I've seen a lot of discussions of what black light is, but only found a few references to specific instruments. As part of my new theater's inventory I want to spend around $1000 on black light instruments. The theater is a 50 foot square black box with about 20 feet from the grid to the deck. There are clearly a lot of options between Elation's $150 UV Wash to Wildfire's $3000 400 Watt zoom. The higher end arc units from Wildfire all come with good photometric data, but none of the fluorescent units I find have ANY photometric data. So it's very difficult to compare anything.
I'm looking for the most UV Wash bang for my buck. I think I’m looking at purchasing fluorescents at this point to just go for the instant on wash effect. If I need a concentrated, super high power, UV effect then I'll go rent one of those bad Wildfire's. For now, I want the ability to light a drop with invisible paint, or make a creepy night scene creepier. How much output do you need to make UV paint pop on a drop without turning the rest of the wash down 30%?
Anyone got a favorite? Should I go nuts on a bunch of the cheap Elation or American DJ units? OR is it better to get just 3 or 4 of the high end Wildfire (or similar) two tube units?
Any thoughts on your experiences with specific units and lumen output would be great.
(Here's a side question, probably for Ship: Are lumens still the correct measurement when you are talking about a form of radiation outside the visible spectrum?)
I'm looking for the most UV Wash bang for my buck. I think I’m looking at purchasing fluorescents at this point to just go for the instant on wash effect. If I need a concentrated, super high power, UV effect then I'll go rent one of those bad Wildfire's. For now, I want the ability to light a drop with invisible paint, or make a creepy night scene creepier. How much output do you need to make UV paint pop on a drop without turning the rest of the wash down 30%?
Anyone got a favorite? Should I go nuts on a bunch of the cheap Elation or American DJ units? OR is it better to get just 3 or 4 of the high end Wildfire (or similar) two tube units?
Any thoughts on your experiences with specific units and lumen output would be great.
(Here's a side question, probably for Ship: Are lumens still the correct measurement when you are talking about a form of radiation outside the visible spectrum?)
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