Pennies From Heaven
"C" shaped clip that snaps on to your 2" truss rail and protects it from the angry jaws of your C clamp. Simple, and cheap. Not cheap enough, you say? Well, what if it cost only a penny? Here's the super bargain route (we do this MOST of the time.  ): Put a penny (yes, a penny) between the C clamp bolt and the truss. The penny is pretty trashed afterward, but hey, you'll use it again and again, and it was previously making a lot of noise rattling around in your glove box anyway. And even if you do use it only once, it cost you how much? A penny!: These days, everyone has zillions of dollars invested in miles of beautiful, shining aluminum truss. I see so much of it come through with nasty clamp dents and scratches, it amazes me that more people don't do this: C clips! what are they? a simple molded plastic. 

Better Console Labeling
Have you been labeling your console with expensive white electrical tape and a sharpie, then squinting to read the labels during the show? Try this: Black electrical tape and a fine point white paint pen.  the tape is less then one-tenth the cost of the white, and though the pens are a little more expensive, they last longer and stay sharp longer. More important though, is that most people find these labels easier to read than traditional black on white. One more thing: even if you insist on "black on white" labeling, you should NEVER use masking tape on your console: It gums up and won't completely peel off, while PVC or plastic tapes peel off nicely and don't leave a residue.

Tape Glue and Other Messes
Now after someone goops up your console with masking tape or your cable with duct tape, what do you do? Well there are some terrific products available for cleaning those nasty messes. Our favorites: HI Equipment and Cable Cleaner (or "OJ" as we call it because it smells like orange juice concentrate) is a petroleum based product that does just what it says. Soak cable in it (not the connectors!) for that really old glue residue. Also Goof-Off, a hardware store product used to clean graffiti off walls. This stuff will clean just about anything you want it to...and some things you don't. Be cautious as it has a tendency to take off things like paint and decals too. When cleaning sensitive equipment like your console top, be very careful not to get any inside the unit. Remember that both of these products are heavy duty industrial cleaners, so be sure to read all the instructions and follow all of the safety warnings.

Color of the Week Award
Our old Gel of the Week (for about a year) was Lee 134.  Great for a dirty, dusty, natural amber look. This year's Gel of the Week (did you catch that?) is not so specific. We've really gotten hooked on the new "gels between the gels." You can find these in the Roscolux 300 series, and the Lee 000 and 300 series. Both companies are really coming out with some stunning new colors that we've all spent years trying to create by color mixing and gel stacking. We just couldn't pick one to recommend above all the others. So the real moral of the story is that if your swatch books are out of date, you're missing out on some really fantastic new colors!

Color Code your Cable, your Cans and your Mother
Color code your mother? Sure, if she's hard to identify.  If we own it, you can bet we have a color code system for it.   Colored vinyl electrical tape is our friend! It is inexpensive and comes in at least 10 different colors. A stripe around the yoke of a fixture tells us what kind of lamp is in it. (no more opening it up to check) Various stripes on a cable jacket near each connector tell us the length of the cable (no more guesswork or searching for the tiny numeric length marker most people use). A stripe around an XLR connector tells us how many pins it has (3, 4, 5, and 7 all look the same from the outside!).  the list goes on and on.

While we generally stick with electrical tape (get it?), on some items paint is more appropriate. The real advantage of the bright colors is that it allows easy identification even from a distance, or in those big messy heaps that we NEVER make! Here's our system for cable lengths to get you started.  Each color represents a basic length: Brown=5', Orange=10', Yellow=25', Red=50', Blue=100'. Use combinations of these colors to indicate other lengths. We put the stripes about 6" from each connector. The important thing is to be consistent and thorough and you won't have to do it again for a long time.

Break up on a Tight Budget
Break up gobo on a budget: Rather than a manufactured pattern, try a pie tin or disposable cookie sheet. It should be thin enough to cut with a pair of scissors but heavy enough to last in a 1k ellipsoidal for hours rather than minutes. First, cut the tin to the size of your pattern holder, then all you need to do is to drill or punch holes in the projection area. Some crafty (and patient) souls even etch out more complex designs using heavy cutting blades. Of course, these homemade gobos most often will not last for more than one performance, but will work great in a pinch.

