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    Blog Series: Designer Profiles

    LD Profile: Paul Carter

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    Six questions with Paul Carter, lighting designer and owner of LED MAN design, install and support company in Toronto, Canada.

    1. How did you get into this field?
    I started as a LD in the early ‘80s and have worked with major recording artist and club acts, which are a passion of mine. I really like to see new bands react to a bigger lighting and FX show than they are used to. I started specializing in LED lighting for bands several years ago and have evolved that into making my own mobile LED Liteboxes that bands can take to any show and fit in most car trucks. The boxes feature a quick setup and add impact to their light shows. I supply LED lights, design, installation and support for bands, clubs, DJs and events. A high school friend and neighbor Doug Adams, owner and lead designer of PyroTekFX, gave me a chance to do lights for his first band in the early ‘80s. I learned lighting by touring with his band and many others to follow. Almost immediately, I saw the importance of lighting in a show and how it affects the mood and impact of a band’s performance. I became more and more passionate about lighting and I consistently try to outdo myself with design ideas, no matter how small or large the show is.

    2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
    LEDs are the “it” factor when it comes to lighting. LEDs are by far the greatest advancement in lighting since moving head lights. I think in the very near future LEDs will be the primary light source everywhere, not just in the entertainment industry. Anyone using LEDs in their daily shows will tell you their huge advantages. My clients are amazed at the flexibility, beauty and advantages, when using or switching to LEDs. That being said, I think LED technology is still evolving and there are still huge unforeseen advancements that will take LEDs even further and make them even more unique then they already are. There are no limits to this technology.

    3. Do you have a favorite fixture (and why)?
    Currently, the CHAUVET SlimPAR 64 is my primary LED lamp for many reasons. It has a slim, lightweight, design and a powerful LED output. I would say about 25% brighter than any LED PAR in its class. But, probably my favorite feature is the ability to chain the power, one lamp to the next from the back of the lamp. This is a huge time and cable saver when building a show or using them when I build custom LED box designs and bars. Everything you want you can find in a SlimPAR 64 and there is no surprise that this is my most requested fixture.

    4. What has been your favorite design/project?
    Since my company has gone full LED, my favorite project so far is the Rehearsal Factory in Mississauga Ontario. The owners had a clear idea of what they wanted for their showroom—a big show. The room showcases new and seasoned bands from Canada and around the world, so it was important for them to make it the best that it could be. At the same time they were also concerned about power availability in the room and expensive hydro costs. I provided them with the answer: LEDs. I designed the room with 24 SlimPAR 64 wash lights, two blinder LEDs and a CHAUVET Hurricane Haze. The entire show fits on a single 30-amp breaker. Gone are the days of dimmer racks and three-phase installs. A simple wall switch and the LEDs are on. This is a great room to showcase the power, flexibility and beauty of LEDs. Their clients love it and it has become a great revenue stream for their already booming rehearsal business.

    5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
    Working with an Alice Cooper tribute band back in the mid ‘80s. This was no small production and was even endorsed by Alice Cooper himself. The band at the time was used to the standard, back, mid and front truss with the odd floor light. Things matched and made sense. But that isn’t the vision I had when I was hired. My design was anything but symmetric. It was chaotic and nothing matched. Lights looked as though they were just dropped somewhere on the stage and turned on. Trusses were standing or leaning up against things. It was a beautiful mess, but there was a lot of thought put into this design. I used even split gel colors (two colors scotch taped together) to add more oddness and irregularity to the show. The band and management didn’t understand, but I was sure I was creating the right atmosphere and eventually my design fit the show perfectly. About several months of band uncertainty, Alice Cooper was playing in the city and our band was invited out to the show. To their surprise, the lighting design was a “chaotic-nightmare,” asymmetric chaos in all its glory. Now, whether my design concept was borrowed or great minds think alike, I was vindicated. The moral to the story is, be true to your design.

    6. Complete this thought: A show without light is like…
    … is just radio. Lighting sets a mood, creates excitement and impacts people, which makes it an integral part of any show. For me, it’s a passion.

