How to Choose a Funeral Live Streaming Service in Sydney

Most families book funeral live streaming once, in a hurry, through a funeral director they met two days earlier. The quality of the stream only becomes clear on the day, when it is too late to change anything. These ten questions take five minutes on the phone and tell you most of what you need to know.

1. Do you need the venue’s internet?

A good provider brings its own connection and does not rely on chapel or church Wi-Fi. Venue internet is often shared, slow or switched off, and a single connection can drop without warning. Ask how many separate connections they bring and whether they combine them.

Stream Catcher brings at least three independent 4G and 5G connections and combines them, so one network dropping does not stop the stream.

2. Is the service recorded on site as well as streamed?

The live feed and the recording should not depend on the same thing. If the provider records locally on cameras and audio devices, the full service is still captured even if the internet fails halfway through. Ask what happens to the recording if the stream is interrupted.

Stream Catcher records video and audio on their own devices, with extra copies on the laptop and in the cloud. If the stream is interrupted, the full recording goes up on the same link.

3. How many cameras, and who runs them?

One fixed camera at the back of the room shows the backs of heads and a distant lectern. Two or more cameras with someone switching between them lets viewers see the speaker, the coffin and the room. Ask whether a person stays with the stream for the whole service.

Stream Catcher uses three or more cameras, and a technician stays with the stream from start to finish.

4. Will viewers hear the speakers clearly?

Sound matters more than picture. A eulogy that is hard to hear is the most common complaint about funeral streams. Ask whether they put microphones on the lectern and the celebrant, and how they handle music.

Stream Catcher puts wireless microphones on the lectern, gives the celebrant a lapel microphone and uses a stereo microphone for singers and musicians.

5. When do you arrive?

Setting up and testing takes time, and problems are easier to fix before guests arrive. Ask how long before the service they will be on site.

Stream Catcher arrives at least ninety minutes before the service.

6. Who can watch, and is the link private?

The stream should only be visible to the people the family invites. Ask whether the viewing page is hidden from search engines and whether you can add a PIN.

Stream Catcher keeps viewing pages out of search results and can add a PIN on request.

7. Do viewers need an app or an account?

Many of the people watching a funeral online are older relatives or family overseas. Anything beyond clicking a link will stop some of them. Ask whether the link opens in a normal web browser on a phone, tablet or smart TV.

Stream Catcher’s link opens in an ordinary browser with no app or account, and we send it early so someone can test it with older relatives before the day.

8. How long does the recording stay online, and do we get a copy?

Families often watch the recording weeks later, or on an anniversary. Ask how long the link stays live and whether you receive a file to download and keep. We wrote more about this in how long a funeral recording stays available.

Stream Catcher puts the recording on the same link within a few hours, keeps it available for up to twelve months, and provides a downloadable HD copy.

9. Can you cover the graveside, a slideshow or a second venue?

Services often move from a church to a cemetery, or include a tribute video. Ask whether the quote covers those, and whether the slideshow is played straight into the stream or filmed off a screen.

Stream Catcher carries its own power and internet for graveside and outdoor services, including at Rookwood, Northern Suburbs, Woronora and Pinegrove, and plays tribute videos straight into the stream at full quality.

10. What does the price include?

Ask for one figure in writing that covers travel, the recording, the download and extra time if the service runs long. Compare like with like: a phone on a tripod and a multi-camera crew are different products.

Stream Catcher’s quote includes the recording on the same link and a downloadable HD copy.

Book through your funeral director, or directly

Most Sydney funeral directors can arrange live streaming for you, and you can also book a provider directly, who will then work with the funeral director. Stream Catcher works with more than fifty Sydney funeral directors. Tell your arranger you would like Stream Catcher, or call 0403 355 445 at any hour. More detail is on our funeral live streaming page.