Brand New Gobo and No Place to Put It
If you don't have pattern holders for your nifty homemade gobos (or factory patterns), you can get by in a pinch by using heat resistant, glass/cloth electrical tape: Simply open up the fixture and tape your pattern to the outside shutter assembly ring (not the shutters), a trick that will also work in Lekos with no pattern slot. Also remember that the image gets inverted AFTER it passes through the pattern, so you can avoid a lot of nasty burns by remembering to install all patterns UPSIDE-DOWN and BACKWARDS!

No Hassle Fire Effects
Stop trouncing your bump buttons to produce these effects convincingly.  there are a few excellent, inexpensive products out there that are specifically designed to do this. Our favorite is the GAM SPE-5 "Flickermaster," a compact little unit with several settings each for such things as fire, television, candlelight, and gaslight. You plug your lights into it and just adjust the settings until you're happy, then all you have to do is turn it on each time you need it! The most effective angle for this is from the footlight position, the soft shadows this will create on the set are very convincing. You can also use it with 3" fresnels or other small lamps mounted inside a fireplace unit. A specialized unit such as this will even help modulate the fall and rise so you don't get a strobing fire effect.

An even cheaper way to go is to use any standard chase controller like a Deluxe Ropelight Controller. These create several different chase patterns, but they are all very even and rhythmic.  It takes some work to get these to not look like disco fires, but it is possible. Try using many small lamps and several different shades of amber, orange, and light red. For this application, we recommend choosing lamps very carefully: since the chase controller doesn't help modulate the fall and rise, use only lamps with a slow to moderate response time, or you're back in strobe land.

OR for a really low budget:  If all you need is a practical in the fireplace, get several strands of single color Christmas lights (red, orange, white, yellow.  whatever) and put a flasher bulb in each. Tangle them all up and put them in the set piece so that the actual lights CANNOT be seen (behind a grate or log unit). This effect will only register in the fireplace, not on the actors faces, but sometimes that's really all you need. Remember that most flashing Christmas lights take about 20 seconds to start flashing, so plan for a warm-up time before the curtain goes up.

A Different Kind of Backstage Light
Backstage lights...gotta have 'em, and they're always a pain! Tired of putting blue gel on every spare lamp in the building for backstage lights? Try Christmas lights. Just string them along where you need them. They are great for guiding actors toward or away from things too. Use all blue strands for those places where you're worried about the regular work lights being too bright and bleeding onto stage. For those super big budget shows, you could even use rope lights, if something a little more durable is what your after.

Bench Focus those Lekos
Some users bench their lekos after every hang. If you don't already have some sort of routine for this, you should.  You will be amazed at the difference in light output and beam or projection consistency and controllability. Every owner's manual and lighting textbook can explain the process, so we won't go into it here, but here is one tip: Have a piece of galvanized sheet metal (at least 30 gauge) cut to the size of your gel frame, but with only a 1/4" hole in the exact center of the frame. When bench focusing, slide this into the gel frame clips of the fixture and point the fixture at a flat white surface about 3 to 5 feet away. You will see (once you focus the barrel) a projected image of the lamp, filament, and reflector. You can now use standard bench focus technique to center the lamp filament. Be warned though: Do not leave the lamp lit for more than a couple of minutes at a time, as the plate will get extremely hot. In fact, I have seen heat tape attached to the top of the plate so that the plate can be handled after use.

Old Lighting Systems, Low Budget - Retrofit!
Are you working on an archaic lighting system, but can't afford to upgrade all at once? Consider quartz retrofits: this can work for many old fresnels, lekos, followspots, scoops, etc.  just ask us and we'll tell you whether or not you can upgrade to a brighter, longer lasting, often lower wattage lamp and breathe new life into that old gear.