    Behind-the-scenes at HQ with Zach Matusow

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    We had the pleasure of hosting Zach Matusow, tour lighting designer for Foster the People. While he was at CHAUVET HQ, we did a Take 5 Interview with a Lighting Designer segment with our own John Dunn, business development manager for the west coast, and gave him some one-one-one time with a few select CHAUVET Professional fixtures.

    The interview is coming soon. Stay tuned.

    Zack Matusow behind-the-scenes shot during interview

    Zack Matusow interviewed by John Dunn (l ot r)

    Matusow talking one-one-one with our product team

    Matusow talking with Product Manager Mike Graham

    On the Road: Backstage at Muny’s Dreamgirls

    Written by David on . Posted in Uncategorized.

    The St.Louis-based Muny theatre’s production of Dreamgirls featured battery-powered, 100%  TRUE wirelessly-controlled CHAUVET DJ Freedom Par and CHAUVET Professional WELL wash lights in the truss tower set pieces that freely moved about its 94-foot stage. We have a couple of behind-the-scenes shots below. Enjoy.

    The Muny theater in St. Louis, Missouri

    Truss towers with Freedom Par and WELL fixtures take the stage

    Truss towers with Freedom Par and WELL fixtures take the stage

    Detail of Freedom Par in truss tower

    Lighting Designer Seth Jackson and Asst. Lighting Designer Robert Denton (l to r)

    LightQuest in the City of Angels

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    Written by Adina Arhire, communication specialist for CHAUVET.

    Yes, I am a woman. And I do love shoes — it’s embedded in our DNA. What do shoes have to do with lighting? A lot actually; in my case, at least. To give you a brief background, I started working for CHAUVET as communications specialist about a year ago and knew nothing of lighting, but a lot about shoes. Since joining I have experienced trade shows, lots of training sessions—learning from the best in the industry who work here at CHAUVET—and hours of researching the industry on my own. I have been a rather geeky person all my life, so learning has been a pleasant experience. I do know what pixel mapping is, how to address a video panel, the definition of a lumen and more.

    Now this is what I call a successful combination: LEDs & shoes …

    Does all of the above give me the right to fancily talk about lighting? Definitely not. Does that give me the right to admire and hunt for them? Yes it does. Because I simply love lighting—in my own primitive way. (And so do you, if you are reading this.) Novices or experts, we all have the virus. In my case, I realized I was irreversibly  ‘infected’ when about six months ago I started looking for CHAUVET lights in venues and at concerts more than I was screening for cute guys. Now I am fully contaminated and I love it. Those Manolo Blahniks might shine a couple of times on my feet, but lighting is forever, in my heart. [Awww, cheesy I know, remember I am still a woman?]

    Disneyland Hotel lit by CHAUVET lights …

    Now that I have hopefully convinced you of my good faith and valid reasons for writing this, you should read about my trip to Los Angeles. Which wasn’t just a trip. As I discovered, it was a true “LightQuest.” I have to confess I was lucky enough to be guided by someone with far more experience than I have in the industry. Just like Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in their quest to revive chivalry in the 17th century, I had the guidance of our U.S. Business Development Manager for CHAUVET Professional and ILUMINARC John Dunn (Don Quixote), who walked me (Sancho Panza) through this “LightQuest.”

    On my way to Stage 12 at Universal Studios …

    Our first stop blew me away. I had the opportunity to visit Stage 12 at Universal Studios, which houses the set of a major televised singing competition with franchises in more than 40 countries worldwide. Also, I had the honor to meet and to interview the lighting designer for this amazing show: Oscar Dominguez. I had read about Oscar’s involvement with this show in a very interesting interview done by PLSN magazine, but talking face-to-face was a totally different thing. The rig was overwhelming. I was surprised by its scale, not to mention the hundreds of CHAUVET lights that are part of it. I found out after, movies like “Dracula” and “Frankenstein” were filmed in the same Stage 12 at Universal Studios.

    Hard to miss this poster of “American Ninja Warrior” …

    While walking at Universal Studios a big poster promoting “American Ninja Warrior” sports entertainment competition immediately caught my attention. Why? Because 225 CHAUVET lights were on that show, specified by Lighting Designer Ed Motts. The cherry on the cake was actually meeting Ed and having the opportunity to ask him details in person. Listening to him passionately talking about lights and latest industry news, I realized he is one of the many lighting designers who make lighting their lives, and not just a job.

