Week 8: Depth

I was on my way back from the bay this afternoon and while on I-5 the mountains caught my eye. The photo quality isn't the best, but when looking at the mountains in person, the shadows were extremely defined and gave the mountains a lot of depth and dimension. Without sunlight causing these shadows, they would've appeared very flat and one dimensional, but the lighting made all the difference. You could easily see the way each mountain sloped, where it reached its peak and came back down, as well as the little dips. This made the landscape look much more interesting than if everything had been in the shade, and it reminded me of how even though visibility is usually the biggest priority in lighting design for theatre, it is still important to sculpt out the actors and add in dimension.

Week 8: Depth - Foggy Night

I took this photo yesterday when when I was walking to my car because it was a very foggy night. Although it doesn't translate well on camera, the fog was pretty intense and I couldn't see too far ahead of me unless there was a bright light ahead, like from a street lamp. I thought this picture that I took showed depth because of all the different layers it seems to have. In the foreground there weren't any lights nearby so the trees and bushes look very dark and it is hard to make out the details. Just past that, the next layer of the photo is revealed because of the lamps lighting the walkway. Here, we can see details of a fence and a clearer image of the foliage. Then, past the walkway is the third layer. Here, the fog creates a sense of endlessness, as the two trees in the back seem to disappear into the haze. The reddish sky accentuates the silhouettes just enough for them to be distinguishable to the eye and creates a nice background to tie together all the different layers.

Week 8: Depth

I was luck enough to be able to see the incredible show Something Rotten at Segerstrom theatre. I then was lucky enough to then come back and shadow the show. It was amazing to see the show from both area and even more interesting to see some of the great shifts and movements backstage. The back stage is not tiny but with over a dozen actors, 30 crew members and plus a moving 3 piece elizabethian round theatre set. With all of this I really noticed how the lighting design really created and supported this small stage a huge life full of depth. Even in this picture taken from the house the stage is in the pre-show cue. The sign look like a piece of fabric hung over a back wall that is set upstaged the proscenium arch. However that is just a drop and it hangs just over 3 feet upstage of the pit.  The use of shadows, texture are color by lighting really gives a lot of depth and they use these elements through out the show, to support the scene shift from inside a home, to a park concert, to a busy dark neighborhood. Very successful, and exciting to see.

Week 8 Depth

For Thanksgiving I went to my friend's house and saw their beautiful garden. Her father was the one that installed and designed the layout for everything. There were LED lights inside the fountain, little LED flowers, and a LED moon that could be adjusted as "Full", "Crescent" or "Half". The layout created a sense of depth with the black background. The isolation of the lights keeps your focus on the piece itself, and the darkness surrounding it creates a never ending space. Here is a side to side comparison of the same thing taken at different times of the day. The darkness around it adds more to the depth of the piece and the green LED on the very top of the fountain draws your eye back towards it. By following the light you get the sense of an incline to the center of the spot. Overall it was a beautiful set up and it was more breathtaking in person, than on camera!

Week 8: Depth

I’ve spent a lot of time at the Little Theatre over the last couple of weeks, and the thing that keeps surprising me is its peculiar placement in this classroom building. It’s still a bit jarring to leave from stage left door or the front house left stairway and come smack into a hallway of completely unrelated classes. That hallway has generally bit lit when walking back and forth to bring props to the dressing room, or to go to the bathroom. But this week, on one route between the dressing room and theater, I noticed how the light seems to be very directional from each light in the ceiling. It’s not that long of a hallway, but the way it’s broken up by each bit of light makes it look longer. Each distance source of light makes your eye travel down the hallway. The pattern of it, the almost pulsing of light through each pool, the way it brightens circles on the floor and walls, all give this sort of feel of movement and distance. I also noticed how the light reflects in the shiny floor, which always gives an impression of things being grander and taller to me. I also really like how sharp the change is at the back wall, totally unlit but the hallway lights. I would think there would be light spill, or that that hallway would have lights on, but neither happens. It’s just a strong definitive end. Which also made me think about how directional light can be. That it lights up the area at which it’s pointed, but right next door can still be totally dark. And that contrast can make the distance between the two areas seem greater. For me, I always think about how perspective and diagonals affect depth perception, and of course, we can sense how things get further away. But actually looking down this hallway made me think about how light plays such a key role in that as well. Further away is darker. Each pool of light being separated shows a clear distance between each point. Walls, ceiling, and floor are all affected. 

