The Different Types of Stage Lighting Equipment | SSRC Online

The Different Types of Stage Lighting Equipment

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Professional lighting plays a key role in any stage production. The use of different types of lights, such as floodlights and spotlights, can change the atmosphere of an event in an instant. Stage lighting equipment contains multiple parts to project various forms of light onto the stage. Each different kind of light functions to serve a specific purpose to capture an audience’s attention.

The Main Components of Lighting Equipment

 

• Light Housing – acts as a holder for the rest of the lighting equipment. It is typically made of metal or plastic.
• Lens – located where light passes through the housing. It helps direct the beam of light.
• Reflector – placed around or behind the light source to direct the light and can affect the light’s quality.
• Attachment Apparatus – supports or suspends the lighting system to make it easier to use. Attachment apparatuses help lighting systems be placed exactly where stage managers want them.
• Lamp (or more commonly called the bulb) – These devices provide the lighting source. They can include quartz-halogen, tungsten-halogen, florescent, and LED light sources.

 

The Main Types of Lights

 

• Floodlights – illuminate large areas and can fill shadowed areas of the stage. They offer a broad, soft lighting source. Soft lamps, broad lights, fixed-focus lighting and florescent lighting are all commonly used as floodlights.
• Soft Lamps – diffuse lights and wraps around the subject mainly to reduce shadows on stage. They are boxlike and typically portable.
• Broad Lights – small lights housed in a boxlike container and typically include only 1 lamp. They are used in small areas on set to supplement lighting to lighten shadows and not change the character of the main light.
• Fixed-Focus Lighting – covers a wide area of the stage with an even and controllable field of light.
• Spotlights – Project beams of light coming onto the stage. LED light sources make excellent spotlights. LED lights such as SSRC’s LED Work Light provide very strong light sources for stages.

 

Contact SSRC to Learn More about What Professional Lighting Options are Best for You

 

Performing art centers, worship facilities, broadcasting studios, and theme parks all trust SSRC for their professional lighting needs. SSRC has been providing quality lighting solutions since 1987. Our competitive prices combined with our experienced customer service can’t be beat. Contact our experienced and talented team today at 864-848-9770 to learn more about which professional lighting solutions on the market are best for you.

Lighting is a crucial element in theatre that helps to set the mood, focus the audience’s attention, and convey the emotions of the performers. In this article, we will explore the different types of lighting that are commonly used in theatre which serves a specific purpose to create the desired…

Lighting is a crucial element in theatre that helps to set the mood, focus the audience’s attention, and convey the emotions of the performers. In this article, we will explore the different types of lighting that are commonly used in theatre which serves a specific purpose to create the desired atmosphere and enhance the overall performance.

Spotlights

These are focused beams of light that are used to highlight specific areas or actors on stage. Spotlights are often used to draw attention to a particular character or moment in a production.

Profile spot light up a chair

Fresnel

The Fresnel is a soft-edged spotlight that offers more control over the angle of the beam than a flood light. A Fresnel light’s beam is adjustable because you are able to move the lamp or LED source and the reflector closer or further away, by using a screw mechanism or a slide.

In addition, you can shape a Fresnel’s beam by using a rotatable ‘barndoor’ that is attached to the front of the lantern. In most productions, a Fresnel is used at medium throw distances (the distance from lens to stage) as a top or back light. However, for smaller venues, you could consider using a Fresnel as a front light.

Fresnel light

Profile

A profile consists of a lens, lamp or LED light source, reflector, plus a shutter and gate, which provide very close control over the light’s beam. It is possible to adjust the edge quality of a profile light from very soft to very hard by adjusting the lens.

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Profile lights also have the ability to project any shape that is placed in the lantern’s gate, between the lamp and the lens. These shapes are either formed by the shutters or a ‘gobo’ – which is a glass pattern or metal cut-out that is used to project shapes, or to split the light’s beam into a particular pattern.

Standard profile lights have a fixed beam angle, which is shaped using the shutters. Conversely, variable profile lights use two lenses to provide a wider range of beam angles and edge qualities to the light.

Profile spotlights

Parcan

A Parcan light is a sealed beam unit that consists of a lamp (or LED source), reflector and lens. Often referred to as PAR (Parabolic Aluminised Reflector) lights, a Parcan lantern produces a very intense light quality. Therefore, they are particularly suited to producing deep colours or special lighting effects.

PAR lamps are available in a range of beam angles, which are created via different levels of diffusion on the front lens. A PAR light creates an elliptical shaped beam, which you can adjust by simply rotating the lamp.

Par lights

Floodlights

Floodlights are wider beams of light that are used to illuminate a larger area of the stage. They are often used to provide general lighting for the entire stage or to create a wash of light over a specific area.

Stage floodlights – Skillet Unleashed Tour 2016

Backlights

Backlights are lights that are placed behind an actor or object on stage. They are used to create a rim of light around the subject and help to separate them from the background.

Footlights

Footlights are a row of lights that are placed at the front of the stage. They are used to provide general lighting for the actors’ faces and help to create a sense of depth on stage.

Followspots

Followspots are powerful spotlights that are manually operated by a technician. They are used to follow an actor around the stage and keep them lit while they are moving.

Followspots

Moving Lights

Moving lights, also know as moving head lights or intelligent lighting, refers to stage lighting equipment that has automated abilities that go above and beyond traditional lights. These types of lights can produce the most complex and extraordinary effects.

Moving lights are usually controlled via lighting control consoles. Currently, the most common output control signal used for directing moving lights via a console is DMX (Digital Multiplex). Potentially, moving lights have a huge range of variables that are controllable via a console – including colour, pan and tilt, gobo, prism, animation and framing shutters.

Moving lights on truss

Special effects lighting

Special effects lighting includes a variety of different lights that are used to create specific visual effects. This can include strobe lights, colored lights, and gobos (patterned filters that create specific shapes or designs with light).

Ambient lighting

Ambient lighting is a type of general lighting that is used to provide overall illumination for the stage. It is often used to create a sense of atmosphere or to help set the mood for a scene.

In conclusion, lighting is an essential element of theatre, and there are many different types of lighting that are used to create the desired mood and atmosphere of a production. Each type of lighting serves a specific purpose and is used in different ways to enhance the overall experience of a performance.

For more stage light manufacturerinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.