape
Cables can get messy and the more tech you have in your media room, the more things can get messy. Velcro cable ties and Gaff tape are the perfect solutions to tidying up those messy cables. You can never have enough cable ties and gaff tape...trust me! Cable management is important not just for organization purposes, but also for efficiency. If you ever have to move a piece of equipment from one place to another, you can move it a lot quicker if don’t have to spend time unraveling a bunch of cables and wires searching for the one you need to unplug.
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