Dimming and Lighting Control

I've got my lights and worked with gels and gobos and now my customers are looking for color change and sequencing of lights on and off and fading. What do I do.

There are two modes of "control" - passive control and active control.
Passive
Passive control consists of altering the light manually to "control" the output. This  can be done by adding "diffusion" that diffuses or spreads the light as it comes out of the fixture. There are many diffusions from very soft to highly textured and fibrous.
Another control is adding barndoors to direct the light in a direction. This is usually used to "screen" the light from guests eyes. Can be achieved with mechanical devices or with lighting tape which is a metal based tape that can be formed around the fixture.
Adding additional gels can also change the output.
Screens can also be used to dampen the light output.

Many Lights like the opti pars are considered "adjustable" and can be changed by changing lenses or bulb types from wide flood to narrow spot.

the last form of passive control is placement as far as angle and throw etc.

Active

Active control is the control of the function of a fixture through the use of sending data commands to a control box that changes the output of a light. This is normally done with a dimmer board and a control unit called a dimpack.
A slider is used to send a signal along a cable called an XLR cable using what is called DMX protocol. Without getting too much into lingo this signal has a specific footprint to correspond to a specific fixture through the control unit called a dimpack. The dimpack will control typically 1 fixture or group of fixtures or several fixtures independently. This is done using "addresses" specifying the different fixtures.
DMX programming can be quite simple but is also capable of complex programming using DMX 512 or 512 different channels .

This programming protocol is used in dimming and also in intelligent lighting using movement, gobos, color etc.

Basically control includes changing color using gels or dichroic filters, intensity using fading and dimming, changing the throw or focus distance, and changing the light output using a shaping pattern called a gobo.

This is actually a fairly easy way to give a real distinction to your lighting capabilities.

We will continue delving deeper into simple control over the next few discussions.
I am very open to you direction, input, and or questions.

Lights Everywhere - "Look at all the Lights, Man!"








Lights of All Kinds and Sizes

"I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free."   Michaelangelo

We use lights of all kinds to achieve the effects we need.

People often ask what kind of lights we use and there is usually a pat answer... but not always. The opti par and the leko are the fixtures of choice in most cases. But we do use different lights for different functions.

A list of the most used lights:

Par 38 are used for uplights or for general lighting in festival type settings.

Par 46 and par 56 cans are quite often used as wash lights in 20 and 30 wide tents and for general lighting where no gel is required.

Par 64 cans are used for stage lighting and often to substitute for optis if we run short.

The opti par is a 575 watt strong light with a cast case that holds up to rental use and the 575 bulb is as bright as a 1000 watt 64.  It can also be used as a general spot by changing lenses to a very narrow.

Pinspots - we use a par 46 pinspot for brightness and is normally only used to spot centerpieces on dining tables. We do ocassionally use it in decorative lighting such as red and blue stripes on the 4th of July tent.

Lekos or ellipsoidal projectors are used to spot buffets , bars, entries, and any other area that needs definition. Lekos can also be used as washes in certain situation.
Lekos obvious use is to shine a pattern of light known as a gobo.

We also use strings of lights with 10 watt French bulbs with lights every 15". They are used under liners around edges of marquees and smaller tents. These can also be used in landscaping and used as festival lighting.

For lighting large areas effectively we employ 400 watt metal halide high bay fixtures (basically streetlamps). These are a great way to get general lighting in large structures. These are not dimmable and have a warm up time, making them difficult to turn off and on effectively.

We use simple houshold bulb fixtures on lamp cord to individually light our chinese lanterns.

And we use a bucket load of twinkle lights for lighting tents and lighting under liners. These are great for lighting the legs of tents. Under certain material these lights are refracted into starburst.  We use twinkle liehts with white cords so they blend with the tent well.

Mini cans make great accent lights for tent draping and buffets. These little minis cans are par 16 usually with MR16 bulbs.

Battery operated LEDs are used to light bars and columns.

LEDs are used in tight areas where there is little electricity and used for color changes. These make good truss warmers.

