Barbizon Lighting Blog

Recent Jobs: Robert W. Healy Public Safety Building

2009-07-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

Our Boston office recently completed an interesting integration job for the City of Cambridge.

Scott Stipetic as asked to integrate an exterior LED lighting system that responds to signals sent from the emergency dispatch computer and then executes cues to let the community know what kind of emergencies or responses the city is currently providing.

Spearheaded by the Cambride Arts Council and conceptualized by Crysztof Wodiczko the project is now completed.

Here is a video of the final testing of Krzysztof's illumination.

Barbizon Closed Friday 7/3

2009-07-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

So you can plan accordingly - remember Barbizon will be closed Friday 7/3 as our holiday for the 4th of July.

To contact you local office click this LINK

Control Desks with Bobblehead Fred

2009-06-23T07:20:00.000-07:00

ETC had produced the first in what, hopefully, a series of videos explaining lighting control. They are calling it Bobblehead Fred Productions. The first one explains the difference between Tracking and Preset, HTP and LTP, and Move Fade and State in lighting control.

ETC's Mark Vassallo and BH-Fred discuss control.. it's entertaining and educational!

To watch it click the link below!

http://www.etcconnect.com/video/BHF-WhyDidMyConsoleDoThat/index.htm

Seen & Heard @ InfoComm

2009-06-18T18:31:00.000-07:00

Ahh InfoComm - Land of the AV cornucopia.

The lighting ghetto has been relegates to the far north end of the hall. The sound area is @ the far south and then there's Crestron and Extron in the middle. Ok, I sort of exaggerate. I grabbed a quick video of the lighting area starting with the Tech for Worship Stage and panning over.

Ok - here's the short list on the cool and news things we've seen at the show:

Neutrik is showing their new XX-HD heavy duty XLR connectors that are both dust and water protected, yes, that's an IP67 rating when used with the related XX-HD cable connector or Neutrik's MPR-HD chassis connector.
AC Lighting has the Chroma-Q Color Block 2 LED fixture (photo) and Magic Box EtherSwitch 7 Ethernet switch.
Our friends @ TMB brought from England the amBIENT XC from amBX. It's this cool LED controller that can control the colors in an environment reacting to both sound and video. This thing would be great for themed-environments that need a seamless lighting control solution that's simple and flexible.
Another pretty slick item we saw is Global Design Solutions' (GDS) LiteWare RGB Battery Uplighter. It's a 38W RGB LED emitter with Wireless DMX Control, a 24 hour runtime from fully charged battery (14 hours on full white), it's P45 - interior/exterior use. You can get them alone or in a 6-pack flightcases with inbuilt charging. You can see a video of it here.

We got a press release the other day but, albeit quietly Leviton has a new control desk.. The new Piccolo line of lighting controllers . It can function easily as a standard manual/memory board with traditional channel capacities with clear interface components, but it also offers support for limited channel automated devices. It features:

Operating modes – two scene, single scene and sub-master “theater” mode
32 attribute channels for automated devices
Full access to all channels via faders
Proportional softpatch to all 512 DMX channels
Off line editor

Another nice looking product that made it's way from LightFair down to the show is Illuminarc's new line of architeural lighting. They have both indoor and outdoor lighting and we really like the simple way to sort out power supplies they call theor Logic Sysytem (all the lights use the same power supply, you just need to keep track of how many leds on a given run)

Come See us this week @ InfoComm in Orlando

2009-06-13T14:26:00.001-07:00

We'll be set up @ InfoComm in Orlando next to ETC with the latest and greatest Booth #1249

If you still need a floor pass click HERE.

We've heard about some slick stuff that's going to be there and we'll be blogging from the show so keep an eye out.

We have Job Openings!

2009-05-20T08:47:00.000-07:00

Barbizon is looking for a few good people. Check out these listings and if you or someone you know might be interested send send us a resume!

