How to plan your lighting setup
Many of our customers ask us what is the best lighting package for them. There’s rarely a ‘one size fits all’ answer but here are a few of the options we suggest. Hopefully it helps give you an idea of how to build your perfect lighting setup.
Wireless Uplighters
Wireless uplighters are small, wireless units with around 8 hours of battery life. They are placed on the ground and illuminate the area above them in a colour of your choice, white or even UV. By strategically placing uplighters around the venue, you can highlight architectural details, create focal points, and set the mood with a chosen colour theme for your event.
They have the ability to change colours at a certain speed and can be brighter and darker as you wish. They are easy to operate , allowing you to match them with your party's colour scheme. Uplighters help improve the overall atmosphere by illuminating dark corners, enhancing visibility, and adding a touch of glamour to the surroundings.
Here is an example of an event we did at the Savoy. We used 16 blue uplighters for this room, and as you can see the single colour wash is effective, but in our opinion requires some complimentary colours or alternative lighting to get the best out of the room. You can set each individual uplighter to a different colour or even a mode that cycles through all the colour choices, although that’s best for when the dancefloor kicks off.
Even a few uplighters highlighting the entrance to your venue can make a big difference.
Moving Heads
Moving heads are a powerful form of lighting fixture. Typically positioned on stands at varying heights, they have the ability to supply a wash of colour over a large space or provide sharp beams or moving patterns called ‘gobos’. You can also add your own gobos to these lights allowing custom patterns, logos and names to be displayed.
Not to get too technical, but moving heads come in different shapes and sizes and can have a range of functionality. To keep things simple we’ll look at the two main uses, beam and wash. ‘Beam’ moving heads create a powerful focused beam of solid light which is effective over a long distance. This kind of lighting is ideal for highlighting specific areas of the venue. They are also effective at creating light shows as they have a feature called gobo, which is used to create to an image or pattern. They’re also great for illuminating disco balls.
"‘Wash’ moving heads produce a wide wash of colour with smooth edges. They are ideal for lighting up larger surface areas, such as dance floors, walls and ceilings. They have a similar effect to an uplighter but you’re able to direct and control a moving head more easily. They are shown below illuminating the saxophone.
Disco balls
Disco balls, are they out of fashion? Did they ever go out of fashion? Not for us, we love them and highly recommend them as part of any lighting package. Supplying that iconic shimmering display, disco balls are a great centrepiece. They’re relatively cheap as well so a great idea if you’re trying to get the most out of your budget.
Stage FX
On bigger productions, having a mix of moving light and static light can be very important. Stage washes, blinders, fresnels, moving heads and uplighters can all be combined but need a careful approach. Colour, brightness and placement have to be thoughtfully curated.
We hope that’s helped give a quick overview on event lighting. If you’re still not sure where to start give one of our event planners a ring to discuss.
Look forward to hearing from you!