Video Lighting Tips
My name is Stuart Richardson – I've been installing custom audio / video in Southern California for over 15 years (Los Angeles and Orange County), and I've seen a lot of good and bad on the road. If you are interested in learning more about the best whole-house A / V and automation of lighting, read on to fill up on the latest and greatest …
Probably the best place to start is at first, with a description of some of the things you should expect from a modern set of house system: the electronic heart of luxury homes today is the low voltage distribution box – it is a centralized location on the wall (usually formed steel) which holds the record for home runs most of the TV, telephone and network cabling in the house. When I say "home run", that means that any group of cables that are initiated in one place and the fans there – this is the method preferred by cables today's standards (though not all the wiring needs to be run home …). Along with the cabling, distribution of this panel also contains the terminating equipment different for each type of signal: RG6 cabling for television run to an RF splitter and / or amplifier, telephone cables (CAT5 usually) converge in a variety of blocks telephone and Ethernet wiring (CAT5 or CAT5e more) go into a network switch or hub (in combination with the router or the device gate link).
Audio / Video wiring is normally run at a different focal point, usually near the main house home theater system. This includes speaker wiring in many different rooms as you can imagine, in combination with different control wiring (typically CAT5) for centralized remote control of equipment A / V Most home systems are strictly distributed audio, but higher than today-of-the-line systems also offer video distributed – This allows, For example, someone in one of the bedrooms above to see a DVD of the ground floor of the main system, while listening to the audio speakers in-wall/in-ceiling.
Of course, the home theater system is the key – the best systems will have a projection or plasma display. If this is a projected image, the screen can be fixed (perhaps behind a motorized curtain, as in big theaters) or one that extends automatically when the projector is on. Speakers can be any combination of in-wall, ceiling, or cabinet speakers conventional style – this includes the most recent of thunderous subwoofers (which can also be hidden behind walls or ceilings – or under the floor …). The sound processor must be able to decode a variety of signals, including AC3, DTS, and some other less popular formats.
Remote controls have come a long way, and high-end systems should include what is now called "positive control": this type of system actually receives feedback of the various components of the system (through a thin wire mesh sensor current detection signal, etc.) to determine the status of food, then uses logical if / then / else conditional control. Here's an example: you enter the theater to see a movie, simply press "View DVD" on the remote control. This sends a signal to a processor, who discovers that someone left in the tuner and television. Compensates for this by converting on the TV, change the input tuner for 'DVD' and press 'Play' in the DVD player. Then the lighting dims 90%. This is what is considered an "intelligent system", and can be found with names like Elan and Niles.
And that brings us to the lighting control – The name is big Lutron. This company offers some systems and methods for dynamically controlling the lighting in any home – the most popular uses RadioRA drivers. These wall plates include high-end and / or table top remote control using RF (Radio Frequency) cable control relays lighting from a distance, and can be controlled by remote video and audio for the real theater experience. One of the other benefits of Lutron Wall plates is the ability to control up to 5 switches in a single gang unit.
Other features of the latest whole-house systems include surveillance-distributed: imagine being in the back of a big house and the doorbell rings. Instead of dropping everything just to know he is a aggressive lawyer, you just saw in the 7 "driver wall color before you and see who is there. Pick up the phone and talk to them (through a speaker in the door assembly) – without ever leaving. A then tap the touch screen once to see if the baby is awake in the camera 2, or see all four cameras on a single quad-view!
Obviously we have come a long way since the rotary volume controls that you see on the walls of older houses – they can still be useful and save some money if you're not hungry for new roles.
About the author:
In an attempt at becoming a modern Renaissance/Vitruvian Man, I have tried to open my mind to all forms of learning for as long as I can remember. My first interests were science and music, when I studied biology and cosmology, and learned to play the piano, guitar and saxophone. I went on to study electronics/electromechanical control in the military, after which I got a start in the Audio/Video and Home Automation industry.
Along the way I became increasingly interested in spirituality and ancient religion – my involvement became more and more esoteric as time went on. I am now a practicing Qabalist and Alchemist, although I find it difficult to focus on these things as I’m constantly bombarded by the incessant stimuli of the modern world.
As an author, I have written two books (as of 2007): “The Marriage of Religion and Science” (non-fiction) and “The Aelf Club” (historical fiction). I plan on turning the latter into a multi-volume set.
I’m also very interested in movie-making – I’ve produced many family and music videos, and hope to make a feature film someday.
Video Production Lighting : Outdoor Lighting Tips for Video Production
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Window Lighting Tips Training DVD Video by Wurzell $51.15 |
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Total Invisible to Human Eyes & Complete Stealth Spy Gear! — Plug-n-Play — Turn your existing cameras into the covert nightvision video surveillance gear & extend your nightvision range of your existing IR nightvision cameras — Most of other illuminators that emit Red Glow on the tip of IR LED will immediately be caught by thieves or intruders at night — This heavy duty wide angle IR illuminator comes w/ 140pcs of Invisible IR LED & ideal for lighting up a wide open yard $149.00 ***Special Note: Your camera must feature or capable to turn it on manually if available any one of the required specification among Daynight function, AGC (Auto Gain Control), ALG (Auto Level Control), Auto Change of Color Video to B&W at Night, or IR-cut Filtered in order to view the IR light. Additionally it is strongly recommended the LUX level of your camera offers at least 0.01 LUX or lower … |
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Invisible to Human Eyes & Complete Stealth Spy Gear! — Plug-n-Play — Turn your existing cameras into Covert Nightvision Video Surveillance Gear & Extend your nightvision range. — No Red Glow on the tip of IR LED, not as others do & No indication in the darkness — Most of other illuminators that emit Red Glow on the tip of IR LED will immediately be caught by thieves or intruders at night — This bullet type all weather IR illuminator comes w/ 104pcs of Invisible IR LED & ideal for lighting up a focused spot $119.00 ***Special Note: Your camera must feature or capable to turn it on manually if available any one of the required specification among Daynight function, AGC (Auto Gain Control), ALG (Auto Level Control), Auto Change of Color Video to B&W at Night, or IR-cut Filtered in order to view the IR light. Additionally it is strongly recommended the LUX level of your camera offers at least 0.01 LUX or lower … |
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