Stage Lighting

Stage Lighting

by Richard E. Dunham
Released October 2015
Publisher(s): Focal Press
ISBN: 9781317343936

Read it now on the O’Reilly learning platform with a 10-day free trial.

O’Reilly members get unlimited access to books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.

Start your free trial

Book description

    The book’s organization follows a layered approach that builds on basic principles: Light as a Medium (Part 1), Tools of a Lighting Designer (Part 2), Design Fundamentals (Part 3), and Lighting Applications (Part 4). This presents students with a practical and logical sequence when learning basic concepts.
    The full spectrum of the lighting design process is presented in detail, giving students an example of how one might develop a lighting design from script analysis through concept and plot development, and all the way to an opening. This detailed process with a step-by-step design approach gives students a plan to work from, which they can later modify as they mature and gain confidence as designers.
    The text contains a more comprehensive discussion of basic technology, light as a physical phenomena, and methodology of designs than is found in most introductory texts, bridging the gap between introductory and advanced lighting courses.
    The text will appeal to theatrical designers who want to venture into areas of lighting like architectural or virtual lighting design, while at the same time gaining a solid grounding in the fundmentals of lighting design. Lighting Design will also benefit illuminating engineers who want to move away from mere computational approaches in lighting and on to explore techniques along the design approaches of theatrical lighting design.
    The final 9 chapters cover many specialty areas of lighting design,  highlighting the unique and shared qualities that exist between the different aspects of these elements. Discussions involve traditional entertainment areas like theatre, as well as lesser known facets of the industry including film/video, landscape lighting, retail/museum lighting, virtual lighting, concert, spectacle performances, and architectural lighting.
    Models of design tasks demonstrate the actual use and development of plots/sections, schedules, photometrics tables, and cut sheets, rather than simply talking about what they are. This hands-on approach provides students with a firm understanding of how to actually use these tools and processes.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Table of Contents
  5. Preface
  6. Part One Light: The Medium
    1. 1 The Nature of Light
      1. What Is Light?
        1. The Electromagnetic Spectrum
        2. The Visible Spectrum
      2. Illuminance and Luminance—Five Metrics
        1. Luminous Flux
        2. Illuminance
        3. Luminous Intensity
        4. Luminance
        5. Luminous Exitance
      3. The Eye and Seeing
        1. Physiology of the Eye
      4. The Controllable Qualities of Light
        1. Intensity
        2. Distribution
        3. Color
        4. Movement
      5. Sidebar 1.1 Designer Profile
      6. Functions of Lighting
        1. Visibility
        2. Establishing a Scene
        3. Modeling
        4. Mood
        5. Focus
        6. Composition
        7. Style
        8. Staging the Story
        9. Rhythm
      7. For Further Reading
    2. 2 Light and Perception
      1. Visibility
      2. Intensity or Brightness
        1. Relative Intensity
        2. Psychological Responses
      3. Intensity Related Issues
        1. Mood Alteration
        2. Overstimulation
        3. Glare
        4. Color Perception
        5. Adaptation
      4. Defining Form and Shape
        1. Front Light
        2. Sidelight
        3. Downlight and Backlight
      5. Sidebar 2.1 Designer Profile
        1. Key and Fill
        2. Silhouettes and Grazing
        3. Shape
      6. Composition
      7. Movement and Light
        1. Cues and Transitions
      8. For Further Reading
    3. 3 Color and Its Effects
      1. What is Color?
      2. The Visible Spectrum
        1. Primary Colors
        2. CIE Chromaticity Chart
        3. Color Temperature
        4. Color Rendering
      3. Additive and Subtractive Mixing
        1. Additive Mixing
        2. Subtractive Mixing
      4. Filtering Light
      5. Color Media
        1. Plastic Media
        2. Glass Media
      6. Sidebar 3.1 Spectral Analysis of Gel