Opportunities in Barbizon's Sales Division:

Charlotte, NC - Sales Representative

Opportunities in Barbizon's Systems Division:

Denver, CO - Field Service Technician / Field Project Coordinator
Tempe, AZ - Field Service Technician / Field Project Coordinator

Opportunities in Barbizon's Technical Services:

New York, NY - Bench / Field Service Technician

Win Gear from Bogen and Studiodaily

2009-05-14T16:14:00.000-07:00

You could win equipment for a total street value of

$4,200

Manfrotto Video Tripod with Mini Pro Fluid Head Kit (701HDV,745CX3K)
Manfrotto Video Tripod with Pro Fluid Head Kit (501HDV,351MVB2K)
Kata One Man Band Bag (KT OMB-75)
Manfrotto Fig Rig (595B)
Manfrotto Video Monopod with Pro Fluid Head (561BHDV)

Go to the Studio Daily page each week and answer the contest question for a chance to win one of the listed products from Bogen. Each time you answer correctly you will be entered into the contest. There is only one entry per question. Go back every week until June 27th.

2009-05-04T15:59:00.000-07:00

Barbizon's NAB wrap-up show report has been compiled, sorted, massaged, digested, and spat back out so you can see what our team saw on the floor. Click on the image above to check it out!

Barbizon in the News

2009-04-30T06:55:00.000-07:00

From a post on today's Live Design Briefing Room:

From Coast to Coast with FLDA

Eddy Marketing April 29th, 2009

In the sports world, Monday April 6th, 2009 was a very busy day when two national obsessions came together. The championship game of the NCAA, won by North Carolina, was played and the first pitch of the 2009 Major League Baseball season was thrown. As all the action of the day was reported and the highlights discussed fans tuned into the premiere of the new west coast studio for ESPN’s SportsCenter in Los Angeles.

With ESPN’s launch of the network’s Los Angeles Production Center ESPN now has its first permanent location outside of the Eastern time zone where ESPN is headquartered in Bristol, Connecticut. The new LA facility, located above the ESPN Zone restaurant in the AEG-owned entertainment complex LA Live across the street from the Staples Center, features two studios, three production control rooms, two master control rooms; eight edit suites, a music room, and a voiceover room totaling more than 12,300 square feet. Additional ESPN content will originate from this facility over time, however Mondays through Fridays at 10 p.m. Pacific, it is the live broadcast of SportsCenter LA edition that takes over. The regular anchors are Neil Everett and Stan Verrett with ESPN’s Stuart Scott making special appearances, including handling the first segment that launched the LA studio on Monday April 6th.

Ferri led the lighting design team along with FLDA associate LD Mick Smith and assistant LD Ben Pilat. The production design was handled by head designer Andre Durette of Jack Morton/PDG with systems integration provided by Barbizon Lighting. “ESPN wanted an LA presence,” says Ferri. “They wanted to establish a West coast base. I knew going in that the challenge would be to keep the trademark feel of an ESPN broadcast but still reflect the different energy of the West coast location.”

From a design standpoint, the brief was that the set and lighting had to be instantly identifiable as the SportsCenter set, but it did not have to match it pixel by pixel. Although the set and lighting are similar, there are differences. “Because the set was slightly different, it took the light differently,” explains Ferri. “One of the biggest differences is that the louvers behind the anchors in Bristol are solid Plexiglas® and they are clear and horizontal. In LA, they are angled more and frosted. So the LED uplight that lights them in LA is very prominent, where in Bristol it is very subtle. We were able to get more vibrant colors in LA.” Ferri and his lighting team did however bring a trick from their design on the SportsCenter set in Bristol. “Behind the debate area the main background is red and the graphics on the Plexiglas are blue,” says Ferri. “The panels are treated with Wildfire ultraviolet paint and uplit with Altman Lighting UV PAR fixtures. This helps give some real depth and definition.”

Ferri likes to use new and interesting lighting technology when applicable, especially LED lighting products. For the SportsCenter LA set, Ferri used AC Lighting’s Chroma-Q™ Color Span™, a low profile LED cove lighting and wall wash system. “It is a one and a half story set, with an upper part that consists of a four-foot cyc behind louvers and a graphic panel,” Ferri explains, “We used the Color Span to light that upper portion of the set. The Plexiglas louvers were lit by a JamStar Lighting Elite LED PARs, which are very small and compact and do not flicker on camera. That is a very, very important property for units when they are used for broadcast.”

Ferri feels that FLDA was successful in achieving ESPN’s goal of “making a set that was instantly identifiable as the SportsCenter set, yet was not exactly like Bristol and was still visually interesting.” Whatever coast you are on or even in-between you should be sure to catch the latest exciting addition to ESPN’s sports coverage.

