Move in black cues are a huge
element in moving light programming. For instance, you want a light to be in a certain spot on the
stage for a certain
cue. Instead of having it
track from the home position to your set position you program the light in dark in your set position so when that
cue comes up the light is already in position all you have to do is open up the
shutter,
etc.
If there is an
effect running in black, then there is a movement that the LD wants to happen when the lights are already in motion instead of
tracking from home.
Now grant it, it does have value in your design if your lights do
track from home to their
effect or static positions but this is not always wanted in say theatrical applications.
Does this make answer your question?
I'm agree with what digitaltec just said above. I do lots of concerts and plays reguarding moving lights. When i need a light to move to a particular position without it being noticable i have it move in
blackout. If not then you see a light fly across the
stage and it looks very tacky. Also once in a blue moon, they have a big follow scene where they want a mover to follow a person. But then one day the person is sick, and the stand in cannot get the timing right with the mover. So what ends up happening is the director just has the stand in come in from a different position which is already lit, so i just leave the light moving through its cues but blacked out. I dont want to edit a show and then have to go back and re edit it back in. Its just asking for a mistake, especially when you are using a
tracking console.
Now in concerts, I know claptons LD, he is very professional and really cool to work with. What occasionally happens when doing a rock show, you have your movements on handles, and sometimes the board carries the movers over instead of just the static look, so the ld blacks the movers out until he has an opportunity to set the next look. You dont want to have clapton stand and talking on
stage and all of a sudden all these lights just pop on. I know it looks a little weird, but when you have rigs of 60+ movers going through the lights and telling them to stop is not always an easy task. Esp since there are lots of consoles in which stopping movement is not easy. You have to give it a defined position in order for it to stop. Then you have to
release the lights as soon as you fire your next
cue. I try to keep movers from doing effects pointlessly, but lights just moving compaired to lights accidently poping on, you take the movement. Also moving them is better than them just sitting there cooking. When i leave the rig fired up and i go to lunch. I leave them all in
open white at least. Then sometimes i have the
gobo and color wheels rotate.
In moving lights, even when you do not have the color wheel for example moving the motor is still powered on, but the motor is actually doing the work of holding the wheel in place. Try moving a color wheel in a moving light when the
fixture is on, and the wheel is set to one color. You feel some resistance of the motor holding the wheel. Also without the motor turning the heat begins to sink into the bearings. Metal expands when it gets cold, and if its moving it takes longer to expand than if it is sitting still. Same with the Pan and tilt motors. They do have motor brakes to help the motor hold the head in place, this is mainly to help smooth out the pan and tilt movements. But the motors do hold the head in place when the light is in a static look.