Sharper Pattern Projections - Got a Donut?
For sharper leko pattern projections, use a donut! No, not the glazed or maple frosted variety, but instead a "hilation blocking device." Just slip it in the gel frame, and away goes the "halo", leaving you a sharp image. The donut is a solid, optically opaque object (sheet metal and heavy cardboard work great) cut to the same size as your gel frame, except that the hole in the center is only 3 to 4" in diameter (depending on the type of fixture). What it does is block the unused, out-of-focus portions of the light beam that muddy up the projected image, allowing only the in-focus portion of the light to come through (Have you ever noticed how small and centrally located the burn spots on your Leko gels are? This is the part of the beam that does all the work). You will lose a tiny percentage of overall candlepower, but your image is so much sharper that you won't miss the the minimal lost brightness. 

Stunning Lightning Effects
Lightning without strobes? Lay your hands on some very fast filaments, like the Ushio PAR 16 JDR E26 100w lamps.  these are extremely fast to come on (rise time) and off (fall time), and while not as convincing as strobe lights, cost a lot less and can do a lot more when not recreating a lightning wash. They fit any standard medium screw-in socket (there is an E17 version for intermediate or "candelabra" screw sockets) and were especially designed to work in Kupo PAR 16 fixtures (use E17 base) or Tomcat, Thomas, and ProCan PAR20's... OR... If you still like your strobe lightning but are tired of trying to hang some bulky strobe-in-a-box and use a separate controller, try a Strobe Cannon, by Diversitronics. It's a strobe light that goes into Par64 can! They are available in both analog and digital format, so you can run them with almost any console. Best of all you can easily put a gel in them.  Think of the possibilities! They also come in a version that fits in most Lekos, for projection lightning bolt patterns. See WHITER WHITES for a lightning color tip.

Brightest Light from the Smallest Package
Small package, big result.  There is without question no better, economically sound way to get clean, crisp footcandles (and a lot of them!) out of such a tiny package than with the PAR 16 and PAR 20-120v fixtures being produced these days (see tip above). Personally, I prefer the PAR 20 for its added sturdiness and standard socket; this way the fixture as well as the lamp do not become "one-trick ponies." These units work well with the mini C clamps and floor bases commonly used on 3" fresnels. They can also be gaff taped or stage screwed in place on sets and flats, even props. They take gel frames, barndoors, and are only about 7" by 3.5"! One warning.  since these fixtures put out a lot of light, they also burn fairly hot, so some care is necessary to keep them protected from heat sensitive objects. I have used these lights hundreds of times for everything from wall and set grazers to plant uplights to product reveal specials. I have even seen them used in small clubs for bands and dance floors, in the living rooms of the rich and famous as artwork illumination, and too many other uses to mention. The best part? They are very inexpensive, and the lamps are rated at 2000 hours. Remember, "versatility" is the buzzword, and "lots of bang for the buck" is the result.

Higher Wattage does not Mean Brighter Light
With all of the advancements being made in theatrical crafts these days, not only do we all have to learn new ways of doing things, but sometimes even new ways of thinking about the things we do. On the lighting end, many people are confused by all the new lamps on the market. As you learn about these new lamps, don't be fooled by the strange wattages you see. For instance, the HX600 lamp is a 575w replacement for an EHD, EHG, or FEL. So why would you want to replace your nice bright 1000w FEL's with 575w lamps? Well, for one thing they're brighter...really, they are...for another you can put 4 of them on a 2.4K dimmer with 100w to spare for safety's sake. They also put off less heat and will go easier on your gel and gobos.

There is also a long life version, the HX601 that has a lower color temperature, but is rated for 1500 hours! And if you are looking for a spotlight, you might be surprised to learn that even though you can still buy a 1500w incandescent spotlight, a 1000w quartz spotlight is almost twice as bright! And a 360w enclosed arc spotlight is almost twice again as bright as the 1k quartz! The secret is in the efficiency of the filament. The smaller the point of actual light emission, the more optically efficient the lamp will be. A tiny pinpoint of light from an enclosed arc lamp can easily translate to many times the brightness of a large conventional filament lamp. Never again judge a lamp by the wattage in the catalog. Look at the other information (called "Photometrics") like lumens, lumens per watt, and color temperature. And when in doubt, ask the experts at Hollywood Lights!