        1. Dichroic Filters
        2. Diffusion
      7. Creating Color Through Light
        1. Color Prediction
        2. Red Shift/Amber Drift
      8. Complementary Tint System
      9. Psychological Effects of Color
        1. Color Contrast
        2. Adaptation and Afterimages
      10. Practical Use of Color
      11. Sidebar 3.2 Designer Considerations for Color and Light
      12. Sidebar 3.3 Designer Profile
      13. For Further Reading
  7. Part Two Light: The Tools
    1. 4 The Practitioners
      1. Theatrical and Live Performance Production
        1. Design Professionals
      2. Sidebar 4.1 Designer Profile
        1. Theatrical Crews
      3. Film and Video
        1. Design Professionals
        2. Production Crews
      4. Architectural Lighting
      5. Unions and Certifications
      6. Professional Organizations and Societies
      7. For Further Reading
    2. 5 Electricity
      1. Basics of Electricity
        1. Atomic Theory
        2. Electrical Potential
      2. Grounding
      3. Fundamental Circuits
        1. Conductors and Insulators
        2. Series Circuits
        3. Parallel Circuits
      4. Units of Measurement and Essential Formulas
      5. Units of Measure
        1. Power Formula and Ohm’s Law
      6. Sidebar 5.1 Determination of Lamp Load
      7. Direct Current Versus Alternating Current
        1. Direct Current (DC)
        2. AC Power Generation
        3. Transformers
      8. Power Distribution
        1. Electrical Services
      9. Electrical Hardware
        1. Wire
        2. Cables
        3. Circuit Protection
        4. Switches
        5. Dimmers
      10. Company Switches and Distribution Panels
        1. Commercial Distribution
        2. Theatrical Distribution
      11. Sidebar 5.2 Electrical Safety
      12. For Further Reading
    3. 6 Lamps and Other Light Sources
      1. Lumens and Lamp Life
      2. Lamps And Color
      3. Incandescent Lamps
        1. Filaments
        2. Bulbs
        3. Bases
      4. Tungsten-Halogen or Quartz Lamps
      5. Sidebar 6.1 Light Center Length (LCL)
      6. Arc Light Sources
        1. Limelight
        2. Carbon-Arc
      7. Short-Arc and High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lamps
      8. Short-Arc Lamps
        1. High-Intensity Discharge (HID) Lamps
      9. Gaseous Discharge Lamps
        1. Fluorescent Lamps
      10. Low-Voltage Lamps
      11. Ansi Codes
      12. LEDs
      13. Lasers
      14. For Further Reading
    4. 7 Luminaire Fundamentals
      1. Basic Principles of Optics
        1. Reflection
        2. Transmission
        3. Refraction
      2. An Essential Luminaire
      3. Photometics
      4. Sidebar 7.1 Luminaire Maintenance
        1. Beam Angle and Field Angle
        2. Photometric Data and Cut Sheets
      5. Choosing Luminaires
      6. Entertainment Luminaires
        1. Spotlights
        2. Followspots
      7. Sidebar 7.2 Followspot Pickup Techniques
        1. Floodlights
        2. Optical Accessories
        3. Hanging Accessories
      8. Practicals
      9. For Further Reading
    5. 8 Control Fundamentals
      1. Brightness Control and Dimming
      2. Circuiting
      3. Mastering
        1. Mechanical Mastering
        2. Electrical Mastering
        3. Electronic Mastering
      4. Principles of Electronic Dimming
        1. Gating
      5. Sidebar 8.1: Dimmer Curves and Trimming
        1. New Trends in Electronic Dimming (Sine Wave Dimming)
      6. Control Protocols
        1. Analog Control
        2. Digital Control
      7. Lighting Control Consoles
        1. Preset Control
      8. Sidebar 8.2: Common Control Functions of Preset Consoles
      9. Sidebar 8.3: Rock and Roll Console Features
        1. Memory Control
      10. Sidebar 8.4: Additional Controls in Computer Consoles
        1. Automated Control Consoles
        2. Show Control
      11. State of The Art Control
        1. Dimmer-per-Circuit
        2. Multiplexing (Dimmer Doubling™)
        3. Distributed Dimming
        4. Wireless Dimming
      12. For Further Reading
    6. 9 Advanced Equipment and Personal Computers in Lighting
      1. Primary Control of Advanced Gear
      2. DMX Control
      3. Sidebar 9.1: Binary Code and Addressing
      4. Sidebar 9.2: Eleven Practical Tips for Setting up DMX Networks
      5. Sidebar 9.3: Several Programming Tips for Working with Automated Lighting Gear
