UV Lamps

[gav8298]

I'm looking into hiring some UV light for use in a dance show I'm managing.

 

I've never used it before and am wondering about any experience you peeps have had with it- I'm looking to light a peice where the dancers are all in black except for white gloves. Do you reckon I'll be able to acheive the effect of not being able to see the rest of their bodies by using just UV in a blackout?

 

Any advice is as always much appreciated.

(I hope to get to the stage when I'm able to hand it out instead of ask for it all the time- bear with me!)

 

Gav

[Ynot]

Gav

 

There is, I'm sure, a fair bit of discussion in past posts (have a search of the BR or try our Wiki), but the very basic things to consider are:

 

Have as total a blackout as you can manage, with all off-stage light sources switched off or guarded against spill onto stage.

Hire (or buy) a small UV source, and experiment in the dark with the materials you're planning to use. NOT all white material will fluoresce under UV, for example, and some coloured fabrics will appear brighter than many whites.

Washing fabrics in certain washing powders will increase the fluorescence considerably - Daz is one trade name as I recall that will do this.

Choreographing dance routines in UV is trickier than many inexperiences dance teachers realise. In my opinion, too much twirling about with maybe 2D UV aspects can spoil a good routine, meaning that half the time the bit that you want to see is hidden as they turn.

That said, there is a lot that can be done by intentionally hiding the UV elements from the audience where appropriate. A simple example I've seen done very well is a line of dancers with UV masks. One by one in time to the music they turned around, thus blacking out their face. Then they turned back one by one. Then they turned about in groups - guess you can see where I'm going with that :D

 

As for sources of UV, you really have just two - Fluorescenet UV tubes (used in basic domestic fittings) or UV cannons. Each has their own issues (cannons takes minutes to warm up, whilst fluoro's flicker when turned on) and what will suit you depends on your circumstances.

 

Whatever happens, NEITHER option can be dimmed from a standard dimmer (though dimmers with a fluoro dimmer curve can be used to some effect)

[Wuddy]

Hi Gav,

 

The best thing to do if you have the time and finances is to go to Prague and visit some of the Black light theatres for ideas on UV dance routines, failing that, search <Prague Black light theatre> on You-Tube, there are a few videos there.

[gav8298]

wow those vids of the black light theatre are pretty sweet! it's a nice effect for sure...

 

Interesting that they can't be dimmed. I think I would want to be able to control them via the desk, but as I'm using old analogue controllers I'm guessing I really wouldn't be able to do that?

 

would they work best as floor or ceiling mounted? I'm guessing their throw is similar to that of floods?

 

yet again, this is at the demand of a pair of quirky dance teachers, the same that wanted the dry ice. my personal opinion is that we should do a minimal set design (one that matches our aged and minimal lighting infrastructure) and really pick off the dancers well. we had stopgap down recently who lit the show with only 12 rigged and 6 side lamps and it looked spectacular...

[niall]

Interesting that they can't be dimmed. I think I would want to be able to control them via the desk, but as I'm using old analogue controllers I'm guessing I really wouldn't be able to do that?

 

If you know how to, you could use a dimmer channel to turn on a relay which is fed from a fixed supply(13A/16A) to the UV, but that's all down to your experience/competence. Is there anything like that on the market?

[cedd]

I've just lit a very similair piece to this myself. Very low budget but worked extremely well.

 

One thing the company involved forgot about is that the drapes and cyc must be black or dark (we managed with red in the end). The theatre were none the wiser when the venue was booked (neither was I) and so a white cyc was hung. When we hit the UV's it lit up the whole stage better than a row of 1000w floods!

 

As our blacklight scene came directly after the inteval we just switched the tubes straight on. We used one of those remote control plug boards that come with a wireless remote that lived in the lighting box. It was then simply a button press for on and again for off. Did the job remarkably well.

 

We got away with a 3ft tube per side to light our small community theare stage.

 

Ideas that worked well (remember this was a scout and guide gang show - lots of kids);

 

Skipping ropes - as long as you pick your colours carefully these look really well

 

Hoops (as in the twizzle around your hips ones)

 

white gaffa around ankles, wrists, and wherever else you fancy.

 

White pom-poms.

 

 

Have fun!

[paulears]

May UV fittings are happy to run off the output of a dimmer - it's just that they don't respond to the dimming. Some dimmers don't them, however - but usually running a spare lantern as a kind of ghost load, makes even finicky dimmers behave. Shove the fader up, they work - pull it down, they go out. My fluorescent ones work fine on our ancient Strand dimmers.

 

The trouble is, what's the point? For a few moments the moving hands look clever, but there's a limit what can be done. Would bore me silly! That, however, is because I always get UV scenes thrust upon me, and I suspect I've just got immune!

[Ynot]

Fluoros will give a general flood, cannons are quite a bit more directional.

Fluoros are also MUCH cheaper!

 

Something else to watch is what your set is going to be. It doesn't HAVE to be all black, as in a blackout you shouldn't see most dark colours. But be VERY careful iof any light colours. It's amazing what WILL fluoresce just when you don't want it to!!

[DaveP]

whilst fluoro's flicker when turned on

 

Thats caused by the starter, but electronic ballasts (which by a stroke of luck dont have a starter) sort out that problem

[Andrew Edwards]

On the subject of what will and will not fluoresce...

 

One thing I have consistenly found that does not fluoresce under UV regardless of power is photo-luminescent material. All that glow in the dark stuff just doesn't work. Obvious really after thinking about it as the material charges under UV and therefore needs to 'absorb' it.

 

My 2p.

[Jivemaster]

UV lamps are now available in compact fluorscent also ( see terralec.co.uk amongst other sites). Often these are for disco use and there is a PAR like can available from some places too. This helps with longevity in mobile and touring.

[Modge]

Worth thinking of the coverage, question you have to ask your self is: if I was doing this with white light would I get a decent wash. If the answer is no (say because you're using one UV canon off to one side) then play around until that is the case. Even UV canon's are far from directional: mostly the light goes forward but they're definitely floods. UV shadows are much like real shadows, interesting if you put them there on purpose but horrible if not.

 

Another key point is indeed getting the black actually black: UV sources can glow pretty brightly but not (generally) so brightly you can't see merely dark things near them.

[GridGirl]

The dancers may also need head coverings - skin, eyes and teeth can sometimes pick up UV. Our panto UV scene blacks always include black "beekeeper" masks - you put black gauze for the eye holes so the dancers can see but don't get lit up.