Gel choice for Street Lamps/Lightning

[e.clarkson]

Hey All!

I'm currently plotting a show where I want to create a realistic electric street lamp lighting coming through the door and windows. I prefer the blue lights as I don't want it to be mistaken with a daytime effect.
I'm also interested in a believable lighting effect, without using my LEDs. It's a small space and would prefer to use them elsewhere. Please help! Our house is primarily Roscoe, but we also have a decent amount of Lee.

 

[JD]

Two basic types of street lights are in use; High Pressure Sodium (orange) and Metal Halide (blue-ish.) It sounds like you want to simulate the Metal Halide look.
The primary characteristics of non-theater Metal Halide are narrow bandwidth and high color temperature (6500k or worse.) The narrow bandwidth is the harder aspect to reproduce, but as for the color, start by piling on the color correction filters. 3200 to 6500 is a big jump. If color correction doesn't do it by itself, you may have to cheat and add a blue gel.

 

[Dallas Richardson]

I agree with JD, you're going for a really intense light and using a blue gel would probably suffice if low on resources, as long as its not a green blue or an ocean blue. The instruments I use tend to have a natural warm "burning ember" look, so I'd be screwed without the LEDs. I'd love to see how you attempt to recreate that electric light with gels. Take pictures!

If I were you, I'd see where I can sacrifice my LEDs. Especially if you absolutely need a street light look. They are your best shot at recreating the look of the street lights I think you're talking about. If it's just for a 10 second mention dont worry about it. Audience members are smart. If the play is titled "Streetlights" then... yeah haha. What instruments are you using? What gels are at your disposal in the blue / white spectrum? I'm pretty familiar with Roscoe

 

[ruinexplorer]

What are your other practicals and what are they lamped with?

 

[theatricalmatt]

You can occasionally find actually street lamp fixtures at city surplus auctions and junkyards, as well as similar (in terms of lamp type) fixtures at Home Depot / Lowe's. You could also research the photometric and spectrographic information for metal halide lamps, and then see what gels would shift the incandescent lamp I presume you're using in a stage fixture to more accurately emulate that source of light.

 

[BobHealey]

Do you have access to any intel fixtures or followspots with arc sources? HMI or the assorted MSD/MHD lamps in the intels are pretty close to what you're looking for.

 

[WooferHound]

Use some Daylight CFL bulbs

 

[de27192]

A good sodium effect should be fairly obvious as street lighting, it's a much dirtier amber than daylight. Personally I go for the sodium effect because it's the more obviously recognised by the audience.

The good news is that Lee Filters do a range called the "Urban Effects Range" which is deliberately for this purpose. Their 651 and 652 are perfect for giving tungsten lanterns a dirty, dingey orange glow as would be associated with street lights. Personally I favour 651 on a standard 1k cyc flood but it'll also work quite nicely on a PAR can.

 

[Les]

I agree with de27192 about trying to recreate the HPS look. Metal Halide, being shifted toward blue (R60 for example), might read as moonlight.

The only real decision is which instrument to use, and just about anything will work.


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[de27192]

The only real decision is what instrument to use, and really anything will work.

I think this depends on how the luminaire is presented... if you want to shine through a window into a room of a house etc... then yes anything will do, but of course it would be best with something you can focus down to the size of the window to maximise your efficiency so half the light is not wasted across the back of the set. If however you want the luminaire to be part of the set (IE visible so as to actually visually represent a streetlight) this is where I would use floodlights because it will most easily portray the physical appearance and the beam characteristics of a real street light.

 

[JD]

Of course, provided you had a two to three minute window of opportunity (for it to come to full brightness), then for $78 you could just use the real thing
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Lithonia...-Light-OAL12100M120PER/202274319?N=5yc1vZc7qf

 

[Les]

I think this depends on how the luminaire is presented... if you want to shine through a window into a room of a house etc... then yes anything will do, but of course it would be best with something you can focus down to the size of the window to maximise your efficiency so half the light is not wasted across the back of the set. If however you want the luminaire to be part of the set (IE visible so as to actually visually represent a streetlight) this is where I would use floodlights because it will most easily portray the physical appearance and the beam characteristics of a real street light.

Yeah. I thought It was pretty evident in the first post that the OP wanted the effect coming through doors and windows. But good notes for future reading nonetheless.

Yes, you want something as efficient as possible. In the end, if resources are limited, don't stress about it. Don't need anything fancy to pull off this look.