2009 KCACTF Barbizon Award for Design Excellence Winners Announced

2009-04-29T07:56:00.000-07:00

The purpose of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival Barbizon Awards for Theatrical Design Excellence is to give outstanding student designers national recognition and the opportunity to exhibit their work at the Kennedy Center. Designs are appraised on the basis of quality, effectiveness, originality, and rendering techniques. Schools with one or more student designers in participating or associate productions are eligible for the Barbizon Awards for Theatrical Design Excellence.

Below is this year's list of Design Awards presented at the KCACTF National Festival on Friday, April 17, 2009

The Barbizon Award for Excellence in Costume Design
Marian Cooper, Temple University
THE DARKER FACE OF THE EARTH

Honorable mention:
Stephanie Kucsera, University of Indianapolis, INTO THE WOODS
Mercedes O’Bannion, Mesa Community College, DRACULA
Bich Do, Sam Houston State University, SCENES FROM AN EXECUTION

The Barbizon Award for Excellence in Lighting Design
Marciel Greene, Ball State University
IN THE BLOOD

Runner-up
Gregory Contreras, Florida International University, ELECTRICIDAD

Honorable Mention
Stephanie Malone, Linfield College, CRAVE

The Barbizon Award for Excellence in Scenic Design
Joe Holbrook, California State University-Fullerton
URINETOWN

Runner-up
Nick Quinn, University of Illinois-Champaign Urbana, HAMLET

Honorable Mention
Jessica Emerson and Emily Gorecki, University of New Haven, TWO ROOMS

We'd like to congratulate the winners and all those who entered. We'd also like to thank Gregg Henry of the Kennedy Center for all his hard work coordinating this and the other awards.

For more information about the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival visit their WEBSITE

Win almost $4K of photo gear from Bogen Imaging!

2009-04-29T06:18:00.000-07:00

IMAGINE YOUR WORK ON THE COVER OF A MAGAZINE!

Here’s your chance to make it happen! Professional Photographer magazine, along with Bogen Imaging, invites you to submit photographs for a chance to have your image featured on a cover of Professional Photographer. In addition to landing the cover of a 2009 edition of Professional Photographer, the winner will also be awarded thousands of dollars worth of prizes. Bogen is giving away almost $4000 worth of equipment to fit your photography needs.

Enter the Cover Photo Contest today for a chance to win a selection of Elinchrom or Gitzo products!

How to Enter

Go to www.ppmag.com to enter. Choose your best example of an image that is representative of the work you sell your clients—portraits, weddings, commercial, sports, events, etc. Only digital files uploaded at www.ppmag.com will be accepted. Mailed print images and e-mailed electronic images will NOT be accepted.

The submission deadline is Monday, June 1, 2009. Due to the high volume of entries received in 2008, entries for this year’s contest will be limited to one image per entrant.

NAB 2009 Day 4

2009-04-24T00:31:00.000-07:00

NAB closed today @ 2pm, although we did see a lot of the foreign exhibitors starting to pack up around noon.

Neat things we saw:

ETC Element and Seledor LEDS
New Kata One Man Band Bags.
All white version of Phillips Color Kinetics Color Reach
We also had a Element Labs Kelvin Tile which is pretty cool
Lite Panels has introduced Bi-Color and Focusable fixtures
Zylight's new IS3 (SEE VIDEO)

We don't sell it but the new Cannon 5D Mark II is a kick butt 21.1 megapixel Camera with full 1080 HD Video recording capability.

We had the rest of our crew combing the floor and will have our more comprehensive show report done and posted to the Barbizon site next week... Keep an eye out for it!

Once we had most everything packed up for the day our blimp started swaying in the wind of the loading door. It will be interesting to see if it survived the night! It is being retired though, it has given us 10 years of service, which is pretty darn good.

NAB 2009 Day Three

2009-04-22T22:19:00.000-07:00

The crowds on the floor were a little thinner today. The word from NAB is that the attendance is 83K, down appx 20% from last year. We were still pretty busy at the Barbizon booth... Jim and John wrapped up their presentations to good crowds and ever interesting questions..

When we were done we went over to the Matthews booth and Jim put together this quick tip for everyone on the right hand rule.. Click to watch.