      6. Sophisticated Control of Advanced Gear
      7. Accessories for Conventional Luminaires
        1. Scrollers
        2. Moving Yokes
        3. Moving Mirror Accessories
        4. Gobo Rotators
      8. Automated Lighting
      9. Sidebar 9.4: Common Automated Lighting Effect Cues
      10. Moving Heads (Moving Yokes)
        1. Scanners (Moving Mirrors)
      11. Non-Traditional Sources
        1. Ballasted Fixtures
        2. Strobes
        3. Fiber Optics
        4. LEDs
        5. Lasers
      12. The Personal Computer
        1. CAD and Drafting Applications
        2. Design Paperwork
        3. Control and Off-line Editing
        4. Communication and Training
        5. Design Analysis
        6. Visualization
      13. For Further Reading
  8. Part Three Light: Design Fundamentals
    1. 10 Essentials of Lighting Design
      1. Special Considerations in Lighting Design
      2. Directors and Collaboration
      3. The Influences of Light
        1. Controllable Quantities of Light
        2. Functions of Lighting
      4. Analysis for Lighting
        1. Script Analysis and Entertainment Designs
      5. Sidebar 10.1: Designer Profile
      6. Sidebar 10.2: Scenic Breakdown of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible
      7. Style in Lighting
      8. Conceptualization
      9. Additional Preparation
        1. Design Research
        2. Design and Production Meetings
        3. Rehearsals
      10. Developing Lighting Schemes and Concepts
      11. Lighting Keys
      12. Communicating Design Ideas
        1. Storyboards
        2. Lighting Scores
        3. Light Labs
        4. Computer Visualization
      13. For Further Reading
    2. 11 Basics of General Illumination
      1. Lighting the Subject
      2. Typical Theatrical Lighting Positions
        1. Proscenium Theatre
      3. Sidebar 11.1: Hanging Positions and Lighting Distribution
        1. Black Box Theatre
        2. Variations
      4. Floorplans and Sections
      5. Basics of General Illumination or Area Lighting
      6. Primary Formula Approaches for Area Lighting
        1. Single Source System
        2. Wash System
        3. The McCandless System
        4. Double or Triple Hanging
        5. Area versus Color Control
      7. Alternative Systems for Area Lighting
        1. Key and Fill
        2. The Washed Stage
        3. Zone Lighting
        4. Jewel Lighting
      8. Building on General Lighting
        1. Special Areas
        2. Sculpting and Modeling Accents
        3. Blending and Toning Accents
      9. Sidebar 11.2: Focus Patterns for Common Wash Systems
        1. Motivational Accents
      10. Additional Lighting Demands
        1. Special Visibility
        2. Lighting Costumes
        3. Lighting for Scenery
        4. Effects Lighting
      11. Sidebar 11.3: Designer Profile
      12. For Further Reading
    3. 12 Plotting the Design
      1. Translating Concepts and Lighting Keys into Practical Design Choices
      2. Working with Floorplans and Sections
        1. Floorplans or Groundplans
        2. Sections
      3. An Approach to Plotting a Design
        1. Preliminary Tasks/Preparation
        2. Rehearsals
        3. The Wish List
        4. Making a Design Practical
        5. The Tentative Hookup
        6. The Rough Light Plot
      4. Drafting and the Lighting Design
        1. Drafting Light Plots
      5. Sidebar 12.1: Common Numbering Practices
        1. Drafting the Section
      6. Lighting Schedules and Design Paperwork
        1. Hookup
        2. Instrument Schedule
        3. Magic Sheets
        4. Shop Orders
      7. Cad Drafting and Lighting Design
      8. For Further Reading
    4. 13 Moving into the Venue
      1. Final Preparations for the Load-In
      2. The Cue Synopsis
      3. The Load-In
      4. Sidebar 13.1: A Typical Load-in Schedule
      5. The Focus Call
      6. The Level Setting or Cue Writing Session
      7. Cueing Aids for Memory Consoles
      8. Rehearsals in the Venue
        1. Technical Rehearsals
      9. Sidebar 13.2: Cueing Aids
        1. Dress Rehearsals, Previews, and Openings
      10. Running and Maintaining the Production
      11. Sidebar 13.3: Designer Profile
      12. For Further Reading
    5. 14 Variations on Essential Theatrical Design
      1. Thrust and Arena Productions
        1. Thrust Productions
        2. Arena Productions
      2. Outdoor Dramas and Festival Productions