Color and Color Temperature
Have you ever tried to pick gel colors outside? Or by looking out a window? If so, I bet you were in for a shock! Daylight has a much higher color temperature than the incandescent fixtures used in lighting. What that means in practical terms is that none of your colors looked like the ones you picked. Sunlight renders colors with much more blue than incandescent fixtures, which tend to yellow the colors. So be sure to pick colors using a light source with an equivalent color temperature to the fixture you're planning on using.

Whiter Whites
If you light rock bands in night clubs and can't figure out a way to make your no-color fixtures look crisp and bright while keeping them from trampling your darker colors, do what the pros do: Raise the color temperature! Try any CTB correction filter; my favorite is 1/4 CTB such as Lee 203 or Rosco 3208. There is a wide range of blue correctors out there; experiment to find the best one for your palette.  This is also a great way to make lightning effects more vivid and realistic, because there's nothing worse than dusty yellow lightning bolts, right?

The Hazemaker Craze
We have been struggling with actors and musicians for years to get them acclimated to (or even to permit the use of) chemical smoke or fog machines, which as many of you know are an absolute necessity when using intelligent lighting such as Roboscans and Intellebeams or other special effect fixtures such as those used in dance clubs. In many cases, it takes an act of Congress and hours of labor to create particle matter thick enough for those neato beams to be visible, yet thin enough not to overpower the stage and make the on-stage talent vow your demise.

What's worse is that it isn't really a wall of smoke you need; you really only want a light haze to give the lumens something to bounce off of! Here's what to do.  If you can afford to rent a high end smoke machine, you can probably afford to rent a "haze machine." This is a technology that until very recently has been so costly that only the largest touring shows could afford them. Now there are several commercially available options that are much less expensive; our favorites are the Rosco Hazemaker and the SFX DF50. These machines put out a terrific, long lasting mist that is totally inoffensive (in fact barely noticeable) to the performer and doesn't look like the stage is on fire, yet it shows off those beams very well. The new machines are small (traditional hazers were enormous), light, and use fluid very slowly. In most cases, they do not even require remote controls, you simply turn them on at the top of the show, and off at the end.

The other bonus of the DF50 in particular is that instead of using expensive fog fluid, you can stroll into your local Safeway and pick up a bottle of Mineral Oil for about 98 cents per pint! A word to the wise: If you're picking out a hazer, be sure to turn it on and listen to it first.  some of them are still a little noisy, which is no big deal in a night club or at a loud rock concert, but could really spoil a quieter show. Some of the noise can be eliminated by placement, but know what you're getting into when you walk out the door with it.

It's All Done with Mirrors!
In order to get more stage coverage out of your moving mirror fixtures, hang them sideways on the pipe with the mirror facing down. The fixture can then usually pan all the way upstage to hit the backdrop, and all the way downstage to hit the audience. Most tilt ranges are wide enough to still allow the fixture to see all the way stage left and right too. This will be a little confusing to program at first (unless your operating system allows you to swap pan and tilt channels), but you'll quickly get used to it, and the resulting enhanced projection range is well worth it.

Eliminate your DMX Nightmares for Good
DMX jitters? Crosstalk? Unreliable results from console to digital device? In laymen's terms, what may be happening is this: The digital signal created by your console travels down the control line to the input of the first device (say, your dimmers), then daisy chains to the next (say, your colorscrollers) and on to the next (like a strobe or fog machine). Once the control signal has fed through the last device in the chain, let's just say it "ain't done talking." What happens is that the signal, seeing nowhere to stop, will turn around and head back to where it came from on the neutral conductor of your DMX cable, creating a feedback or reflection and, of course, confusion amongst your equipment.

To solve these problems, the signal needs to stop at the end of the line. Here's a solution that may help you avoid the often costly purchase of one of the myriad of "DMX fix" boxes currently available, and is far less expensive than Arnold Swartzenegger: Build yourself a "DMX Terminator!" All it takes is a 5 pin male XLR connector (cable mount) and a 100 to 125 ohm resistor soldered between pins 2 and 3.  plug this little gadget into the pass-through at the end of the control path, and you are now officially terminated. We terminate every DMX signal we send, no matter the distance. Since terminators are so small and precious, we recommend attaching a piece of string or tie line and wearing them around your neck to avoid loss, and to keep from being inadvertently tossed in the XLR connector bin with other connectors that look identical but don't have the magic resistor installed.