Porta Brace has a cool new off-road kit.. The name was long and confusing so we had them tell us about it. More importantly the list price is in the $650 Range.

New from Frezzi is the MRAX2 Series Dimmable 15W HMI. Featuring the world's smallest 10W to 15W dimmable HMI lamp fixture with a self contained ballast and full spectrum 5600K daylight color balanced lamp. Perfect for outdoor daylight fill light applications. Ultra compact design and extremely robust construction makes the new MRAX2 ideal for the demands of outdoor field production. It can easily be camera mounted with included mounting hardware. Power kits and accessories available. It also looks beefy and might hold up to more abuse than other cam-top lights we've seen.

Check out this new DSC chart.. it's got those dimensional for Chroma key measurement and VR capture.

It's cool because in addition to the ChromaDuMonde colors and grayscales, Billups VF/X features:

Grayscale and sky-blue ramps - identify banding introduced in image processing

Digital Green and Blue - special effects chips from Composite Components plus Rosco's Chroma Key Green and Blue

High Chroma slashes - very useful for checking and tracking chroma aliasing through post

Data information panel - including nodal to chart distance

Inch and centimeter scales - which, along with Nodal to chart distance, enable simple calculation of camera viewing angle

Reflectance spheres - Black sphere not only shows the number, position and type of lighting (spot or flood), but also the hue or color filtration of individual lights. The white sphere shows the integrated level and color temperature

Black Background - provides cleaner histograms.

Spotted in the Phillips Solid State (Color Kinetics) booth was an all tungsten version mounted in the Color Reach body... Darn bright. It is line voltage and can come in tungsten, daylight, a mix of the two or RGB. Appx $6K US list price.

They also had an all white led version of the new Vari*lite VLX they were showing to see how interested people would be.

We should have some time to get more pics tomorrow as me thinks it will be pretty quiet on the floor.. We've heard the Autodesk booth is made of mailing tubes and looks pretty cool.

The main drawback blogging this year is that the internet connection we are using to upload videos and pics sees the the large upstream data as a network intrusion and collapses the connection down to 56K.. Dialup speed. Seriously. That's to the Harrah's Group and the Rio Hotel where we are staying. Xohm please install in Vegas so hotel connections won't stink anymore, and more importantly we won't have to pay $99 a day for wi-fi in the LVCC.

More tomorrow and when the connection speeds up.

Seen & Heard @ NAB

2009-04-21T20:40:00.000-07:00

NAB day two wrapped earlier this afternoon and we've seen a few interesting things. There's lots of LED's... All shapes and sizes, but more on that soon. Attendance seems to be a little down from last year, but there's still a lot of people coming through the hall.

The educational sessions by Jim Sippel and John Gates have been pretty packed.

Some of the neat things we've seen thus far include:
The Dedolight DLOBA incorporates a modified double aspheric optical system. The wide focusing range covers a 70degrees angle for even edge-to-edge lighting with the widest zoom lenses, yet allows a narrow beam of 6degrees for far reach (1:11). The DLOBA may be mounted directly to a film or video camera by the screw and shoe mount that is provided. The software driven miniature electronics regulate lamp voltage to 12V DC and may be used with batteries up to 21V DC.

Kino Flo's Desk-Lite 121 boasts a 12” high color rendering T5 lamp (CRI 95) and parabolic reflector for close range or medium zone distances. Because it’s a Kino Flo, the lamp operates coolly, unlike tungsten hot light sources, and only draws about .3 amps (120vac). The trim, lightweight fixture includes on-board electronics, on/off controls, removable focusing louver and a 180 degree center mount system.

New from Spider Support is the Ringo Head is a camera accessory that allows an operator to mount any professional video camera at 90 degrees. New production styles can require images to be captured in a vertical orientation rather than the traditional horizontal mode. This technique is often used in point of sale, fashion, and event display environments.The Ringo Head allows an operator to easily mount their camera at a right angle and operate with existing tripod heads, jibs, and Steadicams . The Ringo Head keeps the camera's center of gravity and lens aligned over the center of a tripod head. The Ringo Head consists of a horizontal plate that attaches to a tripod wedge plate, a fixed vertical support that holds a camera's quick release plate, and an adjustable vertical support that holds the camera handle.