    DJ Roonie G performs one of his creative blends of audio and video …

    I had another pleasant surprise while checking out City Walk, also at Universal Studios. Known for his mixing of music and video, DJ Roonie G was performing on a stage equipped with 60-plus CHAUVET lights, of which I spotted COLORado 3p IP and COLORado 1 IP lights.

    I spotted more CHAUVET fixtures lighting a store entrance at Disney BoardWalk, and washing the walls of the Disneyland Hotel. Lights from the CHAUVET ILUMINARC brand color the trees in front of the hotel, and more create colorful effects underwater, in a pool at the resort.

    Lots of lights at N-Effect Productions …

    What really added to my timid knowledge of lighting and gave me a better perspective on the industry, were the various dealer visits. I was lucky to meet some of the wonderful people we work with who literally keep the lights on.

    Impressed by the size of the warehouse at Kinetic Lighting, I touched color gels for the first time (after only reading about them). It was interesting to see how these are still in use, when LEDs give an array of color choices without the need of gels. Owner of Kinetic Lighting David Rosen had just organized an open house, and I could still spot CHAUVET lights on the floor.

    Color gels box at Kinetic Lighting …

    In San Diego, Brad Donaldson with Pro Systems Event Solutions told me about some great projects he had just worked on, using CHAUVET fixtures: Sun God Festival 2012, Dayglow show, Steve Aoki performing at the Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego, and more. At N-Effects Productions, Kris Plourde passionately showed me some of his spectacular designs for prom events. I remember the “Orangetopia” project at a high school night that we actually wrote about a little while ago. Kris put together a full production complete with DJ, video walls and a three-minute confetti drop.

    Last but certainly not least, I had the pleasure of meeting the creative team at Blue Haze Entertainment. They were recently involved in a massive project at Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, where they specified hundreds of our lights. No books and online research can give the insight one would get just listening to these professionals discussing lighting.

    I was under the impression I accumulated so much information during my year at CHAUVET, but it took this trip to teach me that I had only touched on the tip of the iceberg. While I am not a big fan of cold weather or water, I am ready to dive in and go deeper. Who knows if this iceberg has a limit?

    To seal the LightQuest, on my way to the airport John pointed out a Toyota dealership displaying a car lit by CHAUVET lights. Perhaps not as glamorous as the television studio, but the message was clear: our lights are everywhere …

     

    LD Profile: Benjamin Brown

    Written by David on . Posted in Uncategorized.

    Six questions with Benjamin Brown, lighting designer for Cason Cleveland Productions and theatre design technology student at Gainesville State College.

    1. How did you get into this field?
    About four years ago I was trying to discover what I wanted to do in college. I had started out in electrical engineering, but then I helped a friend set up the lights at Lakewood Baptist Church in Gainesville, Georgia, and found that I really liked the art and passion provided by the lighting. One of the best and luckiest parts about it was that the current LD left for school and I was left to learn the Jands Vista S3 console by the following Sunday. The next thing I knew I was doing every week concerts, proms and corporate lighting. I would like to eventually get into the lighting field in a bigger way. I am currently lighting designer for Cason Cleveland Productions while studying at Gainesville State College for theatre design technology, so that I can learn the little things I may have missed learning on my own.

    2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
    The next step in lighting is to change all moving lights to LED. It has been done to a certain extent, wash lights and smaller movers. But I feel that the first company to make a light like Martin Mac III Profile run off LED instead of bulbs will have found the future.

    3. Do you have a favorite fixture (and why)?
    My favorite fixture is a tie between the CHAUVET COLORado Batten 72 Tour and the Elation Platinum Beam 5R. I like them for the same reason; they are both extremely powerful and bright for their size. COLORado Batten 72 Tour provides great color over the stage or even when I use them as blinders. I love the color options of COLORado Batten 72 Tour with typical RGB and then the extra white and amber. For me, LED lights only look good when they are actually the color as the beam at the bulbs and the CHAUVET batten provides that. I also love straight lines in a stage design and the batten’s shape provides a natural straight line when looked at head-on.

