What makes a good live streaming camera?

The demand for live streaming was rising before the Covid-19 pandemic , but it's now an essential part of the new way of living – whether that's for industry events, music concerts, weddings and places of worship, or just staying in touch with friends.

"The number of requests and requirements for live streaming have increased significantly for us in the last two years," says Thorsten Rühle, managing director at Delta Vision Studios, a German media company specialising in corporate films, live event broadcasts and webcasts.

"Depending on the customer's requirements, we have two to 10 cameras on site. The outputs from these are transmitted or streamed via satellite or internet connection using an OB van or a mobile live control room. The cameras and presentations are mixed via the control room, and the produced streams then often end up on specially rented servers, which then distribute the content."

"Some elements of live streaming are out of your control, including platform compression and the audience bandwidth. But if you start off with a camera that's built for the job, then it puts you in the strongest position for the best possible output."

With live streaming, there's no room for focusing errors. You can't edit out a bad shot, and if you aren't running a multi-cam setup then you will be unable to cut to a different camera if there's a problem. This is why Canon's reliable Dual Pixel CMOS AF system is a real asset for live broadcasts.

"Knowing that the camera is capable of giving you pin-sharp, accurate images every time takes that worry out of your hands," says Aron. "Dual Pixel CMOS AF is continually evolving, with our latest model, the XF605, being our first camcorder to offer Eye Tracking and EOS iTR AF X (Intelligent Tracking and Recognition). This takes face detection to the next level by continuing to track a person even when they have turned away from the camera."

Dual Pixel CMOS AF technology is used throughout the EOS range, from mirrorless and DSLR cameras through to PTZ remote cameras and Cinema EOS Cameras such as the Canon EOS C70.

If you're working in a small studio environment, or even live streaming from home, then you're unlikely to need a far-reaching zoom lens. But if you're covering a larger venue, then a powerful zoom, like the XF605's 15x optical zoom and 30x advanced zoom, can make all the difference.

For streaming, audio clarity is just as important as the image quality. With two built-in XLR terminals, the Canon XF605 is compatible with an extensive range of microphones, whether they're self-powered or not, and offers four-channel audio. The Multi-Interface Accessory hot shoe can expand XLR functionality even further with an additional two inputs.

Canon's XA and XF Series camcorders, as well as all Cinema EOS cameras, include XLR terminals as standard. It's one of the key features that differentiates these cameras from the mirrorless and DSLR solutions. What's more, each audio input can be independently controlled, offering users greater flexibility.

"Recording the audio in-camera means that the sound is already synced with the image, so you can immediately just go live with it, whereas if you're capturing audio separately, you will need to sync the audio in post, resulting in a longer workflow," explains Aron.

Many Canon cameras have a range of assignable buttons to customise the user experience. The XF605 and XF705 professional camcorders also have separate control rings for iris, focus and zoom, which means that single-camera operators working on the fly can easily adjust the image very efficiently.

"We also have many other ways of controlling our cameras," says Aron. "There's our Browser Remote, for example, which enables you to preview the image from our professional camcorders and Cinema EOS cameras over a network, as well as adjust the autofocus and the exposure settings on the camera. This can be an efficient way of controlling our cameras from a distance."

EOS Utility software for Canon DSLR and mirrorless cameras is similar to Browser Remote, and gives you control of exposure, focusing and other aspects of recording when the camera is connected to a computer over USB. "You can also instantly convert numerous EOS DSLR and mirrorless cameras into high-quality webcams using EOS Webcam Utility software," adds Aron.

There are dedicated remote controls for Canon's video cameras too. "Canon Remote Control RC-V100 gives professional camcorder users extensive options for fine-tuning the image," Aron explains. "This is especially ideal for live streaming, where you cannot adjust the footage in post-production.

"Another really interesting option that we introduced with our PTZ remote cameras is XC Protocol. We've since added it to our Cinema EOS range, including the EOS C300 Mark III and the EOS C500 Mark II, via a firmware update , which can be downloaded from Canon's support pages.

"XC Protocol enables the PTZ and Cinema EOS cameras to seamlessly integrate into a live production workflow. Using the Canon RC-IP100 remote controller, you're able to adjust the pan, tilt, zoom , focus and exposure settings on a PTZ camera, and you are now able to control the Cinema EOS cameras too."

Canon offers live streaming camera solutions with a variety of outputs, such as HDMI or more robust connections, such as SDI for linking to live production switchers.

"A camera's connections are the basic prerequisite for integration into a professional production environment, and SDI is mandatory," says Thorsten. "The 12G-SDI output of the Canon XF705 has very low latency and provides a secure cable connection." The Canon XF605 also features 12G-SDI output, which supports high resolutions and frame rates, including 4K 4:2:2 10-bit signals up to 60p over a single cable.

IP streaming capabilities also feature in many Canon cameras, including the XF605, EOS C70 and EOS C300 Mark III. "Although these will need a decoder connected to the camera, it means the signal is already in the required format to be efficiently streamed over a network," says Aron.

"Some people may want to simply take the HDMI or SDI output and put that into a production switcher, which will then encode it and stream it live. An alternative that requires less hardware, however, is to have your cameras connected to a local area network and then go through an IP-based live streaming software solution. It's another option to consider when you're choosing the right workflow for your needs."