What is the "foot" coverage area of the "Elation Blacklight"?
Most sites just say "wide coverage".
Most sites just say "wide coverage".
Blacklight Coverage?
- Thread starter Abbey Lane
- Start date
They saturate an area of about 15 feet wide to about 15 feet back and they light a 25' square area. I have 4 and they thoroughly cover crowds up to 500-600 in BRIGHT saturated UV wash.
Flourescent, Incandescents are sh*t when it comes to providing a decent UV effect. The only incandescent UV fixture that i've heard works well is the Wildfire Blacklights but at over $2k each, I should hope they are very effective.
DJcarolina, do you place your 4 lights at the front of the stage area, or two at the front and the other 2 around the hall/area?
Right now i'm placing them on the truss smashing the front of the crowd. I'll post pictures for you as I have a dance this evening where we'll be using that rig. However, for larger....dare i say it, more important functions where I have time to set up lights the more innnovative way; we give each light it's own tripod and use two in the front and two on the sides which effectively covers about 90% of the crowd. This is especially imoprtant for some of out blacklight effects like our snow, confetti, bubbles and balls.
Blacklights are rarely used in productions, because true black light is not visible to the naked eye, but your eye still reacts to it like it was a bright visible light. I learned in school to avoid black lights in lighting design, because they reduce the overall effectiveness of the rest of your lights by causing your iris to close down when you look at the light. because it's not in the visible spectrum, it doesn't do anything to brighten the room, and the fact that it makes your eyes think they're staring into bright light makes the room even darker...
I don't like them for this reason...
If you're going for pretty much only black lights, that's cool, but It's counter productive to incorporate them into a sophisticated light show unless you can turn them off at will.
just a thought....
I don't like them for this reason...
If you're going for pretty much only black lights, that's cool, but It's counter productive to incorporate them into a sophisticated light show unless you can turn them off at will.
just a thought....
That's why I asked. Never saw an incandescent worth a dam. No name brands, but I have a bunch of 40 (48?) inchers that I use on occasion...
totally true.. I have a bunch of 550 watt incandescents, and aside from sucking power, they don't do crap compared to the 48" flourescents...
carolina, how do the snow machines work out? I'm interested!
do tell.. I rented a massive one last year, but it was like a movie snow machine.. I swear it would have made 6" of snow by the end of the night if I didn't meter it.. lol
carolina, how do the snow machines work out? I'm interested!
do tell.. I rented a massive one last year, but it was like a movie snow machine.. I swear it would have made 6" of snow by the end of the night if I didn't meter it.. lol
Ok- on blacklights- not true about them being used in productions. The ability to use UV light, like any light, and strobe, should be controlled. Everything gets old after a while. UV light, like strobes, are used to hilight something in particular. Many moving heads have UV filters built in. This summer we saw an 80s show that had a UV section and the moving heads and washes were used to fill the room and the stage with UV, lighting up the neon set, VERY cool. Agreed is that UV is not a wash light, but thats why we also use Colorstrips and all our lights can be turned on or off at will. UV lights the kids clothes, lighting the room, and its a great effect from both sides of the booth.
The snow machines are AMAZING. I used 1 tonight at a middle school as well as our ball, bubbles, and confetti. I will say, you need the UV additive to make it cool but its worth it. The kids had a great time, and though it left a bit of residue, it doesn't stain anything. And yes, the ones I have can put out a TON of snow, but they also drink juice which costs $50 a gallon sooo.....
The snow machines are AMAZING. I used 1 tonight at a middle school as well as our ball, bubbles, and confetti. I will say, you need the UV additive to make it cool but its worth it. The kids had a great time, and though it left a bit of residue, it doesn't stain anything. And yes, the ones I have can put out a TON of snow, but they also drink juice which costs $50 a gallon sooo.....
actually, if you've been to any of the PLASA seminars, and I'll try to find the article written on UV, you'll see that UV is used sparingly.. As you stated, the moving heads were used.. as I stated earlier, UV is to be used when under strict control. they didn't have a pile of UV tubes on the entire time.
