If you are new to stage lighting, some of the basic techniques involved, such as needing to understand what each technique is and how it works, may be a little difficult. Digital Multiplexing (DMX) is one such technology. DMX is a digital communication protocol, which is what allows you to control certain stage lighting fixtures remotely. When you want to send commands to lights, the DMX protocol sends commands through the channel assigned by the DMX stage lighting, allowing you to make certain types of lighting changes based on the capabilities of your smart lighting devices and DMX controllers. DMX has a long history in stage production. It was originally created in 1986 and quickly became the standard. Therefore, it is still widely used today, as long as people need to control smart lighting devices, it will be very simple once they understand the operation. If you're curious about DMX and its uses and types in stage lighting, here's what you need to know.
Why use DMX LED Lighting?
DMX lighting kits provide you with maximum control and flexibility. The DMX programming option offers efficiency and adaptability that is hard to find in other lighting systems.
For stage production, the control of DMX led stage lights by DMX show designer usually plays an important role in the atmosphere of the show, highlighting specific areas on the stage, setting the atmosphere and so on. Therefore, the ability to quickly and efficiently change lighting is a must. With DMX lighting, the process is pretty straightforward. You don't have to flip the gel or make adjustments across multiple controllers. Instead, every change can be managed through a single control panel, simplifying the process.
In cinema lighting, DMX lighting enables speed and control that you might not otherwise be able to achieve. Since movies and TV shows can be expensive to produce, anything that improves efficiency and accuracy can be a boon. With DMX, the required changes can happen almost instantly, without the need for direct access to the lighting device. You can adjust the brightness or change the color with a quick adjustment on the console without place a new gel.
Five key factors of stage lighting
Front Light--Located just above the performers, providing the primary source of illumination, the lights are positioned to illuminate the performers, sets and props from the front. It ensures that the viewer can see everything when the scene demands it.
Side Light--Used to accentuate the sides of the face, arms, torso and legs, it perfectly complements the dancer's shape.
High Side Light--Highlight the tops of the head, neck, shoulders and arms, usually at an angle of 30 to 60 degrees above the head.
Back Light--The lights sit behind the performers, sets and props, adding light from a completely different angle. Not only will this help prevent the subject from casting shadows on the area behind them on the stage, but it will also create a sense of visual separation, ensuring nothing blends into the background.
Down Light--This can be produced by dividing the performance space into a grid of lighting areas that can be mixed to create a uniform light wash throughout the performance space. The requirement was to be able to illuminate the entire performance space with even light.
Types of LED stage lights
DMX LED Bar Light
Wall washers are mostly used for ordinary surfaces to achieve lighting functions. Illuminating the wall washer on smooth walls both indoors and out, not only shows the flatness of the walls, but also visually increases the space and creates a more spacious feel. Suntech can provide RGBAW+UV 6-in-1 LED wall washer light that allows you to create rich, vibrant colors that can be further customized by adding UV light to give them their unique tone. And our led washer light based on the standard DMX512 protocol, it supports 16.7 million colors (24 bits).
Stage Spotlight
Stage Spotlight is a lighting craft suitable for the production of theatre, dance, opera and other performing arts. General performing arts use several different types of stage lights with controller devices. Modern stage lighting can include special effects such as lasers and fog machines in addition to basic event lighting. SuntechLED is one of the top LED spot lights manufacturers and suppliers in China. We provide best LED outdoor/indoor spotlights with low voltage DC24V/36V for different installation and application scenarios.
Stage Flood Light
Floodlights are exactly what the name suggests - light fixtures that produce a lot of unnatural light, illuminating a large area. When people think of flooding (as in floodlights, their brains automatically associate it with water. Floodlights have nothing to do with water. Instead, they are floodlights because they illuminate a large area with light. Light up a single DMX LED floodlight or bring light to an entire room during lighting for stage. With the newer stage lighting system, you can control brightness and intensity, color and effects. Many stage lighting controls today can be timed to the music, using the beat to change color and pulse.
LED Stage Background Screen
LED Stage Background Screen is a new fad, whether it's a conference, concert or holiday party, the LED display on the stage turns every seat into a front row seat and can be clearly customized according to the visual goals of your event. The LED Stage Background Screen delivers high-quality video that captures the attention of guests and viewers alike. LED stage backdrops have become popular at events all over the world. Stage led screens can be quite large, they consist of a modular system of individual panels, each half a square meter. When used in combination, these panels can be used to create stage LED screens, ideal for high ambient light environments.
Where do I position the stage lights?
Single-point lighting: This is the simplest type of lighting arrangement and actually mimics what we see every day - the sun! It has the most natural look and can produce led theatrical lighting effect. Also draws attention, but gives a very flat two-dimensional look to the people on stage. Typically, when doing single-stage lighting from the front, you'll want the light to be on-axis with the subject and 25°~30° from the subject.
Two-point lighting: This is similar to single point lighting, but it gives more stereoscopic to the subject on the stage. Generally speaking, there is a beam of light emanating from the front of the subject about 30˚ above the axis. The second light is behind the main body, usually a different color, to add some dimension and create a sculpted look to the main body. Light from the back is typically 30°–40° upward and approximately 60°–70° off-axis to provide depth and away from the viewer’s eyes.
Three-point lighting: The next step is the way most live productions choose to illuminate the performers on stage. Three-point lighting is a technique that removes most shadows from the audience's perspective, which also makes it a great choice for keynotes and public speaking. The three-point stage lighting uses two lights in the front, about 45° off-axis and about 30° up. Then place the third light in the back, about 30°–40° up and 60°–70° off axis.
How to set up a DMX stage lighting system?
Once you have the right components, you can start with the stage light setup. Usually, the first step is to patch. In this way, you will use cables to connect smart lighting devices or dmx lights to the DMX controller. You then enter specific information about the fixture into the DMX controller or dmx 512 console to ensure it can control the correct lighting functions.
Once connected, the stage light will receive a DMX address. The address acts as a unique identifier for the lamp, creating a digital path or channel between the controller and the various functions of the light. When you need to change the light's function, you'll use the console to send commands through the correct channel. The light will receive the command and make the appropriate changes.
In the end, the core concept behind stage lighting is still somewhat difficult. However, skillfully executing a lighting design does require a lot of expertise. Fortunately, by knowing many of the dmx lighting basics, you can lay a solid foundation that ensures you can take advantage of the technologies available and shape your work in the best possible way.
Getting a better stage lighting now!
Suntech LED is an experienced outdoor DMX LED product supplier. Our DMX LED bar light、DMX LED Spotlight、DMX LED Flood Light are suitable for indoor and outdoor stage. For example, entertainment lighting such as amusement park decoration, stage, bar, club building, etc, for landscape lighting like shopping bridge lighting, backyard illumination, and for residential building accent lighting. Our LED products feature high light uniformity and efficiency, and we can customize parameters to suit your application. We offer 5 yeasrs warranty on all products, and for custom solutions, OEM and ODM services are available.
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