LD Profile: Paul McElroy

Six Questions with Paul McElroy
Lighting/Audio/Video Technician for Caven Enterprises, Inc.

1. How did you get into this field?
I have been a lighting designer since 1997. I have always been interested in lighting—I was born with it pulsing thru my blood. To quote someone who has personally performed at our club, Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” truly stands true for my passion about lighting. I feel that lighting is an art form and I have always been amazed by it. Most people like the big items while I prefer to find the small hidden details. It’s the subtle things about a light show that i love.

2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
That’s so hard to say—there are a lot of LED fixtures coming out that I’m not really a fan of. I’m OK with still using my discharge lamps. I see the lighting industry taking the same path that televisions did in terms of taking the 3D route. I feel someone out there has a 3D light that they are just waiting to breakout and introduce to the world. I think it would be way cooler for crowds to see gobos passing over them in 3D than just projected on a wall or stage.

3. Do you have a favorite fixture?
Do I have to pick just one? It’s so awesome to see designers who use a mixture of traditional theatrical lighting with new moving lights. I find the blend of old school and new school to be truly amazing.

4. What has been your favorite design/project?
Station 4, a 24,000-square-foot club in Dallas is my favorite design project so far. The lighting grid moves in different positions so you can design a program in one position, and by the time you have moved the grid into a different position, the same program looks totally different. I have written a lot of programs for our console so no two shows are ever the same on a given night.

5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
Station 4 is an ongoing obstacle. The dance floor is square and our lighting rig is a massive circle, so essentially, I’m trying to make a circle fit into a smaller box. You have to get creative and make it work.

6. Complete this thought: A show without lights is like…
A show without lights is like a ski slope without snow. Lighting sets the mood for the entire show, and without light, nobody would be able to see it. When I run a light show, I like to set the mood and tell a story with the fixtures.

Spotted: COLORado™ 1-TRI Tour

There are three COLORado™ 1-TRI Tour static wash lights spotted in the lobby of Neutrik®. Check it out.

Let's all go to the lobby. Let's all go to the lobby.

PLASA 2011 is in the Can

Mike Graham looking pensive in front of MVP™ video panels

Written by Mike Graham, product manager for CHAUVET® Professional

After a very successful PLASA, I would like to thank a few people.  First, I want to thank Sam from our CHAUVET® Europe office for being the consummate professional during the buildup, the show, and tear down, as well as programming a great booth. I know I can count on you. Great job!

Secondly, I want to thank the crew from VME for bringing it all together at the end and getting us all of the kit we needed to build up the booth (and for all of the good humor).  P.S. I am going to work out the comfortable rigging harness for you guys for next year.

Last, but not least, I need to thank the tireless efforts of our CHAUVET® Europe and international sales team, along with our U.S.-based tradeshow coordinators, for bringing all of the marketing, sales, and general good attitudes that I know I can depend on.

Great job everyone! Looking forward to next year. (Last year at Earls Court, I think.)

UPDATE 9/29/11: Photos from the show. (Thanks to Stéphane Gressier!)

"Sleeper hit" fixture the LFS-5

LFS-5 and COLORado™ Zoom Tour

Tech Talk: Order from Chaos

How to Design an Impeccable Show
Written by Mike Graham, product manager for CHAUVET® Professional

Mike Graham looking pensive in front of MVP™ video panels

In my opinion, there is only one way to design a successful show: you should have the collaboration under control and should start from the beginning. It is really easy to make the mistake of starting from the middle and trying to work in two directions. Trust me, it is easy to fall into this trap, which will only result in a messy show. Read on and see how you can keep things under control and create a solid show:

1. What’s the story? Every show needs a story, even if it’s just something you have drafted in your head to keep everything flowing. This also helps you to have some kind of symmetry in your design; it gives you a beginning, middle and an end. All of these things are important.
• Meet with the client, the scenic designer, and anyone else who has a say in how the show is going to look like.
• Ask for photos or images of what they are basing their ideas from. This will make all the rest of the design process much easier.
• Pick a visualizer that will work for you. There are tons of them out there, everything from WISYWIG, to Vectorworks and our own CHAUVET® ShowXpress™ has a visualizer onboard.