    4. What has been your favorite design/project?
    My favorite design project is a youth conference that Lakewood hosted for 10 other churches. I was given the chance to fully design and run the show. I wanted to keep it kind of simple with tons of color provided by the 22 CHAUVET SlimPAR Pro Tri fixtures and six LED Rain 64 lights. I used four COLORrail linear wash lights to light the “unshaken” logo. On the moving light end I had four Elation Platinum Beam 5R lights along with 20 other assorted Martin and Robe spot and wash fixtures. One of the coolest effects we did was to place eight CHAUVET COLORado 2 Tour wash lights in the back of the room to bring the entire room into the show. To top it all off, I used 14 CHAUVET PAR 64 and four COLORado Batten 72 Tour lights to create a blinding effect. It was all ran off Jands Vista S3 console for programmed scenes and presets and from Vista M1 for conventional and house.

    5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
    At one of the homecomings we put on last year we were not allowed to fly our lights. Having everything ground-supported made that design for a dance with over 1,000 students difficult. We would typically use lifts to get the truss high enough to shoot the lights on the crowd but we noticed with the bleachers pushed in, we could put the truss directly on them to create a cool over-shooting effect.

    6. Complete this thought: A show without light is like …
    … Walt Disney without a dream.

    LD Profile: Roland J. Sosa

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    Six questions with Roland J. Sosa, lighting designer and owner of Advanced Technology Solutions in Ocala, Fla.

    1. How did you get into this field?
    I got into lighting as a hobby. A friend of mine owns a nightclub needed help getting the lighting system up and running after years of being held together by “Band-Aids.” It just took off after that and lighting quickly became my passion.

    2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
    I still think LED lighting is the next big thing. There are still so many different types of LEDs and LED fixtures to be produced and used.

    3. Do you have a favorite fixture?
    The Q-Spot 560-LED moving head is by far my favorite fixture. It has unbelievably fast movement, a clean and sharp beam and a bright LED light source. With a small army of these fixtures, you can make one hell of a light show.

    4. What has been your favorite design/project?
    My favorite design so far is Platforms, an 8,000-square-foot dance club located in the Ocala Entertainment Complex. There are 70 CHAUVET fixtures installed in that venue. [To read the complete installation story, please click here]

    5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
    For the most part, my projects have always run relatively smooth. The biggest obstacle I have encountered involved hanging the truss in Platforms. The ceiling wasn’t strong enough to hold the trussing system so it had to be reinforced to withstand the weight.

    6. Complete this thought: A show without lights is like…
    A show without lights is like an amusement park without rides —no fun!

    LD Profile: Matt Levesque

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    Six questions with Matt Levesque, experienced lighting designer of architectural projects, theme parks, and corporate events. – also, founding principal of First Circle Design. Levesque recently completed a major design at MGM Macau in China, where he specified 95 Ilumipanel 180 IP wash lights from CHAUVET  Professional’s Iluminarc line of architainment fixtures.

    1. How did you get into this field?
    Honestly, I found it was a great way to meet the cute girls in the drama department. It worked. I met my wife 17 years ago that way.

    2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
    Warm white LEDs that amber shift when you dim and dimmers will become obsolete; all lighting systems will be data controlled.

    3. Do you have a favorite fixture (and why)?
    Actually, I had to learn not to have a favorite as every client and project demands a new/different tool that meets their project’s objectives.

    4. What has been your favorite design/project?
    Universal Studios Japan 2001—great design with amazingly talented group of designers and consultants.

    5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
    Time. I always want more time for research or just a little bit more to refine the look. I had to learn most of my best work is the work I fuss over the least.

    6. Complete this thought: A show without light is like…
    …the music industry without The Beatles—just sad.

    LD Interview: Visual Case Studies with Geoff Farrell

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    The Marlin Hotel, located in South Beach, has been reborn with the help of ILUMINARC LΩgic fixtures, which are part of the CHAUVET Professional line. The color changing LED-fitted lights are part of the LΩgic System which work seamlessly with the Savant system installed in the hotel, whereby room amenities as well as the lights are controlled by an iPad. Lighting Designer Geoff Farrell talks about the project in more depth in this visual case study:

    You can also read the full story here.