Based on the design principles of the ARRIMAX, ARRI Lighting introduces the new M18. This innovative lamphead works with a new power class of lamp: the 1800W SE HMI. This lamp boasts 750 hours of average life and a Luminous Efficacy of 92 Lumens per Watt (L/W). The Color Rendering Index (Ra) is greater than 90 at 6000K (CCT).

Now the “Brightest HMI you can plug into the wall,”* the M18 is a lensless, open face lighting fixture that combines the desired light distribution from the optics of a PAR and a Fresnel fixture. The unique ARRIMAX reflector design creates
diverging rays to produce a crisp shadow.

With a beam angle (HPA) of 20 to 60 degrees and a wide usable field angle, the M18 is designed to be both intense and efficient. When narrower beam angles are desired, ARRI offers the ARRISUN 18. The AS18 uses common ARRI spread lenses and a PAR reflector in combination with spot, medium and flood focus settings. Conversion kits are available to adapt an M18 to the AS18 (as well as an AS18 to a M18).

The M18 and AS18 are designed to be highly versatile and meet better lighting efficiencies in a new performance class. Intense and efficient, these lights showcase convenient, cost-effective qualities in addition to the known characteristics and high standards of ARRI HMIs. These new units also support a 1200W lamp.

The new ARRI Caster series utilizes a special optical design and a dedicated LED arrangement, presenting an efficient solution for LED broadcast lighting at an attractive price level.

The ARRI LoCaster features an easy to use onboard controller with a choice of six color temperature settings, continuous dimming and an ON/OFF switch. Weighing only 960g (2 lbs), it is an ideal companion for mobile applications. The LoCaster will be available in an attractive lighting kit configuration, with a basic selection of accessories.

The ARRI BroadCaster incorporates a built-in DMX controller and offers versatility when lighting tight spots in small and medium-sized studios.

With color temperature settings adjustable from 2.800K to 6.500K and a CRI (Color Rendering Index) of 90, the ARRI Caster LED fixtures adapt easily to an existing lighting installation or to the variable conditions of a location shoot. They also make use of ARRI True Match LED Technology, guaranteeing natural light characteristics, single shadow rendering, consistent light output and absolute color stability.

A wide range of accessories, including backpack batteries, power adapters, mounting devices, a 2-leaf barndoor and an intensifier, make the Caster LED fixtures suitable for any number of different applications.

Zylight is showing a new series of studio fixtures, starting with the IS3 LED Studio Luminaire. They are fully dimmable with no color shift, have adjustable color temperature and color correction, unlimited color control and integrated ZyLink™ wireless control. All functionality of the Zylight IS3 can be controlled via DMX through industry standard XLR connectors, or remotely via the built-in ZyLink™ wireless link. A USB port is included for field upgradeability, and the fixture has a built-in carrying handle and shock absorption. At 18 inches by 11 inches by 2 inches, the unit can be powered by either AC or rechargeable battery. The pic on the right is the color temp control, it also has a +/- green setting. The panel runs in either white or color modes.

Lowel's BLENDER™ Lights are very simple to use. That's a big reason why they are practical. The whole idea is that in location shooting, especially "run and gun" type shooting, it is not sensible to fuss with technical issues. Your subject should look natural and their lighting should not be out of whack with the environment and the available light. Of course, you need to make sure they are the focus of attention in the frame, which is a big reason why you light in the first place. There are just two simple knobs on the BLENDER Light. One controls the cool white array of high power LEDs, the other controls the warm white array of high power LEDs. You just plug in the light and dial in the white light that looks right. Watch your subject and the monitor, and you will quickly see when the light blends in with the available light.

SeaChanger's Nemo is the first ETC Source Four® compatible color engine with a LIFI® plasma source that delivers 10,000 lumens on a modest 300 watts of power. That's over 2.5 times the efficiency of comparable color engines.

The SeaChanger Nemo uses existing ETC Source Four front-end barrels as well as an assortment of ETC FOV optics. It comes equipped with SeaChanger's own Extreme Green wheel that extends the CMY color gamut to create more dramatic, vibrant colors.

Because of its lamp life, Nemo is the perfect solution for hard-to-reach installations, domes, atria and theme parks. It bridges the gap between incandescent and LED lighting at a price that's within reach.

Below is a quick clip of the Firefly Cable protectors... They are pretty neat because they incorporate animated LED illumination that reduces the tripping hazard, and potential legal liability.

