Goochie Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 Hi Guys, I was just wondering what type of Haze / Smoke machines are used in TV Studio's?You very rarely see the haze in the atmosphere until the ligthts go on, moving heads etc, do they use a special fluid or standard haze? What type of machines? The Missus made me sit thru a recording of 'Strictly' the other night (have yet to forgive her!) but I was, having never seen it before, very impressed with the lighting they used. Seemed to be LED moving heads and what I think were clay moving heads too, not sure, but try as I might I never saw any haze 'drifting thru' (hope you know what I mean by that) all together I thought it all looked great.Was just wondering how they achieve such good lighting effects with what seemed like so little haze? Cheers guysGoochie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Bleasdale Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 Funnily enough the question you ask was answer for me some time ago by Strictlys Programmer (one of). Haze in a TV studio or any broadcast emviroment in which it's required is the normal equipment we expect to see anywhere. It's simply used quite little and strategically because the camera picks up on it easily. Yea strictly has alot of LED... Clay Paky Alpha Beam 300s on the floor and in the upper audience somewhere around 20/30. VL 2500s and larger Alphas above the floor and stage. Plus VL 1000s mixed in used by the second operator (who does the generic lighting) There is also some media in there, 2 Green hippo HDs last tome I checked doing the floor and other projection stuff. Control for the lot is off 2 Vector green systems run seperately and the ML/Media/LED desk also has a remote focus & backup desk. A little stray off topic but I think relevant nonetheless. So in conclusion, as with all TV - it's all about the camera! Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Jay Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 If I remember rightly, this was asked in an X-Factor thread years ago, cant find it now but, was it not said it was a liquid based solution that the cameras icked up on but not the naked eye? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Bleasdale Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 Actually when your in the studio you can see it moving through the air etc. It's usually slightly more prominent in person. Plus because of TV shows using multiple cameras and angles (especially on SCD) it's much harder to get a fix on it at home. Even when you know where the hazers are it's still sometimes illusive! Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndrewGrant Posted November 2, 2011 Share Posted November 2, 2011 Lots of MDG Atmospheres in use. Only really ever seen CO2 machines in studios. Andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rossmck Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 The BBC used to use Cirro Mist oil-based hazers a lot too, not sure if they're as popular now if they've moved to the MDG Atmospheres. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shez Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 If I remember rightly, this was asked in an X-Factor thread years agoThis one? The posts from Dave Hallett are the ones of particular interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I think it's rather the case that good hazers can't be seen until the light hits them, and bad ones (like mine) can. Perhaps we should have an extra category of machine for 'hazy smoke' which is certainly what comes out of mine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 It's all to do with the size of the particle. Regular smoke machines produce fog particles which can be anywhere up to 10 microns in size, whereas 'proper' hazers like the MDG machines produce much smaller particles (somewhere around 0.3 to 0.5 microns, if I remember correctly). This has two benefits - firstly, the hang time of the haze in the air is significantly longer, and also it's less visible in 'unlit' conditions (i.e. without concentrated beams of light shining through it). Basically, the better your hazer, the smaller your particles will be! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashley R Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 I think it's rather the case that good hazers can't be seen until the light hits them, and bad ones (like mine) can. Perhaps we should have an extra category of machine for 'hazy smoke' which is certainly what comes out of mine! Just wondering Paul, which Hazer do you have? My HZ-400, does have quite a visible output, but with the aid of a extra fan becomes much finer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulears Posted November 3, 2011 Share Posted November 3, 2011 http://www.hqpower.eu/images/products/4/small/vdp600hz.jpgVDP600 hazerWhich was very cheap.It looks very much likehttp://www.lemaitre.co.uk/products/images/Neutron%20XS%20Hazer.jpgbut produces very light smoke, that can be seen puffing through the air, and sinks really quickly - and can use the container of fluid up in just a few hours going full tilt to try to get enough haze in the air to reach across the stage. It never managed it, even with a big fan - just embarrassingly large clouds of smoke, using the supplied light haze fluid. A neutron, it's not! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electrotec lighting Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 Most studios use DF50 oilcrackers. It's a oil based smoke. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csg Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 most studios have now moved to MGC atmosphere units in my experience - also oil based, but uses a gas bottle and a heating block, so is both near silent and totally residue free - two very big advantages in a studio setting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timmeh2 Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 ... totally residue free... Oh no, no it isn't. I've worked with Atmospheres on cruisers as the particle size wouldn't interfere with the ship's fire detection system. Didn't stop it leaving a nice film over my movers internals. Still, it's a lot better than DF50s which just fill your fixtures with fluid. All the bestTimmeh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
csg Posted November 12, 2011 Share Posted November 12, 2011 first ive heard of an MGC do that - as you sure the block was running at the right temperature? I have 2 here, and have never had any deposition, even after a machine and moving lights being operated together on 2 month hires Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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