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Week 8: Depth

Dana Point, CA.

Dana Point, CA.

Depth is tricky, because it can be an illusion. Light in the theatre often does create the illusion of depth with specific use of angles and gobos. It is shadows, more than anything, that can create this illusion. I took these images while at a friend's house this week. I love the way light entering through windows casts shadows on the walls and floors, creating the illusion of depth in an image, and giving the impression of something that exists on the other side of the window. In these images, light enters the rooms in such a way that shadows create a sort of pseudo perspective, giving the impression of interior depth. 

Week 7: Radiant

Art Installation at the Venetian Hotel, Las Vegas, NA.

This weekend I had the pleasure of joining LDI for the first time in Las Vegas. For three days I was surrounded by a city that never shuts off, a city known for outrageousness in every aspect. The visual design of the city, in particular its LED and neon signs, are a part of the full throttle and in-your-face atmosphere. I drank in all this atmosphere — the lights, the convention, the stench of stale cigarettes that seems to follow you when you go — and in a corner of the outlandishly lavish mall inside the Venetian Hotel, I found a place of quiet. The installation pictured was a peaceful pocket in the city of indulgence. Long strips of green, blue and yellow cloth hung from the ceiling to the floor below a skylight that let light shine through, shimmering as the fabric swayed softly. It was truly serene, and a wonder how something so simple created something so beautiful. While observing the people who interacted with this piece (myself included), I realized that everyone who connected with the installation walked away seeming reenergized in some way. Perhaps this pocket of peace is necessary in a place that is so extreme, because its serene beauty is radiantly rejuvenating.

Week 7: Soft

I was walking past my housemates' room earlier today and the way the light hit the wall really caught my attention. Though the light was coming in lines through the shutters on the window, instead of harsh lines of light, there was a soft and diffused quality to it, probably because it was not very sunny outside. This gave the room a very comfortable and welcoming feeling, and even though my room at home looks a lot different than this one, it still somehow made me think of relaxing in my room on a chilly day over winter break. I noticed something else as I was observing the light as well- whenever a car drove by, there would be a brighter and crisper line of light (seen in the second photo) that would move along the wall. If it had been nighttime I would say the light came from the headlights, but since it was daytime I think it came from light reflecting off of the car. I tried to capture it on video, and you can see it occur near the middle and near the end of it. I thought it was interesting how much brighter these lines of light were than the others, and it reminded me of how useful the property of reflection can be in things like photography and film.

Week 7: Strong Choice - But Why?

"THE VIBE OF YARD HOUSE"


"The stunning, original art featured on our walls is a major contributor to the very special vibe of every Yard House. The Yard House Original Art Gallery Collection has been created by artist Jerome Gastaldi. Each piece is uniquely handcrafted to reflect the regional environment, the energy within the Yard House restaurants, and the core values of the company. It is unsurprising to see subtle references in the abstract art to the community's lifeblood: wild horses in Denver, Colorado; an abstract baseball player in Boston, Massachusetts near Fenway park; or a sea of faces in Las Vegas, Nevada." (http://www.yardhouse.com/art-gallery)





I was out watching my game at the Yard house and was suddenly distracted by this light featured on the art on the wall across from me. If you have ever been to a yard house you have probably noticed their art. It is one of their most marketed updates lately. All of the pieces around the restaurant are lit with specials, but this one is extra "special". I could not for the life of me see (even after researching) why this one painting would have this kind of light featured.