Pelican has a new case that uses LED's coupled with a thermally efficient light engine and a Pelican Protector™ case, the RALS 9470 gives the user the ultimate maintenance-free portable floodlight station to get the job done efficiently, safely and on time. The RALS 9470 houses all four of its light heads and a multi-stage charger for that total self-contained convenience. It is also equipped with a telescopic handle and rugged wheels for ease of transport. They also have cases with two and one LED heads.

We'll keep our eyes peeled and post more interesting things tomorrow.

NAB Day one in the Can.

2009-04-20T19:02:00.001-07:00

Pics to be posted later.. saw lots of neat new gear.. A whole lot of LED's too.

Here's the presentation schedule.. If you are in Las Vegas stop by and say hello!

One Week from Today NAB 2009 Booth C9149

2009-04-13T06:42:00.001-07:00

Thursday I head to Lost Wages to begin load-in for this year's NAB show. We've got some great presentations planned again this year for those of you coming (we're wondering how that's going to be too!).

We'll be in the Central Hall booth # C9149, about 3/4 the way back on the south wall. Look for the Barbizon Blimp.

Lined up again this year are Emmy Award winning presenters Jim Sippel and John Gates.

Click on the image above or HERE if you need show floor passes.

Remember to stop by and say hello!

Who Wants Two Fiber Optic Dolphins??

2009-04-13T05:52:00.000-07:00

Long story short, we have two dolphin figures appx 3' long that are covered with a fiber optic mesh that lights up. BOTH DOLPHINS would be $750/pair or best offer- but we only have 1 illuminator for them. We are no longer dealers for the company that made them -but we can point who ever buys them in right direction or come up with some options.

Please email us or contact Dan Aronovitz in our Boston office @ 800.935.3920
or email him @ daronovitz@barbizon.com

Kata / Bogen Imaging Contest Update

2009-04-08T06:40:00.000-07:00

The website is now live and videos can be entered.

The recently announced Kata One Man Band series of video gear bags are designed to be the ultimate mobile production carrying solution for the field videographer on the go.

Bogen Imaging is challenging videographers all over the United States to show us “How you play with your One Man Band.” to promote the versatility and usability of all four new One Man Band models (OMB-72, OMB-74, OMB-75 and OMB-77) and upload a video or photo and a description of how they use their One Man Band. One winner will be selected by judges from Kata and Bogen Imaging to win a Sony PMW-EX1 (a retail value of over $7500). Entries can be submitted until midnight on July 1st, 2009 and the winner will be announced July 15th on the Bogen Imaging website.

From now until midnight on July 1st, 2009 OMB users can visit

www.bogenimaging.us/ombcontest for more information.

Good Luck !!

No April Fool's - Phillips Buys Selecon!

2009-04-01T07:14:00.000-07:00

We found this in our in-boxes this morning from Jeremy Collins @ Selecon.

"I am writing to advise you that the shareholders of Selecon have decided to sell our business to Philips, to become part of their Global Entertainment Lighting Group.

We will be joining Vari-lite, the founder of the moving light which transformed entertainment lighting; and Strand Lighting, with its century-long tradition of theatre and studio lighting and controls. I am proud that Selecon with its history of consistent innovation in fixed luminaires will join such a prestigious group of brands synonymous with entertainment lighting around the world.

Philips has acquired Selecon to strengthen their position in the global entertainment lighting market. It brings together the massive intellectual property and resources of the Group to provide new solutions for entertainment and specialised display lighting markets around the world. It is a challenge that I am looking forward to Selecon taking up.

We were approached by Philips because of the commitment and achievements of the Selecon team over the last 24 years. I will continue to lead the Selecon operation and our team remains the same, committed to offering the highest level of service and support.

Scott Church will be joining with the Strand sales team to lead their Selecon efforts. I would like to acknowledge and thank you for your role in the success we have enjoyed in North America. We are all looking forward to working together to build the on-going success of Strand Selecon in the North American market.

If you have any questions or concerns please don’t hesitate to contact Scott or myself."

Kind Regards,

Jeremy Collins

Managing Director

Win a Sony EX1 From Kata and Bogen Imaging!

2009-03-29T07:28:00.000-07:00

Bogen Imaging announces Contest: “How Do You Play with Your One Man Band?”

