LED Follow Spot Lights
The followspot is a crucial fixture in any theatre or church lighting rig. A skilled operator can make the light look magical and draw attention to the actors in the spotlight.
Follow spot operators follow cues called by the stage manager / lighting designer on the main board. They usually use a plot sheet that includes specific information such as “head shot” or “full body”. These details will help the operator achieve great results.
Brightness
The brightness of a follow spot light is one of the most important factors when selecting the right fixture for your needs. The brighter Led Follow spot lights the spot, the more accurate it will be in tracking performers. This is especially important for large venues and long throw applications. The brightness of the light is also important for creating a more dynamic stage performance.
Follow spotlights come in various shapes and sizes, with different levels of brightness. The most common type is an ellipsoidal reflector spotlight, or ERS. These fixtures are very versatile and can be used to spotlight just about anything onstage. They can produce hard and soft beams, change colors via gel, project gobo patterns, and more. Some even include features like shutter cuts and iris adjustments.
A glare reduction lens is another key feature to look for in a follow spot. This reduces glare and provides a more focused beam. In addition, a telescoping arm allows you to adjust the height of the fixture. This makes it easier to set up and adjust the fixture.
DMX connectivity is a great feature to look for in a follow spot. It allows you to control the panning, tilting, color, and more with a controller. This is especially helpful for larger venues with multiple lighting operators. It helps you keep your cues on track and save time.
Dimming
The ability to dim LED spotlights adds a new level of versatility to these powerful lighting fixtures. This feature lets you set a variety of moods with your lights and is a must-have for modern lighting designers. Whether you’re creating a minimalist aesthetic or illuminating long corridors, you’ll need to understand how to properly dim your lights in order to get the most out of them.
Analog dimming uses a series of on-off switches to control the current flowing through an LED. This method is simple and inexpensive, but it also has some drawbacks. For example, analog dimming can cause color shifts in LEDs, which can affect the quality and consistency of the light output.
Digital dimming uses a pulse-width modulation (PWM) process to control the current flowing through an LED. PWM is a more sophisticated method that eliminates color shifts and allows for smooth, precise dimming without sacrificing the brightness of the LED. Digital dimming is more expensive than analog dimming, but it’s worth the investment if you want to ensure that your LEDs are producing the best possible light output.
Most LED Follow spot lights come with a dimmer built-in, so you can control all of the main functions from a single remote. This includes the X and Y axis angles, the color temperature, the speed of the strobe, and more. You can even change the light mode from sound activated to manual, master/slave, or automated.
Iris Adjustment
A follow spot is used to highlight a performer with a beam of light. This is commonly done in musicals and other presentational shows. Follow spots are operated by a lighting operator who has control over the iris (the size of the circle) and color through the use of drop in gels.
A skilled follow spot operator is essential to a good show as the ability to hit the marks and make the pickups is what makes great stage lighting. Common terms for a good followspot include a head shot (tight circle of light over the head), a mid shot (circle from the neck to the belt line) and full body shot (from the head to the feet). A talented operator will also be able Led Driving Light Bar to adjust the intensity of the followspot on the fly as well as open and close a chopper on the top of the fixture which acts as a stylized dowser to cut off the circle of light on the subject.
For a quality LED powered follow spot, the Chauvet Professional Ovation SP-300CW is a nice unit at about $4k which includes a stand, 6-slot manual color boomerang and a long throw 800W LED engine. This will easily match the output of a standard 2500W HMI follow spot at similar angles and offers premium light quality with a high CRI rating.
Gobo Projection
There is a point just beyond the lens train of many fixtures that if you were to put a lighted image there (like a gobo) it would be projected. This is not usually an ideal location for this since there tends to be a lot of light passing through it from outside the fixture – but it is something worth checking out in some cases.
There are also a few models of followspot that do not use an ellipsoidal reflector but still have a gobo projection – it can be tough to get a usable gobo image out of this location though.