      3. Transfer Productions
      4. Touring Productions
      5. Repertory Productions
      6. Designing for Specific Genre
      7. Sidebar 14.1: Designer Profile
      8. For Further Reading
  9. Part Four Light: Design Applications
    1. 15 Traditional Areas of Theatrical Design (Drama, Dance, Opera, and Musical Theatre)
      1. Lighting for Drama
        1. Performance Considerations
        2. Design Techniques
      2. Dance Lighting
        1. Performance Considerations
        2. Design Techniques
      3. Sidebar 15.1: Designer Profile
      4. Opera and Operetta Lighting
        1. Performance Considerations
        2. Design Techniques
      5. Lighting Musical Theatre
        1. Performance Considerations
        2. Design Techniques
      6. Sidebar 15.2: Common Musical Theatre Cueing Terminology
      7. For Further Reading
    2. 16 Non-Traditional Entertainment Design
      1. The Music Scene (Revues, Clubs, and Concert Lighting)
        1. Musical Revues
        2. Nightclubs and Dance Club Lighting
        3. Concert Lighting
      2. Sidebar 16.1: Designer Profile
      3. The Spectacle Performance
        1. Headline Acts
        2. Arena Productions and Stadium Productions
        3. Dedicated Venues
      4. Sidebar 16.2: Designer Profile
        1. Additional Areas of Spectacle
      5. Trade Shows, Industrials, and Corporate Events
        1. Corporate Mentality
      6. Sidebar 16.3: Designer Profile
      7. Film and Video Basics
        1. Light and the Camera
        2. Key and Fill Light
        3. Control Elements
        4. Key Elements in Film/Video Illumination
      8. Sidebar 16.4: Designer Profile
        1. Three-Point Lighting
      9. For Further Reading
    3. 17 Additional Lighting Applications
      1. Retail and Museum Lighting
        1. Lighting Layers
        2. Essentials of Retail and Museum/Gallery Lighting
      2. Sidebar 17.1: Designer Profile
      3. Architectural Lighting
        1. Unique Qualities and Demands of Architectural Lighting
        2. Architectural Luminaire Classifications
        3. Key Elements in Architectural General Illumination
        4. The Architectural Lighting Design Process
      4. Sidebar 17.2: Lighting Design Questions
      5. Sidebar 17.3: Designer Profile
        1. Daylighting
        2. Lighting Green and Lighting Economics
      6. Landscape Lighting
        1. Lighting Landscapes
        2. Essential Approaches to Lighting Landscapes
        3. Principles of Landscape Lighting
      7. Themed Design and Specialty Lighting
        1. The Story
        2. Development of a Themed Project
        3. Considerations of Themed (Specialty) Lighting Design
      8. Sidebar 17.4: Designer Profile
      9. Virtual Lighting (Renderings, Virtual Reality, Gaming, Etc.)
        1. Virtual Design
      10. Sidebar 17.5: Designer Profile
        1. Virtual Light Sources
        2. Lighting Techniques for Virtual Lighting
      11. Sidebar 17.6: Designer Profile
      12. For Further Reading
    4. 18 Projections and Lighting
      1. A Brief History of Projection
      2. Projection Considerations
      3. Elements of Projection
      4. Sidebar 18.1: Considerations of Projection Design
      5. Front or Rear Projection?
      6. Traditional Projection Equipment
        1. Lensless Projectors
        2. Lens Projectors
        3. The Ellipsoidal Reflector Spotlight (ERS)
        4. Themm Projector
      7. Sidebar 18.2: Calculations Regarding Projectors and Lenses
        1. Scenic Projectors
      8. Slides and Source Materials
      9. Projection Screens
        1. Front-Projection Screens
        2. Rear-Projection Screens
      10. Practical Issues of Projection
        1. Two Critical Considerations (Path and Balance)
        2. Spill and Ambient Light
        3. Image Size
        4. Distortion
      11. Sidebar 18.3: Keystone Correction
      12. Sidebar 18.4: Mathematical Grid for Keystone Correction
      13. Digital Projectors and Lights, LCD/LED Screens, and Media Servers
      14. Lasers and Effects Projection
      15. Convergence
      16. For Further Reading
  10. Appendices
    1. A. Lighting Periodicals
    2. B. Lighting Equipment Manufactures
  11. Glossary
  12. Bibliography
  13. Index

Product information

  • Title: Stage Lighting
  • Author(s): Richard E. Dunham
  • Release date: October 2015
  • Publisher(s): Focal Press
  • ISBN: 9781317343936