Lighting Novice

[mwoke]

As the title suggests, I'm a lighting novice. However I like the technical side of things and am quite into the sound side of things.

 

I am in a band, and at present we don't have any lighting or anything to add a bit of atmosphere to our gigs. Could anyone advise on what sort of basic set up we could get just to add a bit of interest to things? I play keyboards so am not at the front, I could therefore control the lighting if needed, bearing in mind I hardly know anything at the moment, but would love to learn (oh and also I do the sound for some amdram stuff, so would be useful if it could be used for that aswell). Re cost, at the moment it's only an idea, so I'm just trying to get some idea of how much it would cost, but ideally as cheap (but good good quality) as possible.

 

Most of you will proabably cringe when you read this, but like I said I hardly know anything about lighting but would like to learn, mainly by playing with actual equipment myself.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Mark

[ryandell]

Hi Mark,

 

Gareth has made an Extensive Lighting FAQ you will find HERE this holds information about how to go about light a gig and some idea of what to buy.

 

HERE, HERE and HERE Are all threads that cover what you might need to know, You might want to read these first,

 

Cheers

 

Ryan

[gnomatron]

We all want stuff as cheap but as good as possible Do you have an actual budget in mind?

 

What size of gigs are you playing? i.e. pub back rooms? small clubs? stadiums?

[mwoke]

We all want stuff as cheap but as good as possible Do you have an actual budget in mind?

 

What size of gigs are you playing? i.e. pub back rooms? small clubs? stadiums?

 

No to be honest, like I said it's only an idea at the moment. Not masses of money though. How far would say a grand go? Is that too little to get started or a lot?

 

It's generally village hall sized gigs. So reasonable enough but not overly huge.

[The Boogie Man]

A grand. It depends on the idea. If your thinking big and brand new then no it wont go far. If it is for just a basic rig and second hand stuff it could go a long way. If you want just a bit of atmos, then a simple pair of stands with 4 300watt par 56 on each, a simple foot controller and maybe a hazer/smoke machine will do the job fine and will also just about run happily from a single 13amp plug. Buy in bits and bobs from ebay and you'll have change from your grand. As a new ebay/thomman type package it should just about cover it with a grand. If you want a desk you'll have to go second hand.

[SoLiEn]

This would suit you:

BANDPACK

Party or Band lighting package includes:

 

1

Stomper foot-operated 4 channel light controller.

 

8

300W Par56 black par cans

 

2

Standard lighting stands. Maximum height 2.37m

 

2

48mm 1.5m T-bar. 4x15A sockets. Bulgin socket inlet

 

2

10m 4 circuit Bulgin - Bulgin extension lead

 

that is a quote from the Kave website ( www.kave.co.uk)

 

give them a buzz or email them regarding price to buy, this and something like a small smoke machine would be perfect if your only playing halls and pubs etc. plus its quick and easy to assemble meaning it takes the hassle out of if.

[charl.ie]

Also have a look at this, from onstagelighting.co.uk The blog's written by a BR member, and is extremely helpful for the novice :unsure:

 

As you're playing in village hall style settings, the chances of them having a decent amount of power is slim, so LED may well be the way to go. Getting LEDs would also have the advantage of not needing dimmers.

LED Par56's come in at £40 + VAT from http://usedlighting.co.uk/, which isn't bad. You could get some stands, or mount them on the floor. The only other thing you would need is some DMX cable (which can be made cheaply from CAT5 cable and XLR plugs/sockets) and some sort of control.

 

Smoke machines/hazers are also a great way to add atmosphere, and can be fairly cheap.