This lighting choice (I asked, it was a choice) would/could be a better choice if it was a theme. However the fact that it is the only piece lit this way is very caring and really takes away from the art piece it self. It is no long about the art it is about: why light this this way? This reminds me of a note that heard often in the world of theatre,"Strong choice, but not for this show.". I really wish someone said that in this circumstance.

Week 7: Shining Bright

I was in Los Angeles this weekend, and while sitting at brunch, I looked up and saw this bright, shining, almost perfect reflection of the sun. The building looked so flat and silver and shiny, and the way the sun bounced off of it was as bright as looking into the sun itself. It’s not something you can really capture on photo, but I think you can see how hot that spot is. Of course we all are aware the light bounces off objects, and that glass and metals reflect light, sometimes very strongly. But something about this building just made that sun so hot. I couldn’t even see the sun itself, it was blocked by another tall building. But whatever metal or shiny stone that this building was covered in almost acted like a mirror. I also was struck by just how dark the side of the next building is— not in the path of sunlight. It is pretty remarkable how directional light is. Again, it’s something we know, but the juxtaposition between the vibrant hot, almost white light next to something in complete shadow really brought that home. The sun always makes me think of warmth, summer, cheeriness. And certainly that is something I’m noticing about living in California— there’s just a lot more sun (and a lot more time outdoors) than there is in New England, and I truly think it affects general mood and mental health. In this particular image, the brightness actually comes across as harsh, which is something else I associate bright light with— a harsh reality, seeing something fully for what it is— totally revealed. Everything is out in the open, exposed, seen. But at the same time, I have no idea what these buildings are (hotels? offices? apartments?) and the sun isn’t shining into the rooms from my perspective, so there is still conceal too. Which made me think of how when it’s bright out, you generally can’t see into buildings, but when it’s dark outside and the lights are on, you can. Another trick of light. 

Week 7 LDI After Party

 This weekend I was able to participate in LDI for the very first time. It was so overwhelming seeing all the technology being presented in the show grounds. There were fixtures and accessories I have never seen before, and it was fun being able to see them displayed and used in action. I was also able to salvage some sweet swag as well! After the exhibition we went to see LDI's After Dark party. Unfortunately, we missed their  Guinness World Record breaking laser show, which consisted about 340 lasers. The stage itself must have had over thousands of lighting fixtures, including the LED panels. Just like what Lonnie said, I was indeed in heaven. It was so amazing to see how many different changes happened with the DJ's music. At first when the DJ started, the beats were pretty consistent and very little change happened in the music, but the designer still did a good job a supporting it with all the fixtures he was provided with. Eventually the music escalated and the lighting continued to grow and shift with color. The use of different brush strokes, not only brought excitement to the audience, but it also enhanced the climax of the music. Clearly there was a lot of work put into this whole show, it was simply breathtaking, and I had an amazing time. Being able to have this experience strengthened my love for lighting, and it helped me realized my passion in design. I would defiantly want to have experience in busking lighting, and learn more behind it. I always loved being quick on my feet and trying to catch up to fast paced music, also I always lived to see the audience's excitement when they see the lights heighten the atmosphere.  (Bellow is one of the many videos I have recorded of the show. If the upload doesn't work, here is the link:https://photos.app.goo.gl/Ir47Jh9wk83nN9Ah1 )

Week 7 - The Gym

Earlier this week, I decided to go to the gym to work out. I started off my routine by running a mile. Because of the small size of the track, it takes 11 laps to make up a mile. Since I was going around the track so many times, I began to notice little things about it, like the lighting. The photos that I took show opposite sides of the track. What I found interesting was that in the left photo, the ceiling lights were used to light the area while on the right, the big windows were used as the light source. The ceiling lights were actually turned off on the window side of the track. On the left, everything looks very flat and somewhat dull. The details of the room seem to all blend into each other and are lost. This is compared to the picture on the right - the colors seem more vibrant. I also feel like I'm able to distinguish more details on the right because everything is separate . For instance, in the right photo I could see that the basketball court below is further down, but in the left photo, I'm not so sure. The natural lighting from the windows made everything look more dimensional because there are shadows, unlike the photo on the left where everything looks washed out. I thought it was really interesting how this little detail made such a big difference on how the room looked.