It's cool as hell, and I'm not being a hater, I love black light... but the info on black light was correct.. unless it's controlled by dimmer, or whatever, it's a no-no.. UVis a light show killer.
but for what we do, I guess it doesn't matter much...
It's cool as hell, and I'm not being a hater, I love black light... but the info on black light was correct.. unless it's controlled by dimmer, or whatever, it's a no-no.. UVis a light show killer.
but for what we do, I guess it doesn't matter much...
Yeah, the difference between "professional fixtures" that would be used in a production, and units available to everyone is those control options such as dimming and such, which can only be achieved on a unit that is producing UV through a filter, not a flourescent bulb. Lots of DJs prefer the 48" tubes because they produce a lot of light for a decent cost. They have little throw though and in my humble oppinion, they look tacky especially given some of the ways certain djs create mounts for them.
I agree, UV is used sparingly and it makes an impact when its used and when its used right.
I agree, UV is used sparingly and it makes an impact when its used and when its used right.
I use UV mostly for retro events, but if you ever book a night time pool party, they are absolutely AWESOME- especially if there are young ladies wearing white bikinis.....WOW!
I always play Unchained Melody at a reception. It it a SURE way to fill the floor. What I like to do is to go from a medium-tempo song into a complete pause of music (with NO lights)...the crowd thinks something happened...then I hit them with black lights and Unchained Melody. It creates a rather ethereal feel to the dance floor.
I just purchased a wildfire 400w UV unit. I talked to the company last night for about 10 minutes to pick their brain about the unit. I'm also considering 2 - 250w units.
They said my unit flanked with a couple of 250w wildfire units will saturate one end of a typical gym nicely. That makes me pretty excited. I haven't purchased the 250's yet because I want to see what the effect looks like.
I asked him to compare the Wildfire 400w to the typical Elation/Chauvet/AMDJ stuff and he said there is no comparison. Well....OK, I guess thats a good enough answer. He said the "Iron-Arc Hallide" lamps actually produce more UV than a typical 400w Mercury discharge. He said they also produce light in all spectrums but produce more UV in the "sweet spot" spectrum best suited for black light use.
He mentioned nothing of the danger of the rays, but we are only talking about 1 unit. Not a store full of tanning beds opened up.
I can understand the concept that UV can diminish the eye's ability to register light. But regular light will totally overpower UV light and its effect on photoluminescent materials so it works both ways.
I won't have to shut the UV down because my light show consists of LED's pointed right at the crowd, 1500w diversitronic strobes pointed right at the crowd, and UN-gelled Par 56's pointed right at the crowd. This ain't no theater, its a dance. The lights are in a different position. When my main lights go down, the white bikini's go up....(or so I hope)
www.wildfirefx.com
They said my unit flanked with a couple of 250w wildfire units will saturate one end of a typical gym nicely. That makes me pretty excited. I haven't purchased the 250's yet because I want to see what the effect looks like.
I asked him to compare the Wildfire 400w to the typical Elation/Chauvet/AMDJ stuff and he said there is no comparison. Well....OK, I guess thats a good enough answer. He said the "Iron-Arc Hallide" lamps actually produce more UV than a typical 400w Mercury discharge. He said they also produce light in all spectrums but produce more UV in the "sweet spot" spectrum best suited for black light use.
He mentioned nothing of the danger of the rays, but we are only talking about 1 unit. Not a store full of tanning beds opened up.
I can understand the concept that UV can diminish the eye's ability to register light. But regular light will totally overpower UV light and its effect on photoluminescent materials so it works both ways.
I won't have to shut the UV down because my light show consists of LED's pointed right at the crowd, 1500w diversitronic strobes pointed right at the crowd, and UN-gelled Par 56's pointed right at the crowd. This ain't no theater, its a dance. The lights are in a different position. When my main lights go down, the white bikini's go up....(or so I hope)
www.wildfirefx.com
I'm not sure I need anything that exquisite, or pricey. I would like to hear your thoughts on it once you test it out.
Right now I use standard tubes but I was considering a couple of Elation UV washes.
I can't wait to test it out!
Let's not assume I bought this new. I do have kids to feed the rest of the month.....lol