Question: What software are you using to livestream your chase?

[Mychael Allen]

Hey everyone i'm newer to this community but have always been a storm enthusiast. Recently i've gone out and chased a few times and am looking to do more. I've setup a simple youtube channel to document and share photos and videos. Currently I'm using streamlabs but i'm having trouble adding wigets like time, gps, temperature and things like that. Could anyone point me in the right direction to learn how to add those kind of widgets to my stream?

 

[Warren Faidley]

I also have a live streaming question (not intended to hijack your question): What camera are chasers using for live broadcasting? I might want to do a couple of live streams during the monsoon on YouTube. I don't want to use my cell phone.

 

[Ben Holcomb]

I would imagine some of the more hardcore streamers are using something like a Teradek VidiU or other hardware encoder/streaming device. It seems like most of them have multiple cameras as well, so you need a switch of some sort to change cameras.

I would guess people are using streamlabs or streamyard to do their feeds to get them to the final destinations and to add overlays and stuff.

 

[Blake Naftel]

Live-U was/is still the go to professional bundled cellular video streaming equipment and phone app I used when working with media groups that utilized broadcast streaming coverage. If you have an account, typically any network or service can pick up your live feed. The Live-U Solo Streaming Encoder works well in most scenarios, but often became useless in areas where cellular was scarce in coverage or in overtaxed cellular networks [i.e. storm chasing in Oklahoma or hurricane disaster zones].

For chasing, static or mobile, Live-U worked 90% of the time. If you are working with a [media] company that utilizes cellular bonded streams and can afford the equipment [there are other options, TVU, Dejero], this is way to go. For a day streamer or hobbyist that only streams once in a while, I would instead lean towards the options Ben previously noted.

 

[Sean Ramsey]

Probably a bit more info than was asked in the thread title, but might be worth sharing what I've learned so far for future streamers.

There's some opportunity for income in live streaming but there's a significant cost barrier to overcome. I've done some research over the last six months and as Blake mentioned, Live-U is pretty much the way to go for bonded cellular. They've discontinued the Live-U solo, so the Pro is the only option it seems and right out of the box it's $1700. Then the data plan that accompanies it is easily $250 a month but it will provide the best signal between Verizon and AT&T which is essential to not drop video mid-stream.

Starlink is beginning to take hold though as either a supplement or replacement. It runs about $150 a month but there's some question as to the reliability when you're caught in the storm itself. Probably essential for streaming the northern plains and may end up being the primary data source in the future if not already.

As for the GPS, temp etc. overlays, I've been looking in to it because I would also really like to have this and haven't found anything on how it's done, and I'm not one to directly ask those who have figured it out already (figure they did the work so it's up to them whether they want to share it or not) so hopefully someone would be willing to share info on this. I use Streamlabs and somehow the data for the overlay is piped in but I just haven't figured out how to do it.

And to answer Warren's question, I stream with a Sony FDR-AX53 video camera mounted on the dash. There's definitely better quality cameras out there but it does a great job other than not handling darkness well, and it's somewhat reasonably priced. I'm currently contemplating adding additional cameras for rear/side views, as one camera just doesn't cut it anymore in providing a quality live stream.