Week 6: Obsession

Obsession is difficult, because I think it looks different for everyone. How do we identify obsession, and then turn it into something we can see in front of us. I happened to catch this photo this weekend while I was working in San Diego, and I was instantly attracted to the symbolism of this photo. Fire is passionate and uncontrollable — which are two qualities that I identify with obsession. I particularly like the quality of the light in this photo, that the brightest part in the center is framed by hot blue fire. The light captured expresses movement and depth.

Week 6 Obsession

When I think of Obsession conveyed with light, I think for sharp, angled and repetitive. This picture was take at the segerstrom center for the arts. This light sculpture really portrays obsession with its harsh lines sharp angles going horizontal and vertical. The light coming from the sculpture also creating sharp shadow blow that you can not see in this photo. Also I love that the arches are in direct position of the sharp line and angles of the Sculpture.

Week 6 - Obsession

This week's theme was hard for me because I kept asking myself what obsession had to do with lighting. So, I decided to look up the definition of the word "obsessed." To be obsessed is to "preoccupy or fill the mind of (someone) continually, intrusively, and to a troubling extent." This picture that I took outside of my friend's house reminds me of that definition. The first thing that came into mind when I read it was a stalker. A stalker preoccupies their mind with someone to a troubling extent. In the image, my shadow happen to be cast on the door, which made it look like someone mysterious is standing outside of a house - like they are waiting to catch their prey. The shadows of the trees add to this creepy image because the shape of the leaves are reminiscent of sharp claws. This makes it look like there are other creatures waiting for the victim inside the house. Since this picture was taken at night, the dim light source of the streetlamp on the sidewalk makes everything look that much darker and scarier. The image doesn't give much information as to who exactly is outside of this house or why they are so obsessed with whoever's inside.

Week 6: Obsession 

In thinking about this week’s theme, I pondered what obsession looks like in our lives. Yes, we all have things we are obsessed with— but being obsessed with a person, or a tv show, or revenge, or habits all manifest themselves as very different actions. And yet, we describe all of these with the same phrase: obsession. Which got me thinking about the action and emotion of obsession itself. It is all-consuming, constant, aggressive. It cannot be stopped. It forces itself, doesn’t take know for an answer. And it’s not pretty. It reveals all the flaws. When I came across this light outside my office the other night, it reminded me of that action. It’s a light, shining very harshly and brightly. It is ugly in color and tone. It is shining a very forceful light into a dark void, and making you see everything. It is showing all the bumps and holes and unevenness of the wall. It is causing shadows. It is persistent, even though it is so dark out, to make the wall as bright as possible. And something about looking up into it, I felt mesmerized and drawn in, which also reminded me of a moth being drawn to a flame— it’s inescapable. This angle in particular being askew also was important to me as I took the picture, with the way you feel slightly off balance. I saw the light on this diagonal which made me feel all the more fascinated by it. And in taking the photo, there’s that aura around the light source too, which I didn’t like at first, but now in examining it more deeply, it does give that idea of radiance and outward pull of that source of obsession, pulling you in. Obsession is just like that. It’s a persistent source, that you feel drawn into, and you can’t stop it, and it reveals all of your flaws. 

