Tuesday, August 14, 2012

What is the best lighting fixture for the job?


Just like any other profession, there is a wrong way and a right way of achieving the end goal.  In our case, as trained lighting professionals, part of getting to our (or more importantly, our client's) end goal is having the knowledge to choose the correct fixture for the job.  There are several other elements that also contribute to making the "wow-factor", such as fixture placement & color palettes.  However, this blog entry will focus on why having the knowledge to choose the correct lighting fixture is the most important first step for the expected end result.

First, we will discuss automated lighting fixtures.  We could go on and on and on about this subject for days, but will try to keep it simple & brief.  Here is the bottom line, there are so many different types of moving lights out on the market today - the choices are endless.  Fixtures with stock colors vs a color mixing system, static gobos vs rotating gobos, fixed vs variable lensing and the reputation of a fixture's optics can be extremely overwhelming.  We have to be honest and say that anyone can read a spec sheet of a moving light fixture, but nothing but real world lighting experience is useful in making the correct decision when specifying the correct mover for the job.  One real quick example...the Elation Platinum series of moving lights use the exact same lamp as the Clay Paky Sharpy moving light.  So these fixtures must be comparable with each other?  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The video below shows the Elation Platinum series fixture at work in a small venue for a wedding reception.




This next video shows the Clay Paky Sharpy fixture at work.  These fixtures, with the same lamp as the Elation but different optics, are so bright and fast that they need to be specified for a very specific purpose in a much larger venue.  The Sharpy lighting fixtures can be seen on the circle and the stage floor at the 2 second & 15 second mark of the video below.




Next, we will talk about LED fixtures.  A couple of months ago, we wrote a blog entry about LED vs incandescent lighting fixtures.  Many factors go into deciding on when to use one over the other.  To use an LED fixture because it's "better" and "newer" is merely a sales pitch, and should have no basis in the final design.  There are senario's for all types of different lighting fixtures.  Knowing what the best answer for both the budget and the final result is what sets a lighting professional apart from the rest.  We have some photos to help us explain.  The photo below is of LED fixtures trying to uplight a venue.  The beam spread on this particular fixture is the wrong choice to wash a wall, which is what the client wanted.  This is a strong example of the incorrect lighting fixture being specified to achieve the end result.





The client then called Solus Lighting LTD to help enhance what was already done to get closer to the desired look of the space.  We used incandescent lighting fixtures to supplement the LED fixtures to achieve a truer wall wash.  The incandescent fixtures not only have a much wider spread than these particular LED fixtures, the client did not want any color change through out the evening so there was no need for the extra cost of an LED fixture.





Like we said before, this blog entry could go on for days.  We just wanted to give a few examples of how important it is to hire the correct people for the correct aspect of a job.  So when it comes time to light a wedding reception, gala, fundraiser, private party or corporate special event, who ya gonna call...the lighting professionals at Solus Lighting LTD!

Thursday, August 02, 2012

Solus Lighting SCOREs!

Greetings from sunny, hot & humid Orlando, Florida!  A couple of weeks ago we told you to stay tuned for some highlights from what we have been up to in July 2012...wait no more!  Although, this blog entry will not speak of only special event lighting in Cleveland, Ohio.  In this blog entry we are showcasing the Cleveland chapter of SCORE, and how important is has been to Solus Lighting LTD as well as how they can help all small businesses.

SCORE is all about helping small businesses succeed by offering former business counselors to aid in the review of their business plan, stimulate business growth and ensure long-term stability.  The counselors we spoke to before opening were extremely helpful, to assist us set out on our path to starting Solus Lighting LTD.  Everything from helping us to accurately project cash flow, to helping us streamline our business plan, to helping us understand what the banks we were going to talk with was expecting from us - SCORE was there every step of the way.  The repetitive and key word in that last statement... helping.  It's what SCORE does, and it is what they do well.

When it came time for the Cleveland chapter of SCORE to hold it's annual awards luncheon, they called us to help them.  They called us & asked if our Co-Owner and Lead Designer, Maureen E Patterson, would be their keynote speaker.  We were more than happy to be able to return the favor of help for them.  We have pulled some clips from Maureen's speech that reflex how SCORE helped us launch & since then grow.