I was doing a search tonight for one of our customers that while he knows he won't get much actual UV-A output out of a single cell cyc light, he was curious about what gel would be best to simulate at least black light.
Been a discussion over the years on this, stagecraft, lighting network and pro-sound forums/groups. Unfortunately in doing a search on each tonight, stagecraft search is as normal down, the other two didn't result in what I searched for and this forum resulted in a few but I think the origional post(s) discussions on it are missing or gone since the upgrade. Anyone find the origional link where there was lots of discussion and posts?
Otherwise, the discussion should be opened up again on one's favorate gel to simulate black light.
From this forum I found the following colors: Gam 905, doubled up Rosco Lux 85, Rosco 59, Lee 180, Lee 343, and Congo Blue... which ever brand / number that is.
By extension based upon published gel conversion charts and notes we get the following: (Remember this is based off gel conversion charts and some conversions listed will be way off or brilliant.)
RoscoLux:
Rx017; Rx317; Rx018; Rx357; Rx058; Rx059; Rx085; Rx383; Rx385
Rosco E-Color:
e017; e058; e108; e120; e147; e180; e195; e204; e343
RoscoLene:
811; 841; 843; 866
Lee:
017; HT085; 108; 120; 137; 147; 180; 181; 195; 204; 237; 343; 713; 716; 776
Gam:
343; 324;342; 343; 375; 855; 890; 905; 915; 925; 930; 940; 945; 950; 1543
Apollo:
3900; 4050; 4100; 3550; 3600; 3800; 7200; 7420; 7500
Olesen:
45
CineMold:
20
CineGel:
3106; 3407
CineColor:
645
GelaTran:
62
A further note:
For color mixing to take place, we need space. A low grid height or a short throw limits the amount of space in which color can interact. Either we ought to increase the throw of the instruments or limit the pallette of colors. The other side of this problem is too much distance. The more saturated the color, the more difficult it is to read over distance. For instance, Lux 85 (Deep Blue) either needs a lot of intensity, which will reduce the effective life of the filter, or a short throw in order to read its color.
Besides the throw, we also have to consider the angle and position of our instruments. Blacklight and downlight do not blend well, except on the floor. These two positions often use heavier colors to highlight the set and actors, or to build mood subtly. Sidelight works well in modeling and for promoting contrasts of color. Frontlight is crucial in the mixture of color to create adequate visibility and good facial tone on the actors. Most often, the downstage area must provide visual clarity to the actors, while the light upstage establishes mood. A scene full of moonlight or a subtle transition to sunset is counterproductive if the color and/or visibility distracts from the action of the play. (Rosco Technotes #10)
A consideration about dimming verses using the wattage of lamp closest in wattage/output to the need:
Dimming: with dimming, incandescent lamps change their spectral distribution. The relative reduction in blue and green energy may affect the color produced by the filter. This means less in the UV-A range also - a lot less.
(more UV notes to follow perhaps at some time.)
Been a discussion over the years on this, stagecraft, lighting network and pro-sound forums/groups. Unfortunately in doing a search on each tonight, stagecraft search is as normal down, the other two didn't result in what I searched for and this forum resulted in a few but I think the origional post(s) discussions on it are missing or gone since the upgrade. Anyone find the origional link where there was lots of discussion and posts?
Otherwise, the discussion should be opened up again on one's favorate gel to simulate black light.
From this forum I found the following colors: Gam 905, doubled up Rosco Lux 85, Rosco 59, Lee 180, Lee 343, and Congo Blue... which ever brand / number that is.
By extension based upon published gel conversion charts and notes we get the following: (Remember this is based off gel conversion charts and some conversions listed will be way off or brilliant.)
RoscoLux:
Rx017; Rx317; Rx018; Rx357; Rx058; Rx059; Rx085; Rx383; Rx385
Rosco E-Color:
e017; e058; e108; e120; e147; e180; e195; e204; e343
RoscoLene:
811; 841; 843; 866
Lee:
017; HT085; 108; 120; 137; 147; 180; 181; 195; 204; 237; 343; 713; 716; 776
Gam:
343; 324;342; 343; 375; 855; 890; 905; 915; 925; 930; 940; 945; 950; 1543
Apollo:
3900; 4050; 4100; 3550; 3600; 3800; 7200; 7420; 7500
Olesen:
45
CineMold:
20
CineGel:
3106; 3407
CineColor:
645
GelaTran:
62
A further note:
For color mixing to take place, we need space. A low grid height or a short throw limits the amount of space in which color can interact. Either we ought to increase the throw of the instruments or limit the pallette of colors. The other side of this problem is too much distance. The more saturated the color, the more difficult it is to read over distance. For instance, Lux 85 (Deep Blue) either needs a lot of intensity, which will reduce the effective life of the filter, or a short throw in order to read its color.
Besides the throw, we also have to consider the angle and position of our instruments. Blacklight and downlight do not blend well, except on the floor. These two positions often use heavier colors to highlight the set and actors, or to build mood subtly. Sidelight works well in modeling and for promoting contrasts of color. Frontlight is crucial in the mixture of color to create adequate visibility and good facial tone on the actors. Most often, the downstage area must provide visual clarity to the actors, while the light upstage establishes mood. A scene full of moonlight or a subtle transition to sunset is counterproductive if the color and/or visibility distracts from the action of the play. (Rosco Technotes #10)
A consideration about dimming verses using the wattage of lamp closest in wattage/output to the need:
Dimming: with dimming, incandescent lamps change their spectral distribution. The relative reduction in blue and green energy may affect the color produced by the filter. This means less in the UV-A range also - a lot less.
(more UV notes to follow perhaps at some time.)
