[ELECTRON] (no subject)

[Clive Mitchell]

The slightly dubious (and expensive) idea of filling a large perspex
box with dry ice and then suspending it above peoples heads aside....
(Try it in a small scale first.....)

You could use a basic programmable lighting desk with a number of
lights with your chosen sky colours.  These could be as simple as
Par-cans or alternatively some LED wash lights.  In the case of the
par cans you could use a selection of blues, yellows and open white to
emulate various sky states, keeping in mind that in the altered
reality of film, television and stage moonlight is actually perceived
as deep blue light.  With the LED lights you can just mix colours
within the same fixture.  The Par-cans will require quite a lot of
power and a dimmer to control them.

If there is any significant level of external lighting or daylight
then it will be hard to achieve a decent lighting level, but indoors
where you have complete control of the ambient light it will be
easier.

Aside from the normal cryogenic hazard associated with dry ice, you
also have to consider the level of carbon dioxide liberated in an
indoor situation.  Asphyxiating your audience is generally considered
bad practice.  When used to create rolling fog dry ice is normally
submerged in boiling water and the resultant vapour ducted to a stage.
 Just dumping some in a plastic tank will result in gentle wisps of
"smoke" from the blocks as they gradually disappear.

Is dry ice really what you want to use?  You can get low lying fog
machines that chill their fog output so it rolls around like clouds.
No dry ice storage issues and a very predictable output.



On 20 September 2010 22:08, Anna Rhodes <annarhodes244 at hotmail.com> wrote:
> I have designed a stage for an exhibition/ festival to take place in October
> in Edinburgh.  Basically it will be made up of a large 4m x 3m x 0.5m clear
> perspex or tarpaulin box suspended above the performers heads.  It will be
> filled with dry ice and lit to resemble sky.
>
> The lighting is something I'm struggling with.  I've been considering trying
> to make some kind of motorised, rotating ring of filters so that the
> lighting of the stage will change over a period of time.  Or maybe the bulb
> would move along a strip of filters so that the transition from colour to
> colour is smoother???  I'll also need a few strong lights to light the box
> fairly evenly.  The idea for the stage is that the lighting changes as the
> colour of the sky would over a period of 24 hours but condensed to 1 hour.
> My knowledge of this kind of technical stuff is very basic so any help would
> be fantastic.



-- 
Clive Mitchell.

http://www.bigclive.com