2. Does it all fit together? Before you pick light no. 1 to hang, you have to have the set structure done. Again, go back to your story and ask yourself how do you want it to look. This will guide you in designing the structure or truss layout for the lights. If you are working with a scenic designer, make sure that you two are in complete sync. Most likely you have both been hired by the same client, so work together. Again, you want to stay in control of the lighting portion of what is going on. Make sure that the designer’s story does not crush yours or vice versa. Get the hanging structure approved before you move to the next step. Make sure you have some ideas on lighting positions, but don’t go too far ahead at this point. You are going to be really upset when you think you are all done only to find out that the client has some different ideas.

3. Get the scenery ready. Truss is all done, now what? Before you choose your lighting positions, take scenery into account.
• Plot out the video before you plot out your lights. I include video wall and video projection into scenery and the last thing I want to do is block the video panels with a bunch of lights. This will make for a very cluttered look and it won’t make good visual sense. I try to frame my video with lighting. This way, I have plenty of room to work with both. Video and lighting can play well together and it’s easy to see when someone forces the issue and has overdone one or the other. (I would like to point out how well Roger Waters’ The Wall Live tour looked. Everything was working together.)
• There must be balance. Without a good balance between the two, we have serious issues. To keep the balance, it is important to make sure that all of your scenic elements are positioned in such a way that you can either light or not light them. You don’t want to throw light on something that should be in shadow and the other way around.

4. Plot lights wisely. Keep in mind as you plot, that drawing a light onto a rig takes about a second, but hanging that same light on the rig can take much longer. My first, larger shows had well over 400 fixtures. I have learned how to have less lights, but be much more effective. It all goes back to the truss layout. How does the story start? We are in the middle of it now. How are we progressing? Does it all make sense?
• Every light has to have a purpose. Think of them as characters in your story. There are leads and supporting roles. Movers are typically leads and statics are supporting characters. You don’t need a ton of leads, and your support cast should not upstage them, but are still really important in how they are placed. (If R5 D4 didn’t have a bad motivator, R2 D2 would have stayed with the Jawas. That would have made Star Wars really short.) Put your bigger movers towards the outside of the set.
• Think in layers. Think about how a Legend™ 1200E Spot works with field of wash lights. Design from the back to the front or from the front to the back. Pick one. Don’t try to work in two directions. You can also work from the center out, but that does not work to well for me. Pick a good truss warmer. I like to use COLORado™ 1 TOUR and COLORado™ 1-Tri TOUR lights for truss warmers. COLORdash™ Par Tri is a great option for Euro- and DJ-style truss where the COLORado™ fixtures won’t fit.
• Keep track of weight loads, data runs and power runs while plotting your lights. Also this is a good time to make sure you have the power requirements taken care of.

5. Final approvals. Before you start ordering everything, get the final thumbs up from your client. The best way to do this is to turn on some lights in your rendering and give them an idea of what they are going to see. This is a visual business. You have to show your work.

6. Build up. The key here is to run the show, not to let the show run you. As long as all of your paperwork is in order, this should not be too painful. There are always some bumps and changes, but if you are prepared, this is not a real problem. I have been in situations where I have had to cut lights, cut fabrics, cut truss, and even once or twice, had to cut steel pipe with a hack saw. All of this is not a problem as long as you can adjust to on-site demands. Communicate with the crew. Make sure that everyone knows his jobs and goals throughout the building process. If you are programming make sure you have a comfortable chair, plenty of snacks and a good solid hook-up for coffee.

Start at the beginning with a bare stage and then work your way down. Don’t do a light plot before you have the hang structure, scenic design and most importantly, the approvals on everything in writing. All in all, you should be ready to rock by now. Send us some pics of your shows, you at the controls or of your load-ins. As long as they are all in good taste, they will find a place on our professional blog!