And of course we use intelligent light for effects and light shows and stage lighting.

Even chemical light strips can be a source for certain events.

Color, color, color... oh my what colors!

Color can be soft, warm, hot, dramatic, cool, and every feeling in between. Your choice of color can help determine the atmosphere of the event. Color comes from light - from gels.

Not all gels are the same. I  prefer Apollo gels. I have not had much luck with so called "value" gels. Just compare the feel of gels. I like them saturated and with some body and I find I can reuse them enough to make them a value.

Most gel makers have a full array of colors for every use. There are gels in skin tones for photography, gels for video, and television. For the event business we use gels that are normally more saturated than your normal colors...  somewhat more exaggerated than normal.

Shades of blue simulate cold and darkness. Moonlight is normally depicted as blue light. And ice parties use a cool blue. Lavendars and purple create the idea of richness. And of course our roses and pinks are used to create joy and warmth...every shade hotter creates a more lively event. But remember the lighter shades of color usually don't translate well in event environments.

Golds, ambers, and reds are bold strong colors for bold events and effects. Gold translates to warmth, wealth, aged, and confidence. Reds bring the idea of heat, action, and works well for depth.

Greens can be used carefully as a backgound wash but need additional colors to accent. Again the more saturated the more effect such as deep emerald green.

Colors can also signify "greeness". The new green colors include celadon, orange, and medium blue along with naturak tones of gold such as "straw".

But the real key to color is to provide"texture" through the use of different hues and placing the lights in opposing angles.
Texture is also accomplished with opposing colors and blending of colors. A very effective use of color is a "sunset" gel, which is three different pieces of gel put together. Or another good trick is to add a "border" of a color. Such as adding an amber strip to a blue gel or add a deep deep pink strip to a hot pink gel, or an amber strip to a red gel.

There are no boundaries - play with the gels and gel pieces. Don't be afraid to tape pieces together to make a kaleidoscope of color. You may just surprise yourself and your client.

    Uplighting

just a followup thought from my comments last night :

the real point I want to make is that the uplighting that I saw in San Antonio was an easy sale, an effective concept, and a real addition to that event.

We should be selling this look on every event in a hotel ballroom or any facility. It is elegant, effective, easy, and profitable while still pleasing for the client by adding that WOW factor to the event..

      Uplighting: An Enlightening Experience


We did a job in San Antonio Texas last weekend and it gave me a different perspective.


The job was fairly simple, a white "seamless" dancefloor for a wedding. And the enlightenment was also fairly simple.

After working and stressing somewhat to produce a white seamless dancefloor I stood back and got a chance to watch someone else do the lighting. It was a simple lighting job and my first reaction watching was almost critical. But the end result was very effective.

The ballroom was simply uplit in tones of rose pink. Not having done the lighting part allowed me to look at it from a different view. A view that was not skewed by my own egoor creativeness and I saw the result from the perspective of what I think the guests saw it. It was almost amazing.

Simple uplighting changed the whole character of the ballroom and the event.

I have often thought less is sometimes more but not always put that in practice. I now can't imagine that ballroom being lit in any different manner. It fit the room and the event. No dimmers, no rigging, no fancy lighting, no split gels or other tricks - just subtle yet elegant color - the result of real insight and true talent.

My hat is off to The French Connection of San Antonio, the event producer, for an extremely effective event. 

What is a "Leko" and what will it do for me.

One of the most important additions to your arsenal of lighting is "Leko" or ellipsoidal projector. It is the first light that is somewhat controllable - meaning we can change it's output to suit our needs.Lekos are focusable.

The most obvious use of Lekos is to produce an image through the use of a gobo. A gobo is a "filter" that makes a predertermined pattern with the light. Gobos can be steel templates, gray toned glass to provide texture, or full blown glass with dichroic colors.

Lekos come in "sizes" which refers to the beam angle. The most used angles are 36 degrees and 50 degrees. But they also come in 10,19,and 26 degrees.

This becomes important when you want to put a certain pattern on a certain surface such as a monogram on a dancefloor.

