The Art of VJ-ing [ DIGGING ]

There’s a documentary out called “SCRATCH” that I saw; it let’s you in on the underground culture of the hip-hop DJ world. And there was a section on “digging” and how DJs dig for good music & loops to spin.

Digging is basically search & discovery. It’s going out and finding your media (images, loops, movie clips, etc.) One time while growing up in Arkansas, my dad took me on one of the coolest trips ever (and we went everywhere, we did it ALL – and we still do!). But on this trip, we went to the southern part of Arkansas…to the diamond fields. We dug around in the dirt for most of the day, sifting through sand, mud, rocks and water in the heat of the summer, just to try and find a small glimmering rock. We never found one, but we saw many pictures in the visitor’s center that had lucked out.

Searching for media is very much the same, though chances of great discoveries are much more likely and sometimes more rewarding than finding a some shiny rock. All of this to say, it may take some sifting through some dirt and not-so-valuable resources, but that’s usually how you can find some great media for your worship gathering. A great place to start is online. If you don’t have the time to sift through a lot of material to find those amazing pieces, there are a few place that have already sifted everything for you.

Here are two sites that I frequent: VideoForWorship, WorshipHouse Media & the Shoutable Store ; I also recommend subscribing to COLLIDE Magazine …a great new magazine focusing on media & the Church.

What places do you go to dig for media? What’s your process of finding good visual imagery?

- proctor