Basic Tips on Stage Lighting Design
ith lots of stage lightings in the market, it is quite a difficult task choosing the best to design your stage. You are continuously stuck between different fixtures, should I go for Fresnels? Or gobos? What about PAR cans? Too many options to choose from, that is why stage lighting company - Color Imagination produced this article with the aim of teaching you about different lighting features and tips to give you the perfect stage lighting design. With lots of stage lightings in the market, it is quite a difficult task choosing the best to design your stage. You are continuously stuck between different fixtures, should I go for Fresnels? Or gobos? What about PAR cans? Too many options to choose from, that is why stage lighting company - Color Imagination produced this article with the aim of teaching you about different lighting features and tips to give you the perfect stage lighting design.
Good stage lighting adds value to the stage performance; therefore, you should follow these few tips as you start out your designing process.
Design Lighting Base on the Type of Performance: You should always keep in mind the type of performance to be performed before designing the lighting. For a play, it is advisable to use front lighting, this helps showcase the facial movement of the actors. But side lighting is the ideal choice for a dance since dance is basically about movement, the lighting should be simple side-lighting which are known for their ability to highlight tone and movement. For live music, colored lighting is a great choice although the choice of lighting depends on the style of musicians (spot artist or an energetic artist) but generally colored lighting is the best to convey their personality.
Understand The Type Of Fixture: Another important point to consider is the type of fixture (Fresnels, Profile spot, Par cans, Flood light, etc..). Different fixtures perform different roles, so, a basic understanding of these fixtures is needed in choosing your stage lighting. This article also covers the different fixtures and their functions. Read on.
Understand The Script: For a dramatic performance, it is important you understand the script because the lighting has a tremendous effect on the performance. If poorly done, you would have succeeded in destroying the visibility, mood, movement and naturalism of the performance.
Consider The Lighting Positions: Although the amount of space influences your lighting position, but generally, these five positions should be considered.
a)Front Lighting: The front lighting should be set at 45 degrees as it provides the primary source of illumination. A proper positioning eliminates shadows and ensures proper facial expression illumination.
b)Side Lighting: This is important for dance performances; as such it should be properly positioned to highlight the arms, legs, torso and side of the face of the performer.
c)High Side Lighting: These lightings highlight the top part of the body. It should be placed within the range of 30 to 60 degrees for effective illumination of the shoulders, neck head and arm.
d)Back Lighting basically helps achieve 3D effect by separating the performer from the background
e)Down Lighting: The center of the beam of light should always focus on the actor’s shoulder height. A poor positioning will result in lighting the floor which is no use if the actor cannot be seen.
Here is a list showing different types of LED stage lighting and functions they perform;
These are common fixtures seen in events where the movement of the main character cannot be predicted such as; concerts, ice skating, lectures, etc. Example includes; ProFollow 330, ProFollow 600LED and ProFollow 2500
Fresnels are equipped with soft beams which could go from narrow to wide. They are usually used for near-stage. Examples include; Fresnel 300MZ/200MZ/120MZ, MiniFresnel 100MZ and Fresnel 300AZ/200AZ/120AZ.
These are light weight fixtures that look like a headlight with a tin can (par lamp). The beam can be adjusted from horizontal to vertical beam. Examples include; LEDPAR Mullti, LEDPAR 915IP, LEDPAR 36AM, etc.
CYC lights are open-faced fixtures which provide an even wash of light over a vertical surface. Example is CYC 1083
Thinking of which store to get your lightings from? You can get these stage lightings at affordable prices in light manufacturing companies Color Imagination.
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