Week 6: Obsession

I took this photo last night of my housemate (with her consent, of course!) using her laptop in bed. It reminded me of this week's theme, "obsession," because of the way so many people are obsessed with using their phones or laptops in bed and in the dark- I am definitely guilty of this as well. The light from her laptop cast a soft glow of bluish light over her face and upper body from my perspective, but from my own experience I know that from her perspective the light looked harsh and bright, especially since she had opened her laptop only a couple minutes prior. Modern technology makes it so easy to read articles, watch videos, or scroll through social media in dark areas, and I do it all the time too. Though it's similar to using a flashlight to read books in bed, doing that took much more effort- you had to sit up, hold the book in one hand, and hold the flashlight in another. Reading like this while lying down may not be impossible, but from personal experience it took much more effort and it wasn't exactly comfortable. Phones and even laptops make it possible to read and do much more while lying down and using just one hand, which makes using these devices in the dark much more tempting. In addition, since it's comfortable, it's easy to do so for longer periods of time, even hours on end. It makes me worried for my eyesight, since I know that looking at bright screens in the dark isn't good for my eyes, but at the same time it's a hard habit to break. Recently I've been trying to limit my phone usage in the dark to only a couple minutes, or I'll go turn on a light. It's kind of ironic that I'm writing about this actually, because I've been using my phone and laptop so often while sitting backstage during Chess (I'm actually backstage right now), and there's no way to make it brighter unless there's a particularly bright cue on stage.

Week 6 Obsession

 After working on "An Iliad" I went with my roommate to this nightclub called "TIME" in Costa Mesa. I have always been obsessed with the lights used in night clubs. The many movers, LED's, lasers, LED Strips, LED Pucks, and Pixel mapping help enhance the atmosphere. This club in particular had very beautiful color choices, and use of effects. The chandelier above the dance floor also synced up to the music, and it was simply breathtaking. I have always been obsessed with music, and I always loved cueing to music. I want to improve my ability to catch shifts within music and be able to support it with appropriate effects, and knowing what color pallet best supports the song. "TIME" focused more on House music, which has a fairly constant beat, and a constant drop. House music is very similar to Trap music, which makes it difficult to catch shifts within the song. In the club I found myself listening to the music and expecting when shifts should happen and how kinetic the lights should have been. There were times were the lights didn't shift, when the music did. Yet over all it was so beautiful, and I would simply die to get my hands on all these fixtures, and be able to play around with them. Also, something interesting that I noticed was that the exit signs were all green instead of your usual red, which I found very clever. The green blended better with the color pallet they used, and it stood out enough that we were able to notice where all the exit signs were.

Week 5 Shiny Marketing

Light has away of drawing our attention. I was out watching a game and my eye was caught by these copper cups reflecting the light from the bar and the tv.  The light was intriguing and beautiful. Most copper cups are left under the bar or chilled, but here, this company left them out where they could draw the eye. The location worked very well before half time the rack was almost empty. At a restaurant Moscow Mules are not a big seller and are quite expensive and do not pair well with meals. I truly believe they placement on the bar and lit up was a great marketing tool. If I was not the designated driver I would have been sold too. 

Week 5 Shadow Play

I really wish this picture could have been a video because it was so fascinating watching the fire flicker and creating the movement of the shadows through the texture of the glass on the candle, and the jar in front of it. The glass on the candle has a nice linear bark texture, and the glass jar has a nice domed smooth surface. Inside the jar there are small metal LED lights, which adds a different layer of texture and shadow within the glass jar. I was always curious to see how much texture could work together without being too muddy. These three different textures work really well together because one has a linear effect, the other as a smooth marble texture, and the other a thin wired texture. Although all are on top of each other, there is still a good sense of isolation for each texture. It would be fun to recreate or experiment with different textures with gobos and see how each different one could tie in together and still have it's diversity and prominence.

Week 5: Streetlights

I was walking back home from rehearsal the other night when I noticed these two streetlights in close proximity to each other. I found it interesting how, when juxtaposed with each other, the lights were so different in terms of warmth. The streetlight on the left, which I feel like would have seemed white to me had it been on its own, looked very cool and blue. On the other hand, the streetlight on the right seemed extremely warm and orange to me, much more so than if it were on its own. in addition, the area it illuminated seemed smaller than the area illuminated by the cooler light. This got me thinking about how much of how we perceive color is in relation to other colors and the importance of being able to physically see our lighting compositions instead of just planning them out in our heads, because two colors that may look great on their own could very likely be affected by color shifting when put together. 