The recently announced Kata One Man Band series of video gear bags are designed to be the ultimate
mobile production carrying solution for the field videographer on the go. To promote the versatility
and usability of all four new One Man Band models (OMB-72, OMB-74, OMB-75 and OMB-77), Bogen Imaging is challenging videographers all over the United States to show us “How you play with your One Man Band.” From April 1st, 2009 until midnight on July 1st, 2009 OMB users can visit www.bogenimaging.us/ombcontest and upload a video or photo and a description of how they use their One Man Band. One winner will be selected by judges from Kata and Bogen Imaging to win a Sony EX1 (a retail value of over $7500). Entries can be submitted until midnight on July 1st, 2009 and the winner will be announced July 15th on the Bogen Imaging website.

For complete terms, conditions and contest rules, please visit

www.bogenimaging.us/ombcontest

USITT STAGE EXPO OPENS TOMORROW!

2009-03-18T14:46:00.000-07:00

We're all loaded in- when we left the floor the other manufacturers and students in the design expo were putting the final touches on their booths.

If you are in Cincinnati though Saturday stop by the Duke Energy Center and say hello. You can get a free floor pass by using the VIP code BLC565. Conveniently enough that's our booth # 565!

We'll get some pics from the floor and interesting happenings.

Barbizon Florida's BLUE Event Tomorrow

2009-02-25T15:44:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, February 26th is the Grand Opening of our Barbizon Florida office in their new location in Miramar. In conjunction with the Grand Opening, Barbizon Florida is also hosting the BLUE (Barbizon Ultimate Equipment Show) Show with over 20 manufacturers on hand demonstating new products. Through out the day there will be sessions covering a wide range of topics such as:

Lighting for HD (TV)
Color Use in Stage Lighting
Gobos and Projections for the Stage
Wireless Control
Green Lights for Television Studios
Lighting for Worship 101
Whole Hog 3 Overview
Color is How You Light It

The BLUE Show is free for any one to attend. To RSVP in advance or to read more about the session being offered, visit the BLUE Shows website at www.barbizonflorida.com

ETC Buys Selador LED!

2009-02-17T11:57:00.000-08:00

ETC enters LED lighting market (from etcconnect.com)

2/16/2009

After long rumor and speculation about whether entertainment-lighting leader ETC would enter the LED market, the company has announced their acquisition of the Selador™ product line from Selador co-founders Rob Gerlach and Novella Smith. "We didn't want to make a 'me too' RGB or RGBA product that didn't provide the kind of significant innovation in lighting we strive for," says ETC CEO Fred Foster. "With its exclusive x7 Color System™, the Selador product line produces a far superior quality of color and light to anything that we had seen before in LEDs."

Great people were the other essential part of the equation. As ETC Marketing Manager David Lincecum explains, the company was immediately impressed not only by the innovative Selador products but by the people behind them: "When we understood how Novella and Rob had thought about the design of LED fixtures -- looking at them from a designer's point of view rather than a technologist's point of view -- we saw that these were the right people to join our efforts at ETC. We are proud to be able to take their ideas to our customer base and the greater market."

Gerlach sees ETC and Selador as an ideal match: "There are so many things we have wanted to do with our product line, and we just haven't had the resources to do it, and suddenly the capability for Selador products to fully blossom and continue to innovate and expand is much greater. The product offerings that Selador and ETC combined will bring to the marketplace are orders of magnitude more promising than anything we could have done on our own. We worked very hard to develop a line of products that are unique and an exceptional value, and I think ETC is already positioned in the same way in the marketplace. Customers recognize that ETC represents very high quality and very good value for the investment, and I think Selador perfectly aligns with that."

Smith adds that ETC's mission in advancing the artistry and functionality of light matched Selador's goal: "LED lighting as a thing of beauty as well as a thing of utility."

Selador's x7 Color System™ seven-hue technology produces a light and color quality that conventional LED systems cannot duplicate. This unique color system produces bright broad spectrum whites and intense colors equally well, rendering pigments and skin tones in more a natural way.

