I prefer my
gel labeled... let's start at that.
You bet ya! Worst is not labeling it in any way.
I take the opposing view to Footer of not seeing the color number. When I get board with the show, I tend to look about. Providing the color choice gives me something to do.
As a perhaps unprofessional or less organized presentation, it is most probably best to label the
gel at the center so as to ensure the proper choices are in the right fixtures, this especially if a
gel change during the show is needed. For professional shows,
gel color probably is not needed in always getting it right or at least it being more easy to note, plus the customer there for the show without needing to wonder about what them numbers are about. Also in a
gel file, it is easier to read a
gel in the corner than at the center.
Can always also label the
gel frame also if doing a
gel swap. Paper brads to hold the
gel frame together,
gaff tape or
masking tape label if not
grease pencil label on the
gel frame with
gel already installed. Good 3:1 paint scraping tool for removing potentially burned on tape than fresh paint that no doubt will normally be needed at times anyway. Otherwise same corner marked means same corner used thus not needing to re-paint. Another option would be to use high temperature fiberglass electrical tape in place of
masking or
gaff tape. This in addition to
Gam Tac Tape. Neither would leave a resudue.
On burning
thru... Totally disagree that this observation of
grease pencil or anything else at the center of the
gel causes it to burn
thru faster. (Perhaps a unbiased experiment is needed here but I have never known or heard of any such thing that was more than gee, dark
gel type thing and not related to the writing.) On absorption of heat, yes correct but not as much a factor given
line width. See below with the WD-40 frosted
donut which is a legend in the industry for technique.
On changing the
gel, I would first pull my
fixture/
gel sheet to tell me what
gel without bothering to look, such numbers up in a corner but still seen don’t seem to be really needed if you do you paperwork. Often I’ll also put such coloring on my
Magic Sheet/quick
plot so as to look at the 8.5x11
page which is not persay to scale but shows me
fixture location thus also with
gel number.
Kind of disagree with SerraAva but to each their own opinion. I would say that it is time to try the WD-40 at the center of a frosted
gel in testing that assumption. This if not back up your statement with proven experiment including equally bench focused fixtures, than afterwards repeating it and swapping the
gel between fixtures. I very much seriously doubt that you will find a difference but am open minded in changing longstanding tradition which started back with low temperature
gel and would not be the
current standard or at least one of them had it adversely effected the
gel.
Line weight of a
china marker is not sufficient in my opinion.
On the other
hand, when not labeling at the center - easier to smear or wipe off by accident, when cutting one
gel down in size, a corner marking is very much superior in not having to re-label a
gel or have a
gel with all sorts of writing on it. This corner technique is how I tend to label my own
gel. Not disputing corner marking, just it burning
thru faster. On the other
hand, Pie4Weebl’s small writing could potentially create that hot spot, so if doing the experiment, one would hope two different techniques for writing it in and testing.
Sharpee, paint marker,
china marker... depends on the
gel color for me - this given many colors available for each.
China marker/
grease pencil the most common but others also work, though ink does
fade in high temp faster than the
grease pencil - especially if at the center of the
gel.
Also disagree with gafftapegreenia, frosted
gel is way too white to be using a white
china marker on. The other color of
china marker should at least be an option for light gels and frosted gels.