Create Smoother Automated Cues
"Ban the Blip!" I'm talking about the annoying flash of light that occurs with most intelligent lighting at the top of the cue, the result of the mirror, gate, and color wheel looking for its "mark." Here's how the pros fix it: Add an additional step to the beginning of the cue sequence.  I call it a "set up." The step should contain all of the mirror, color, and gobo information that the first look contains, only with the gate closed (and for certain systems, the dimmer at "0"). This way, all the "rushing around" takes place with the "curtain down."

Easy, All Purpose Storage Tip
Raid the kitchens of your favorite local restaurants for 2, 3, and 5 gallon buckets. These are very, very handy for hard to store and hard to transport loose items from clamps and hangers to bolts and pins or adapters and jumpers, you name it. If you can't find a restaurant that wants to part with any, they are still very cheap to buy (especially in quantity) from a container or janitor supply warehouse. You can even get lids or wheels if so inclined.  And if you want to get really fancy, we can set you up with a heavy duty canvas bucket that has tool pouches all the way around the outside. One of our big drool items around here!

Vacuum your Dimmers
That's right.  if you don't already, you should! All dimmer packs and racks that are air-cooled by a fan or series of fans are subject to an enormous (and enormously destructive) buildup of dust and grime, most of which can be extracted by a vacuum with a narrow nozzle attachment. We also use a small compressed air tank (or an air compressor if available) with a blower valve and a needle attachment to power cleanse the stickier dust and tighter corners. This procedure, when done routinely, will save you hundreds of dollars in repair and countless hours of frustration.

If you don't keep the dust build up out of your dimmers, it is only a matter of time before one of any number of nightmares ensues: The dust does two things.  first, as it builds up on the parts of your dimmer, it insulates them from cooling, causing them to overheat and malfunction. Second, it can in many cases (especially when mixed with moisture from a humid environment) become a conductor of electricity, creating any number of short-circuit scenarios within the unit. All of these things spell doom, gloom, and despair for your dimmer pack, without which your show can't continue (you didn't think they'd conveniently break down a whole week before opening night, did you?). So keep 'em clean!

Extend Lamp Life
Here's an old fangled trick that should never be forgotten for those of you who work in environments that are less than comfortably warm, like outdoor situations in sub 50 degree temperatures, or in that drafty old building that takes the first 4 hours of each day to get cozy: Warm your lamps slowly! It is a shock and a detriment to the filaments of most lamps to go from mighty-cold to really-hot in just the time it takes you to romp on the bump button or snap the fader to full. If they are cold, SLOWLY run them up to 15 or 20% for at least 30 seconds before running them at full. The lamps will repay you with a much longer life than if otherwise jolted awake. This is a great habit to get into. Insert a warmup cue at the top of your cuestack; that way you'll never forget.

Source Four/Shakespeare Lens Alert
For those of you who conscientiously clean the lenses of your fixtures every so often, (and you should) be aware that although the glass lenses of most fixtures react beautifly to glass cleaner and a paper towel, the lenses in the new ETC Source 4 or the Altman Shakespeare fixtures WILL NOT! The lenses on these new fixtures are coated in a special heat resistant coating. This coating will scratch and become cloudy if cleaned with glass cleaners, ammonia products, abrasive cleaners or cloths, or paper towels. Use only gentle soap or lense cleaner and a soft non-abrasive cloth.

Turn Heads the Easy Way
If, like us, you have fallen headlong into the world of moving-head intelligent lights, you may have noticed that it is not always easy to tell (at a glance) which side is front or back on these things. This is especially true with the Martin MAC fixtures. We solved the problem by putting a small red dot on the back of the body and the head, so that we know which way to mount them and can then avoid running out of Pan range.

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