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[de27192]

Yeah. I thought It was pretty evident in the first post that the OP wanted the effect coming through doors and windows. But good notes for future reading nonetheless.

I wasn't disagreeing with you at all... it's just for me on here, I tend to provide like a wider answer than just that to the OP because other people will search up these threads and use them to answer their own questions, so giving a bit more background and thought for further criteria is good because it saves the question being asked again in slightly different circumstances.

 

[Les]

I wasn't disagreeing with you at all... it's just for me on here, I tend to provide like a wider answer than just that to the OP because other people will search up these threads and use them to answer their own questions, so giving a bit more background and thought for further criteria is good because it saves the question being asked again in slightly different circumstances.

Absolutely. It's always good to expand on subjects, even when they appear simple.


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[e.clarkson]

I agree with JD, you're going for a really intense light and using a blue gel would probably suffice if low on resources, as long as its not a green blue or an ocean blue. The instruments I use tend to have a natural warm "burning ember" look, so I'd be screwed without the LEDs. I'd love to see how you attempt to recreate that electric light with gels. Take pictures!

If I were you, I'd see where I can sacrifice my LEDs. Especially if you absolutely need a street light look. They are your best shot at recreating the look of the street lights I think you're talking about. If it's just for a 10 second mention dont worry about it. Audience members are smart. If the play is titled "Streetlights" then... yeah haha. What instruments are you using? What gels are at your disposal in the blue / white spectrum? I'm pretty familiar with Roscoe

It is a very small space. I have 6 K9 Pup LEDs at my disposal and plotted them as top/back light. However, most of the play is a realistic, dreary look. The show is "The Mountaintop." So it is set in the room at the Lorraine, and I want the street lights to be casting in through the window and door when it is opened. The only reason I wanted to steer clear of the Amber spectrum is simply because they'll be burning throughout the play, and I can foresee people saying it is confusing. But if they need to be Amber I'm willing to take the risk. My plan was hanging three sets of R40 strip lights behind the lights to blast through, then Par64s hung behind the doors. I suppose the LEDs could be sacrificed. It would definitely save my dimmers.
In terms of gel I have available: I have a decent budget to get whatever gel I request.

 

[e.clarkson]

What are your other practicals and what are they lamped with?

The only practicals are bedside lamps. I am creating the effect of lights THROUGH a window with conventional stage lights, the actual "street lamps" aren't on stage, only the light from them.

 

[e.clarkson]

You can occasionally find actually street lamp fixtures at city surplus auctions and junkyards, as well as similar (in terms of lamp type) fixtures at Home Depot / Lowe's. You could also research the photometric and spectrographic information for metal halide lamps, and then see what gels would shift the incandescent lamp I presume you're using in a stage fixture to more accurately emulate that source of light.

I've been attempting to research but am coming up dry in terms of which specific gel has a good look. I don't want to blow my budget on something that doesn't work. I was hoping for some specific colors that have worked in the past.

 

[e.clarkson]

A good sodium effect should be fairly obvious as street lighting, it's a much dirtier amber than daylight. Personally I go for the sodium effect because it's the more obviously recognised by the audience.

The good news is that Lee Filters do a range called the "Urban Effects Range" which is deliberately for this purpose. Their 651 and 652 are perfect for giving tungsten lanterns a dirty, dingey orange glow as would be associated with street lights. Personally I favour 651 on a standard 1k cyc flood but it'll also work quite nicely on a PAR can.

This was an awesome answer. Exactly what I was looking for. Thank you!! I'll look into those colors.

 

[de27192]

Out of interest how come your streetlights have to burn throughout the play even during daylight?

Also daylight and sodium amber are miles apart. You should be fine. Sodium SONs are usually about 2000K, whilst daylight normally refers to about 4300K (L202 on a Tungsten source).

 

[e.clarkson]

Out of interest how come your streetlights have to burn throughout the play even during daylight?

Also daylight and sodium amber are miles apart. You should be fine. Sodium SONs are usually about 2000K, whilst daylight normally refers to about 4300K (L202 on a Tungsten source).

The entire play is one night, one location. I've also just done some research on the history of street lamps (because I'm determined to be accurate and I'm much too excited about this show) and it seems that in the 1960s they used Mercury Vapor street lamps and in the 60s they started coating the lamps which made them emit a white blue color...Not what I was hoping for.