Livestreaming is so simple you can do it on your phone, but you probably shouldn’t.

I like to talk about how easy it is to stream live video. The first stream I ever produced was a debate between the candidates for one of Massachusetts’ U.S. senate seats, back when I was an editor for The Massachusetts Daily Collegian.

I had to convince the head of the League of Women Voters, the event sponsor, that it was a good idea to let us stream it live. She said the local NPR affiliate, a co-sponsor, couldn’t commit the resources to broadcast a pre-primary debate live on a Sunday night.

Me: Yeah, that’s fine. We can do it ourselves.

Her: Aren’t you a newspaper?

Me: Only technically.

And it’s true: Live streaming can be easy. I like to say that all you need is a laptop and a camcorder, but really all you need is a smart phone and an app from UStream or Livestream. It’s that simple.

Unless, of course, you’re streaming something important, for a large audience, who isn’t going to tolerate shitty quality or a bad connection.

I’ve done a couple of streams for MassLive.com in the past few months, and I figured it’d be good to get this stuff down, both as a resource for folks like me looking to do basic livestreams of important community events on the cheap and as a reference point for myself, because I’m mostly making this shit up as I go along.

What you’ll need

In order to perform a successful, one-camera, basic stream for a decent-sized audience, you will need:

• Laptop » Duh. Make sure it has a firewire port.

• Camcorder » Make sure it has a firewire port, and preferably a mic input. Tape isn’t necessary for a live stream but you might want to record locally since most of the software-based record functions suck.

• Firewire cable » 400 or 800. Make sure both ends suit your needs i.e. fit in the camera and laptop.

• Tripod » Nobody likes shaky-ass video. Don’t be that guy. Seriously.

• XLR-to-mini adapter » This is to tap into the house audio, which probably has an out box for the TV and radio folks. Your camera most likely doesn’t have an XLR input, so you need this to convert the signal to a standard 1/8th inch mini input.

• Shotgun mic » You’re inevitably going to have issues with the house audio, so bring this so you can still get sound in a pinch.

• 1/8th inch extender cable » This is a simple cord that has an 1/8th inch male on one end and a female input on the other. Chances are the audio source isn’t going to be right next to your camera. Whether you’re taking the house sound or your own mic’s it’s good to not be tethered to the eight or so inches of cable you usually have.

• Batteries » For everything that needs them. Back-ups, too.

• Power strip » You’ll be lucky if you get one outlet at the event. You’re going to need at least two, probably more.

• Extension cord » If you’re lucky enough to get one outlet at the event, chances are it won’t be where you want it to be.

• Ethernet cable » A long one. Mine is 50 feet. Don’t rely on a wireless connection for a livestream unless you absolutely have to.

• Gaffer’s tape » You’re going to be standing in a nest of wires. You’re probably stashed in some corner, or next to a door, and somebody is going to trip over your shit. Tape it down.

Some other notes

I’ve done streams a couple different ways, but mostly either a.) as a one-man band, streaming off of one camera or b.) in cooperation with a local access station, encoding their three-camera shoot. This post is directed mostly at the former. That said, no matter what the set-up, you should also always keep the following in mind.

• Favor accessibility over image quality » Live streams can be a data hog, and you can turn away a lot of potential audience if you’re streaming at a really high data rate. Even most third party softwares (like UStream or Livestream) allow you to adjust the quality of the video and audio. Sacrifice your video before you sacrifice your audio. People will tolerate a somewhat-pixelated video feed if the sound is good.

• Make friends with the A/V staff » Most major events worth streaming will probably be at public building, college campus or other venue that has its own staff setting up the house sound/video. These people are probably smarter than you, and they have all the keys. Be nice to them. Help them out. You want them on your side when shit hits the fan. Which brings me to my last point:

• Things fall apart » I always go to the venue the day before, and test everything out using the equipment I intend on using for the event. I test and come up with a back-up plan (and a back-up back-up plan) for everything, including: internet connectivity, video and audio.

The last time I did a stream, I got the house audio feed no problem the day of testing, but got nothing but static the day of the event. Luckily I brought my shotgun mic and the 1/8th inch extension cable and was able to position it directly in front of a nearby speaker. The quality was not awesome but it did the trick.

Did I miss anything?

Livestreaming is still a pretty new practice in online news, particularly for organizations like mine, which don’t have the infrastructure that, say, a television station would. Like I said, I’m making this up as I go along.

Let me know in the comments if you’ve got questions, or if you’ve produced some live video for the Web and have something to add.