Earls Court, London

– Mike Graham, looking pensive in front of MVP™ video panels

Written by Mike Graham, product manager for CHAUVET® Professional

I’m at PLASA 2011. We are getting the show ready and for the second time, we are right in front of the doors leading to Earls Court 2. For those of you who have been to Earls Court, you know that right before those doors, the floor of the hall tilts up a little. That tilt is where the stages are when the big shows come in.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a big Pink Floyd fan. In fact, I’m writing this blog and listening to “P•U•L•S•E Live at Earls Court”. It actually sends a chill down my spine to think that I am lucky enough to build up a rig and help design and program lights in the exact spot where some of the greatest shows have ever been produced. Not only was PULSE here in 1994, but the original “The Wall” was also staged here in 1980 and again in 1981. It is a mind-blowing thing for me to think about those shows and in my own little way, I can pay tribute to those who have come before me and produced some of the greatest shows ever. Not only has Pink Floyd made history there, but many others including Led Zeppelin, Genesis, The Who, The Rolling Stones,  Queen, Dire Straits, David Bowie, Elton John, U2, and Madonna have played sold-out multi-night shows there. Some of the world’s best lighting designers have held court right there where our booth is.

Pink Floyd at Earls Court, 1973

For some reason, I feel totally at ease working here in this space. I’m not sure if is the history of the room, or if it the intimacy of working in a smaller space than at trade shows like LDI or Pro Light + Sound. I look forward to coming back here year after year and doing our show in the same place. Right here, where the floor tilts.

Today, I heard a terrible rumor (as if there is any other kind). I heard within the next two years, Earls Court Exhibition Centre would face its own demise. I also just read about it online. Looks like this venue will be torn down to make way for 8,000 flats. This is a travesty of the highest proportions.

I plan to make the most of the tilted floor this year.

CHAUVET® and PLSN Student Reporter Search

We’re looking for a student reporter to go toe-to-toe with PLSN Editor Justin Lang at this year’s LDI in Orlando. Read the full story here.

UPDATE. Check out this video from PLSN’s Justin Lang, taken at PLASA 2011. In it he, Berenice Chauvet (VP) and Ford Sellers (Senior Product Manager) demonstrate what they are looking for in a student reporter.

Missouri trip: CHAUVET® (On the) Road Show

Blue Planet  Lighting, based in Hollister, Mo., played host to CHAUVET® Central U.S. Territory/Key Accounts Manager, Jeremy Pace, during their recent road show. Jeremy showcased fixtures such as the 2011 Parnelli Award-nominee for Indispensible Technology, WELL™ wireless uplighting fixtures, a member of Legend™ Series, our flagship moving yoke for the professional line, Legend™ 300E Spot, one of the newer members to the COLORado™ line, COLORado™ Range, and the variable white member from the SlimPAR™ Pro series, SlimPAR™ Pro VW. A big thank you to Blue Planet’s Mike Gormley for sharing these photographs.

Jeremy Pace in action, navigating the Legend™ 300E Spot.

Legend™ 300E Spot illuminated.

Legend™ 300E Spot fixture detail.

COLORado™ Range illuminated.

WELL™ fixture detail.

SlimPAR™ Pro VW, which is only 2.5" inches thick.

 

Mexico trip: TV Azteca

Written by Mike Graham, product manager for CHAUVET® Professional

I was in Mexico for the day to show our Legend™ Series to TV Azteca. I trained them on three fixtures from this series: Legend™ 1200E Wash, Legend™ 1200E Spot and Legend™ 300E Beam. Take a look at some of the behind-the-scenes shots Stéphane Gressier, global sales director for CHAUVET®,  took below.

Me between two Legend™ roadcases.

On set.

On set. (I'm at the end of the Legend™ line.)

TV Azteca exterior shot.

Seriously ?!?

– Mike Graham, looking pensive in front of MVP™ video panels

Written by Mike Graham, product manager for CHAUVET® Professional

Frustration can come in many different forms. For me, it usually comes in the form of an airport. I write about travel quite a bit as, well, I travel a lot. In fact, I am hitting my gold level with American Airlines on this very trip—a quick, one-day trip to Mexico—while I write this blog. We are working on a job with a television station and I have to do a little training, which is something I rather enjoy. Unlike the airport.

I found myself standing in line for an hour before finally getting to the ticket stand. When I get there, the line is already about 100 yards long. Within minutes, the line behind me is another 25 yards, easy. When we finally get to a point where I can see, I discover there are only about three stations open for international travel. I understand the need for cost-cutting measures, but seriously, is there a need to make people stand in line for that long?

