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- You need to figure out what the lights available to you are and what they do. Have someone explain the uses of Source foursFours, PARs, LEDs to you, as well as what gels are. There may be an Ensemble wiki page detailing different types of lights eventuallySee the page /page not created yet/ for some of this information.
- You should be familiar with the idea of a light plot and the information people expect on it - readability and actual content. See the attached example plot, and ask people for plots in the same space as you're working. Generally, you should try to at least be able to light people from the front and the back. Colors, side light and other things are even more exciting. Make sure you have light in all the places people walk (go to Designer Run to find out where that is).
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- You, or the master electrician (talk to them to figure out where division of responsibility lies) will coordinate the hanging and cabling of lights (where/how they get plugged in, this is sometimes not trivial) of lights onto the ceiling during or around put-in, and then you will focus the lights; i.e. point them in the right places. For specific hardware and cabling issuesquestions, see the Master Electrician page (especially if you are also the also are or are working with a first-time Master Electrician).
- During tech week, you'll combine the things you thought about before (where people are onstage, what world they are in) into cues which are "snapshots" - saved 'looks' which the board remembers how bright each light is (and color, place, etc. if you're using intelligent fixtures). This can take a while.
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- There's also strike but that's just put-in in reverse. Make sure you take gobos (cut-out patterns) out of lights.
Overview (for tryhards)
The very first thing you need to do as lighting designer is familiarize yourself with the script, read it (probably more than once). Pick out themes that you think are important and might be able to translate into different looks. (Contrasts tend to be easy to work with: winter vs. spring, Egypt vs. Rome, etc.) Meet with the director, find out what they want to emphasize and if they have any ideas about how they want the stage to be lit. At this stage, take in all suggestions you can get — feasibility can be worked out later. Once you have an idea of how you want the scenes to look (generally after the semifinal set design is due), you need to figure out if you can do it. The two main spaces the Ensemble uses are Kresge Little Theater and La Sala de Puerto Rico. KLT has a large stock (an inventory list is in the PDF attached to this page). Sala's inventory (salainv.xls) is a bit smaller.
At this point you should also meet with the Set Designer to see what the set designs look like. This way, if there is a scenic element that needs to be rigged from the pipes, you know to avoid that area. Also, you need to know about You need to know about major set pieces that may need to be lit, or different levels of playing areas that you will have to deal with. You should also see a "designer run" so you have a more concrete idea of the blocking and general mood of the show. If in KLT, you should also decide if you are going to use a cyc. Next, you must come up with a plot (specifics as to where each lighting fixture will be hung). You need to pick what kind of lamplight, and where it should be hung to illuminate a specific part of the stage in the desired manner — needless to say, this can take a bit of trial and error. Your next job will be during put-in/prod week. As a lighting designer your job will be to tell your electricians where to focus each and every instrument once it's hung and circuited. Once the lamps are focused you need to sit down with the director and write the cues. This process is often called "paper tech". Q2Q (cue-to-cue) rehearsal is your chance to refine the cues live, in the theater, with the actors onstage. During subsequent tech/dress runs, you can further refine cues, and (if necessary) the focuses of particular instruments. (Realize that much if not all of your free time during tech week may be spent in the theater.) Finally, sit back and enjoy the beauty of your work.
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While creating your plot, you should decide channel numbers for every instrument. A "channel" on the light board represents a complete connection of instrument(s) to dimmer(s). During focus and afterwards you will probably refer to channel numbers (example: “bring up channel 19”). As such, it is important that the channel number arrangement makes sense to you so you can refer to the correct instrument/s quickly and easily. Some designers organize their channel numbers linearly along pipes; others organize their channel numbers by purpose (for example: front light is chs. 1-10, back light chs. 11-20, etc.).
You should also make copies of your plot to be used during hang. Ideally, you'll have a few copies in a large size like ARCH D (36" x 24"), and multiple smaller copies in 8.5" x 11" or 11" x 17" for giving out to everyone who needs one.
Paperwork
When working with intelligent instruments (LEDs, moving lights, etc.), allocating channels and addresses can become a bit complicated. If you don't know/remember how DMX addresses work, see the Master Electrician page. Don't leave figuring out addresses for later, because it will cost a lot of time and pushing scaff around to fix.
You should also make copies of your plot to be used during hang. Ideally, you'll have a few copies in a large size like ARCH D (36" x 24"), and endless stacks (seriously, print out 20 or so) of smaller copies in 8.5" x 11" or 11" x 17" for giving out to everyone who needs one.
Paperwork
Before starting put-in you should have some paperwork done. A channel sheet that tells what channel corresponds to what instrument, the focus of that instrument and which gel or gobo (if any) and any extra notes. Additionally which circuits correspond to a channel is also stated on this sheet. You should also make a magic sheet that shows each instrument Before starting put-in you should have some paperwork done. A channel sheet that tells what channel corresponds to what instrument, the focus of that instrument and which gel or gobo (if any) and any extra notes. Additionally which circuits correspond to a channel is also stated on this sheet.
You should also make a magic sheet that shows each lamp organized by purpose. This sheet shows the lights in their general positions and which direction their beams will point.
Patch
Patching is simply telling the lighting board what channel corresponds to what circuit. Once you have patched you can refer to a channel and both you and the board knows which instrument you are referring to. This is necessary because cues will be written using only channel numbers and the levels you want for those channelstelling the lighting board what channel corresponds to what circuit/address(es). Once you have patched you can refer to a channel and both you and the board knows which instrument you are referring to. This is necessary because cues will be written using only channel numbers and the levels you want for those channels. If you are using intelligent instruments, boards like the Ion (Sala) and the Element (KLT) know how many addresses those instruments take, and lump them all into one channel. For example, if you have a few ColorDashes in 10-channel mode on addresses 101, 111, 121, etc., you can patch them to channels 31, 32, 33, etc., because the board takes care of the addresses. See the Ion/Element (they have basically the same underlying software) manual if you don't know/remember how to do this.
Color
Picking general the colors of your light is not difficult however deciding which particular gel to use is. Rosco, Lee and GAM (which is also quietly owned by Rosco) are the three major types of gels used, with Rosco being the most widely used. Some of the questions you have to ask when picking a color are: what effect will this color have on stage? (Example R02 is warm but not overpowering, the feel will be sunny but not yellow). How will the set/costumes/actors look under this color light? (No one looks healthy in green light). Picking through hundreds of various gels is fairly frustrating, advice can be found on the Rosco website (they have good descriptions of what effect each gel has) and by asking those who know (again Karen is a good source). Color is part of what makes lighting design an art form; don’t leave the decisions to the last minute. The Ensemble has a collection of gels: you can buy more at Backstage Hardware or order from ALPS. Someone will probably have to go to Backstage Hardware for something else at some point: coordinate with the TD to save trips.
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When using tie lines to tie up slacking cables, try to ensure the tie line can be undone with one hand; this will make life much easier during strike. Official E33 practice is a standard shoe knot (overhand then overhand with 2 loops), Christopher also likes the slip knot (overhand then overhand with one loop). Zipties are not recommended as they require scissors to be undone.
Focus is the time for the LD to be the star. You are responsible for each light being focused in the correct position, you make sure that each lamp is casing light in the way and in the area you intended when making your plot. However you decide to run focus is fine as long as you get each lamp to do what you want in a reasonable amount of time. Remember to minimize how long you keep each light on, because they get hot rapidly.
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