The distance the light travels, called the throw, and the beam angle, which is the lens, determines the size of your pattern.

A formula that will help with this calculation is:

  Beam angle in degrees =  Beam width (width of desired pattern)
                                           _______________________________
                                             Distance X .018

For example if you want a 12 foot pattern on a wall and it is 25' from your fixture you need a 26 degree lens.

beam angle = 12 feet/25x.018= 26.6
I do have a chart that will help you with predetermined distances, sizes, and angles. 
Just email me at john@aritexsales.com and I will email you a copy. 

   ARA Events and Tents 2010

I will be speaking at ARA's Events and Tents in Orlando next February. Now I know in today's social and information age that is a long time away but it has given me pause to think about what is important to business now.

It really takes me back to the basics which are always the key to successful business. Good quality, good service etc. but business is much more complicated. There's marketing, operations, efficiency, demand and supply, financing, and of course the bottomline profit.

But some thoughts strike me with today's financial environment. First there are some people still spending money - specifically the most important events  - weddings, sporting events, movie premiers, and some corporate functions.

One thing that appears evident is that there are less overall events and less money being spent on events yet I think we are seeing some signs of recovery.

And not to just ramble on - the things we need to think about for right now is bolstering our sales force  specifically to maintain our place in the market. And on a much more tangible front to build on the business that exists to us. That means doing certain tasks our selves that provide revenue - lighting being a good example of that. But the other avenue I see is to build our orders by adding value- draping, flooring, lighting, doors, AC, walkway tents, staging, tablecloths, and others. We have been doing alot of draping lately - some of it relatively minor - yet it gives the ability to add to each order and to differentiate ourselves as a business. 

  

One more thought on LEDs and we will let that subject rest for a litle while.
There are several very effective LEDs systems that are battery operated. These are great for those situations where it is difficult to get power to an isolated location. They are extremely useful for subtle lighting with color change under tables or  in acrylic cubes or bars.

The system I really like is the Event Brick system by Elation. This is a 12 1 watt LED system with remote control. It comes with a rechargeable battery that lasts about 10 hours. Fully RGB color control and dimming and built in programming. These units although they are battery operated cab also be pugged in and run with DMX. I have used these units as wash units for some time. These were one of the first useadle and cost efficient LEDs.

I do have to relate one quick story that demonstrates the use of battery operated LEDs.We worked on an event recently for the graduation party for oour client. The client declined to rent a generator because there was "plenty of power" available. In the middle of the party the "plenty of power" failed. After a hurried trip to the event and a half hour of frantically and unsuccessfully trying t0 get the power to work it became obvious that was not going to come to fruition.We worked in conjunction with Amy at Shag Carpet and she happened to supply battery operated LEDS for the bars and other areas of decor. So in the end we ended up lighting the casino tent with those LEDs and the games went on successfully to the lights provided by batery operated LEDs.
 
If you ever need battery operated LEDs I would highly recommend these units. And if you ever need decor and a caring intelligent partner I recommend calling Amy at www.shag-carpet.com .

It took me awhile to figure out how to get the picture on here ... but here it is.
Pinspots provided the red and blue stripes and a leko  with star gobo made overlay of stars.
Inside of the tent was draped with red, white, and blue velon . 10 watt french bulb strings with lights at 15" spacing gave that old fashioned feel.

Exterior Tent Lighting
It's the Fourth of July this weekend and we are doing something a little unusual.

One of our local cities is having a 4th celebration  and this is a prototype of a signature event this city wants to hold next year. This event takes place in their local historical park. The client requested something special.

So in addition to having red, white, and blue bunting fans and traditional draping of the tent in red, white, and blue, we are also decorating the outside of the tent top. To accomplish this we are lighting the top of the tent in red and blue stripes using pinspots with  gels. And we are then adding a layer of stars by using a leko and a gobo of a star pattern.  The stars will completely fill the top of the tent  and should give a stunning display as the fireworks go off.

I'll post pictures next week.
Happy Fourth.