On top of the frustrating wait, there are two people with dogs in line as well. I believe there is a law that says only service dogs are allowed to be out of their cage inside of an airport. If not, there should be.  These were not small dogs. They were full size mutts. I have no problem with dogs. I actually really like dogs. However, they do not belong inside of an airport in a line that is an hour long. I think they should be able to go to a special line and processed separately from everyone else. OK, enough about the dogs.

My other big frustration is travelers who are not prepared. To me, it is common knowledge—and a really good idea—to come to the airport at least two to two and a half hours before an international flight. This is so you can stand in a very long line for at least an hour and listen to the dogs bark.

Apparently, not everyone has gotten that memo. If I had to guess, I would say I saw at least 30 people who were panic stricken as they realized that if they were not bumped ahead in line, they were going to miss their flight. Why is this my problem? Why do I now have to be bumped back in line by all of the people who do not have watches, cannot tell time, or have ignored the booking instructions given on the website when they booked their ticket? While I know that suffering builds character, I think in this case, someone else should have been suffering. So, then I notice while several people were put ahead of me in the line, several more behind me were given a special “I can’t tell time, but now I get rewarded” ticket counter of their very own. Come on! Seriously? How does that work?

I am done with ticketing. Since I was properly prepared with my travel documents and passport at-the-ready, I was done at the counter in just a few minutes. Now, it is off to TSA screening. I feel a sense of dread come over me as I realize that I am behind a husband and wife team who has put away all of their tickets and ID cards before coming to the TSA agent that asks you for your tickets and ID cards for verification. Now the fun begins. The woman has put all of their documents back into their carry-on. Now the bag is on the ground, opened up and stuff dumped on the floor while she looks for their documents, all while maintaining a full-on argument with her husband about why she put it away in the first place.  All I can think is “Dude, I really hope this is not your honeymoon.” By now, the line behind us is totally backlogged, but on the bright side, it has given time for the X-Ray machines to open up a little.

Finally, I am at the gate, coffee and pastry in hand. It’s all good from here, right?  WRONG!  Some knucklehead has either gone out the wrong door or pulled a fire alarm. Now there are more strobes going off than a haunted house with alarms loud enough to make a sound engineer at a rock show jealous. Combined with all of this is an announcement stating the fire department were alerted and is checking out the validity of the alarm.

In my head, I am screaming “OH, COME ON MAN!!! Seriously!!” This is NOT what I want to hear at 6:00 a.m. in the morning! The sun is not even up yet, why am I stuck inside this torturous hell? Between the strobes and the siren, I can only imagine how happy those people with the dogs must be.

As always, before every flight I take, I called my wife and son. When my wife asked me how the airport was, all I could say was “Typical.”

LD Profile: Camron Ware

Six questions with Camron Ware
Founder of Visual Worshiper, VJ, Light and Projection Designer

1. How did you get into this field?
Started at a church actually where we had no budget and I had to get resourceful and creative with lighting and environment design.  I would also travel and do one-off show where I learned the touring industry and now I have my own company that provides lighting and environment design.

2. What do you think is the next big thing in the lighting industry?
Brighter LEDs and more of them and the continual blurring between lighting and video. While those might be the obvious answers, it’s the reality.  More efficient light and lamps that do more for less money.

3. Do you have a favorite fixture (and why)?
I would have to say my 10,000 watt fresnel out of an old Disney studio – it’s amazing what you can do with one light.

4. What has been your favorite design/project?
Last year I lit Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat for a local private school that puts on big, quality productions.  It was in the round and had about 300 students in the cast and crew.  Aside from 96 ETC PARs, 40 moving lights and about 100 LED fixtures, my favorite piece was the LED light-up coat I built for Joseph to wear during the final bow.  [Video below.]

5. What was the biggest unforeseen obstacle that you’ve faced in one of your designs, and how did you overcome it?
It’s less about technical obstacles and more about lack of budget or passion from the people in charge.  Getting people to realize the power and dynamics of lighting can be tough when following creative dreams.

6. Complete this thought: A show without light is like…just another day listening to the radio.

Read Camron’s review of the COLORado™ Batten 144 Tour linear wash light here.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat video: