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Thread: Might sound like a goofy quetion but...

  1. #1
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    Might sound like a goofy quetion but...

    What would you guys say is the best occasion to use lighting effects vs up-lighting?

  2. #2
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    2 different things really, uplighting is for room "mood" setting while DJ effects are usually dance floor oriented. Of course there are exceptions, DJ effects can be projected on the walls/ceiling instead of the dancefloor and as I often do.. uplighting along the walls can be DMX controlled and sequenced or run in patterns to bring the whole room alive.
    On the surface I think of uplighting as more upscale but I often deploy both types of lighting for weddings.
    Paul O'Brien
    Old Tech Guy
    www.Techott.com

  3. #3
    I've been to a techno event and iirc all they had was a strobe and a smoke machine, as well as a trance rave with fancy lasers and stuff. One 90's themed night had those moving head washers (positioned on the floor next to the performers) that I hadn't, until then, considered worth the money but I thought they were really amazing, giving a sort of "floating" effect (if that's what you mean by up-lighting) DnB events on the other hand use lights a bit more sparingly as they focus more on the sound system I think, fast gobos etc but I remember seeing blinders for effect and washers for creating different atmospheres.

    But like stated those spots and floods are more of a live band stage light and wedding reception thing unless you have a huge space with no light coming from the bar, tables etc that possibly makes up for the lack of spots, or to otherwise create a mood (they can overwhelm the moving light effects though I'd figure so you'd need to switch them on/off in turns for instance). To make them look disco and/or ravey you need to be clever, whereas a moving head/scanner rig is hard to make behave itself in a situation or event that calls for a formal, laid back lighting.

    Then again, I've only had a 3m bar truss stand with 2 Martin T-Rex' running on sound activation. I think I should've bought scanners and other stuff like spots too but lights are very easy to overlook as running a lighting rig while DJing isn't quite what anyone wants to do on his own, plus they need regular maintanence, and getting the right bulbs/spares can be hard (not to mention they need cases as they're very fragile; PAR wings, moving parts, mirrors etc)

    I've been tempted to buy those new LED effects that have been taking over the market but I'd figure servicing them can be a bit tricky, although they run a bit cooler than halogens (LEDs have an estimated 10.000hr+ lifetime on an average I've read)

    By the way, I think lights are an easy target for field research so you could check out some videos and go to local events to see what others are using in different circumstances (the first paragraph I wrote is what I recall from the top of my head, many of those events were some odd 10 years ago when I still attended raves)

  4. #4
    Member Daniel S's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by efinque View Post
    (if that's what you mean by up-lighting)
    No, up-lighting is a type of fixture used to light up a wall and give it a bit of colour, like this


    The fixtures are specifically made to be placed on the floor and usually look like this:

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