Tips & Tricks

Once you have committed to a production, it is important to learn as many details as you can. First off, you should check if you… Read More »Ask the Right Questions

The very nature of consoles results in limited capabilities for products such as media servers and digital lights. Because these devices exploit multiple layers of… Read More »Programming Media Servers into Lighting Consoles

The biggest problem when you are trying to build light layers is that you can end up with mud. That’s when you have too many… Read More »Less Could Be More

John F. Kennedy was fond of saying, “The time to fix the roof is when the sun is shining.” Ladies and gentlemen, the sun is… Read More »Put Some Muscle in Your Balance Sheet.

I was one of those sleepers back when I took Art History, and now I can’t get enough of it. I find myself going back… Read More »Lessons from Art History

Multi-universe DMX control is now normal, the trick of using one controller for moving lights and another for the static units is old hat. Add… Read More »We’ve broken the 512 barrier -long ago.

One of the greatest little-known facts about console demonstrations at a tradeshow is that the people working the kiosks are often the software developers. Most… Read More »A Trick for Every Tradeshow

Suppose you have a projector that produces 100 nits at a throw of 25 feet. (A nit is a measure of brightness equal to one… Read More »How do I figure projector brightness with distance?

When one door closes, sometimes another one opens, and sometimes you have to force one open. But, if the time comes, how can you be… Read More »Am I the Learned? Or the Left Behind?

Diffusion does: -Spread the field; the heavier the diffusion the more it spreads the field. -Soften shadows; the longer the throw, the more scattered the… Read More »What does diffusion really do?

Early in my career I read a great book by an author named Julia Cameron. It was called The Artist’s Way. It’s full of lots… Read More »Searching for Ideas?

A content management application has some real advantages for the digital lighting programmer. For instance, the capability to rapidly and remotely update and manage content… Read More »CYA with CMA