Seeing these two lamps together also got me thinking about how streetlights will be in the future. I'm assuming that we'll be using fewer and fewer sodium vapor lamps as they get replaced with LED lamps, and I wonder what effects that will have. The warm orange of the sodium vapor lamps are definitely easier on the eyes at nighttime than the somewhat harsh bluish white of the LED lamp, but perhaps having a more jarring light would be better, as it could help both pedestrians and drivers alike stay awake in late hours. Then again, maybe having only LED lamps in the future would shift our perception of white light so that the light from the LED lamp wouldn't seem so harsh anymore, for better or for worse.

Week 5 - Claire Trevor Theater

I took this photo a couple days ago while we were waiting during the Halloween project. Usually, the class waits outside, but we had to seek shelter in the Claire because it started to rain. This past week was unusually cold, given that the week before had temperatures in the 100s. The thing that intrigued me the most were the shadows that all the cables and fixtures cast on the walls. I liked how it made the space look much messier than it actually was - because the color of the cables and their shadows were very similar, it looked like there were more cables hanging than there actually was. I also like how the lighting made the room look so vast. Towards the bottom of the photo, everything is clear and bright and visible. But when you start to look up, everything gets a little darker and you're not exactly sure what is up there or how high up the ceiling is. The dimness along with the shadows create a sense of mystery. Lastly, the photo overall is pretty dark because of all the greys and blacks, which I thought captured the essence of the rainy weather outside that day. The colors along with all the shadows created by the lighting made the space seem stark and gloomy.

Week 5: My first DCP

This week my focus has been almost entirely on getting my first DCP, Heights, up and running. It is so important to me that in my time here, I immediately jumped into the deep end and started directing a show right out of the gates. It has been a huge learning curve in terms of learning how everything operates here and what rehearsals feel like and how the actors, designers, and stage managers here all operate. It’s been great to get this chance right away, to help inform the rest of my time here. Caitlin Hemming was my lighting designer, and so we had to work together to find solutions for how to tell this story in the confines of the Nixon Theater, with limited tech time. It was important to me to really make it feel like night in a busy city. That we are on a roof top, with a dark sky, but that there is a buzz of light emanating from below. And of course, feeling the cool night colors while also being able to see these characters go on their journeys, and find ways to both heighten the emotions throughout of love, isolation, memory, reflection, etc. With only a handful of down lights and a handful of front lights, it was a tall order, but we did our best. This is my favorite look in the play, it’s the very last moment, where each of the three characters are at their most isolated. After several conversations of going back and forth, not knowing who is going to side with who, with betrayal and anger and hope and control… we finally get to this moment. I wanted to have each character in their own isolated pool of light, but still stay in the realistic world that we are living in for the play. This cue did just that for me. The whole stage still feels like the same vocabulary of nighttime colors, but the warms/no colors are only up on each of the characters, leaving the rest of the cool night separate them. Lighting does so much to help tell a story. In all my work, I have learned to really love that, and see the magic that good lighting can bring to a process, both in literal and in evocative, with colors and intensity and mood. While our plot was limited, we still found some really nice moments. And I look forward to my next show, and continuing to develop my work with Lighting Designers. 

Week 5: Kinetic

UC Irvine, CA.

This week I have chosen kinetic as my topic. I chose this after taking these photos on my phone, outside Studio A, on campus tonight. I was walking to my car after a particularly long night, and caught the light through the trees projecting shadows on the wall. In this photo, the image appears fractured and the shadows feel kinetic – as if caught mid-motion. I love this adjective because it is so descriptive; it is so full of movement and energy. In the theatre nothing is static, everything has movement and energy, so this topic feels appropriate for theatricality. It is hard, however, to capture kinetic in a photo, because the nature of photography is stillness – a moment captured in one frame, and then gone.

UC Irvine, CA.

The shadows of this image are expressive to me, with a quality that is mysterious and painterly. I love the image for its ambiguity, because within its mystery there exists something that is much more powerful than the clarity of an object, or even a person – and that is expression. Therein lies the nature of theatre, something that has its own energy (its own "kineticism"). The information presented in the image is unimportant, so the feelings it extracts are what give it life.