Hazer Positioning and Programming

[ajblanck]

Hi Everybody,

Our school has started to rent hazers for some of our performances. The specific model that we have gotten in the past is the base hazer pro (hazebase.com). Where would be a good place to position these hazers? We have put them just offstage behind the main in the past, but our A/C returns are in the flyspace above the stage. Because of this, the haze seems to travel up before it can fill the width of the stage. We've used fans on top of the hazers, but it seems to me that they make the source of the haze much more obvious. Those puffs of haze are pretty fog-like. My second question has to do with programming. is it preferable to program the hazers at a low percentage for the whole show or to program an on-off cycle? I hope that I haven't been too vague. I also hope that I haven't missed if this subject was covered before.

Thanks

 

[Raktor]

Hazers are all about experimentation. There is no magic percentage, location and model. It's all about trying out and seeing what works in your venue. For ours, we usually use a Swefog Ultimate or a Unique, and place it upstage just out of one of the wings - or two; one on each side. For a pro show I recently saw, they used MDG Atmospheres on either side of the stage in the galleries. Do not turn it on and give it bursts - the idea of haze is that it is always there lingering, not bursting. Find a percentage and fan combination that works. You might still want to increase volume for a scene and then drop it back, but don't turn it on and off to get the right amount of haze.

 

[kiwitechgirl]

Raktor is right - there's no one solution. We find that our sets make a difference to the haze and so during tech week we're often shifting the hazer to different places to see where we get the best effect from. Currently it's downstage left, but the last show it was upstage centre. Also, when we switched from a water-based hazer to an oil cracker we noticed differences - the water-based unit functioned best up in the rig, but the cracker is better on the floor. We tend to run it all the time; previously we've hired a DF-50 for our annual musical (prior to our permanent switch to the cracker) and we used to program it to run during the songs only because of the racket it made - our new cracker is a separate head and compressor, so it's almost silent in the space, so we run it at low level all the time.

 

[len]

Typically, one doesn't want the haze visible, it's only there to create another effect or to make light beams more visible. So IN GENERAL it's better to let it run continuously at a lower output.

Foggers, on the other hand, are TYPICALLY meant to make a big billow of fog that should be seen, but that's not always true either.

As for placement, it might be better to get them DS and aim them US, use two, etc. If your returns are over the deck, maybe even put them in the house or in the balcony. Regardless, experimentation will be the only way to figure this out. And remember, having a full house will change air flow since all those bodies are generating heat that wouldn't be there during a rehearsal.

 

[ajblanck]

Thanks to everyone for replying.

I understand the point about haze being a lighting enhancement rather than a scenic element.

It also makes sense just to run the hazers at a low percentage instead of in bursts. I just asked because I have recently met the lighting designer at a large local church. They have a pair of hazers sitting up above the stage, and the lighting designer said that they usually run them for a set number of seconds and then off for about ten minutes. They get a very good even haze, and you can't see puffs of haze from anywhere.

I've seen that a full house can affect the haze. It makes sense; all those people make a lot of heat. We do usually rent two hazers, so I'll just have to experiment with positioning like everybody has suggested.

I have two more quick questions:

If the fan in the hazer is independently controllable, when should you adjust that?

Does anybody use additional fans behind their hazers?

 

[icewolf08]

I have two more quick questions:

If the fan in the hazer is independently controllable, when should you adjust that?

Does anybody use additional fans behind their hazers?

If you have a hazer with pump control and fan control, the pump controls the density of the haze while the fan controls the dispersion. If you want the haze to roll out slowly you would run the fan lower, if you want to push the haze far fast then run the fan higher.

 

[derekleffew]

...Does anybody use additional fans behind their hazers?

I do, at least 99.5% of the time. See the thread: http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/special-f-x/12050-fan-suggestions.html.

 

[Dalamar]

Folks: try as you might, the only 2 secrets about making great haze are :
(PRODUCT) Use a hazer that will produce a longer lasting effect and (TIME)give it time to settle in your theater / venue. That's the ONLY way you'll end up getting the results we all look for in a hazer.

 

[ajblanck]

What do you look for to have a longer lasting haze? Is there a specific hazer or type of fluid that is preferred by most people?

 

[pacman]

I've tried all sorts on placement locations and fans for a Radiance hazer with varying results... on the floor upstage, downstage, on tables & set pieces, up in the rig, etc. A couple of months ago, I tried something new. We have Vortek motorized rigging that has a control box mounted downstage right above the touchscreen controller. I put the hazer on top of the control box, aimed upstaged & slightly toward on-stage. This puts the hazer maybe 11 above the floor & produces the most even haze of any placement I've tried. I'm not using any external fan at present; just running the internal fan at about 50% and continuous haze at between 25-30%. So as someone else said, it's all about experimentation!

 

[Dalamar]

Long lasting = MDG.