The Selador x7 Color System also finds its perfect counterpart in ETC's control offerings. "ETC brings to the table a unique capability to make the control of LED fixtures easier, more direct and user friendly, and that is the key to making the tool really work for the designer. We have already integrated color matching and HSI (hue, saturation and intensity) control of Selador products into the latest software releases of our Eos® and Congo® lighting control console lines. Our architectural systems will follow shortly, and we will continue to innovate in the areas of color management in these products," says ETC Marketing Manager David Lincecum.

Selador's line-up includes the Paletta™ and Lustr™ products, just introduced at LDI 2008. "Paletta fixtures' unique blend of seven colors of LEDs was selected to provide the depth of color you are used to from your favorite saturated gels. The Lustr line uses a different blend of colors that are optimized for producing broad spectrum whites and tinted colors – solving the traditional LED problem of making people look unnatural. Lustr is also ideal for studio lighting as a key or fill light and can produce the subtle, tinted colors that lighting designers value so highly," explains Smith, herself a veteran lighting designer.

At the same time that ETC is revealing this purchase of the Selador product line, they are also debuting the latest Selador product: the high-output color-mixing Vivid™ LED fixture series. The Vivid series combines the Selador x7 Color System with powerful K2 emitters from Luxeon™, for the highest output available. "Our new Vivid LED fixtures give you high brightness and intense colored lighting for much longer throws, while matching and blending with gel colors and tungsten fixtures. It's the best of all worlds for many stage lighting rigs," says Gerlach.

ETC was particularly impressed by the extent to which Selador LEDs blend so seamlessly with other lighting in a rig. Says Smith, "With Selador technology, it's hard to tell the LED light from the conventional stage lighting." Gerlach adds: "It's digital lighting that doesn't look digital. And this goes beyond just the color-mixing. A big part of that is the control system built into the Selador fixtures – for really butter-smooth dimming and good fade-matching to ETC Source Four® fixtures and other conventional lighting equipment."

The ETC/Selador agreement means that ETC will now own, manufacture and distribute the Selador product line. Gerlach and Smith have been retained as exclusive consultants to ETC to develop more products from the line. ETC plans to dedicate a substantial portion of their R&D budgets to LED technology and the development of enhanced control and power infrastructures for LED systems. Smith says, "We're really looking forward to ETC's taking LED technology to the next level."

The Selador product line will be distributed and serviced through ETC's well established dealer and representative channels. Selador fixtures will be sold in the U.S. immediately and are expected to be introduced in the European market during the second quarter of 2009.

The ETC/Selador deal also involves the licensing of the Philips Color Kinetics™ patent portfolio as well as other patents owned by David Cunningham.

Senate Amendment to Bar Museums or Theaters From Any Economic Recovery Funds

2009-02-05T05:58:00.000-08:00

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) has introduced an amendment to prohibit any funds in the economic stimulus bill from going to museums, casinos, aquariums, theaters, art centers. As such, it thus would bar from Federal Economic Recovery funding many potential projects that would create jobs for our members, invest in lasting products, and support the cultural vitality of many communities.

The language of the amendment, (Amendment No. 175, as filed) is, "None of the amounts appropriated or otherwise made available by this Act may be used for any casino or other gambling establishment, aquarium, zoo, golf course, swimming pool, stadium, community park, museum, theater, arts center, or highway beautification project, including renovation, remodeling, construction, salaries, furniture, zero-gravity chairs, big screen televisions, beautification, rotating pastel lights, and dry heat saunas."

This amendment may be offered as early as Wednesday, February 4. Call your Senators TODAY and urge them to vote NO on the Coburn "Limitation of Funds Amendment No. 175." To reach your Senators, call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your Senators' offices

Need Floor passes to USITT Stage Expo Or NAB?

2009-02-02T16:44:00.000-08:00

Barbizon has your back for free floor passes for upcoming tradeshows.

Click HERE for the link to the USITT Conference Registration site.

To get your complimentary Expo Only floor pass use VIP code BLC565 (It's our booth # at the show... sneaky huh?)
Here's the jump more info about the 2009 USITT Annual Conference in Cincinnati 3/18 - 3/21

If you are attending NAB and need a floor pass click this LINK and it will fill in the code for you. We'll be in Booth # C9149. Again this year we'll have John Gates and Jim Sippel presenting classes on video lighting. We have not nailed down the names yet but topics like ChromaKey & Green lighting options are being developed as we speak. Click HERE for more info on this year's NAB show