A theatrical set is a combination of engineering, practicality and imagination that, at its best, becomes part of a show’s narrative as it helps tell it. The ubiquity of digital video technology means that your event can benefit from the same attention-grabbing visual techniques that wow Broadway audiences. With the right content, your brand, message and story can fill screens, dance across walls and create long-lasting impressions in your audience’s memories. Even better, your content can be transported to new venues, re-used in electronic communication, broadcast on web and re-purposed as a promotional tool after your event is over. What is a digital stage set? ‘Digital Stage Set’ is a catch-all term for a combination of techniques, equipment and strategies that all use digitally created graphic content to enhance a live event. A Digital Stage Set can be any combination of static, animated or video content displayed on screens, projected on surfaces or animated across LED lighting fixtures. The options with projection alone are almost limitless! With one projector you can present an animation on a central screen all the while projection static branding on two peripheral screens. Set the scene of your event The first thing you need to consider when using digital sets is the venue you intend to deploy them in and the projection space that allows. Small function spaces - will be well served by projection to a modest central screen, augmented by strategically placed flat-panel displays. Larger theatre-style presentation spaces - can support multiple projection screens and projection onto walls. Extremely large ballroom or gala centres - allow you to stretch your imagination. They can house multiple sized custom screens, curved screens and projection mapped immersive visuals, all on a grand scale. Designing to your message The aim of your event is to convey your message, a digital set is intended to enhance it not outshine it. The development of your content and its technical implementation should go hand in hand. The best AV companies now have graphic designers, computer animator and video content creators in-house, which is the ideal team for enhancing your message. Take your speaker’s PowerPoint or Keynote presentations as a starting point and work through them with the content creators. They will pick out themes, selected static or animated visuals, highlight the most important sections and help structure the presentation with visual markers. Making use of the natural breaks You obviously don’t want to subvert attention during your speakers presentations but there are several natural breaks in the proceedings; introductions, walk- ups speaker changes that allow you to use the whole Digital Stage Set to entertain the crowd. For example, introducing a speaker allows you to use all visual displays in unison to immerse the whole venue in a single visual sequence. An image can traverse the room making heads spin, light and fire can rise from every corner in your event. All these transitions should be made with tight, precise timings before bringing the focus right back to the speaker. Making an experience for your guests Envisage this: Video operators ensure that all presentations are queued up on a central computer and can be edited at a moments notice if necessary. All of your creative content will be deployed across projectors and screens via media servers run through powerful video mapping software. Lights go down, animation and video come up and your first speaker will take to the stage, right in the middle of the digital set you have created. Your presenter speaks. Slow video loops of your logo and slideshows of images pertinent to your theme run unobtrusively on secondary displays, quietly setting the scene in your audiences peripheral vision. At the moment when the major new product/direction/award is unveiled all displays leap to life in concert with the key image and text. As the details are explained, different points and illustrations make their way to different parts of the room, adjusting and focusing the audience’s attention as necessary. As the presentation ends, the room becomes one image, surrounding the crowd in the environment of the idea. Take your digital set with you Marketing memory After the applause has died down and the audience has left, your Digital Stage Set is ready to keep working for you. You should follow-up your attendees via email, framed in the same style and content as the event and send out a link to video highlights. Make sure you tie their experience into your emailed content. You have created a memory that is branded with your visuals in each attendee’s mind, and every time you communicate with them make sure to use these same images. If your content and message were compelling, they will recall the event even more fervently. Portable set If your event is travelling its easy to take your digital set with you and adapt it as needed to the new venue. Projections can be scaled up and down according to room size and available surfaces. Similarly, images that were split across multiple devces can be amalgamated to one or vice-versa. Digital Sets are incredibly malleable and coherent content with a clear message with translate well no matter what media is carrying it. Your digital content is now a business asset that cost a fraction of its physical counterpart with the ability to be scaled down to an iPad or up to an arena. Digital Stage Set Event Packages - Digital Banners & Widescreens Staging Connections offer two Digital Stage Set packages for Digital Banners and Widescreens. In-house content creators work with you with options for either static or animated imagery. Standard display options include projecting from one projector onto multiple screens or from multiple projectors onto ultra wide screens, if your venue can physically accommodate them. In all cases and all combinations, Staging Connections work with you to bring out the heart of your message, and enhance your event with the right combination lighting, sound and decoration to fit with your theme. Unique boxes The standard package does not limit your ability to create something truly unique. Staging Connections’ creative team and event planners love to extend themselves by creating totally individual events that create an environment for the organisation’s message. Whether it is bringing a character to life, creating a new display concept for a revolutionary product or finding a way to communicate a radical idea with absolute clarity, the Digital team love a challenge. That’s the great thing about the digital visions tools of modern AV – it’s never been easier to bring the hardest-to-image concepts to life and it’s never been more affordable to create a theatrical experience for your audience that’s every bit as entertaining as a night on Broadway. ... Read More

This year's annual gala dinner for the Adelaide Football Club was nothing short of a flying success. As a proud sponsor of the Crows, our Staging Connections Adelaide team pulled out all stops to make this year's event the best yet. On top of our stunning AV design, the night was MC'd by Nova's Ryan 'Fitzy' Fitzgerald and with two performances by The Superjesus the guests were treated to a truly enthralling evening. *Author's Note: After publishing this blog post, the much-loved and respected Adelaide Crows Coach, Phil Walsh, sadly passed away. As a proud sponsor of Adelaide Football Club, Staging Connections send our thoughts and well-wishes to the family and friends of Phil Walsh, as well as the staff, players and wider Crows family. #WeFlyAsOne A spectacular Gala Dinner to celebrate the 25th Season of the Adelaide Football Club. The Brief The Arena floor of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre was the perfect venue for this event. The sheer size of the venue made it possible to design, create and deliver a stunning Gala Dinner setting for 800 VIPs and guests. One of the challenges we often face is displaying various multimedia content and live camera feeds simultaneously on stage. Staging Connections team were engaged to design, create and deliver a Gala Dinner setting for 800 VIPs and guests on the Arena floor of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. We were required to celebrate their 25th season by using predominantly silver colouring whilst also highlighting the club's colours of red, yellow and blue. Being one of the club's major fundraising events for the year, we were also tasked with delivering a high impact stage look with practical vision systems to display silent auction progress and engage the audience in the evening’s events. The Solution Th high impact stage set using five projection screen surfaces suspended in a staggered array allowed for mapping of projection over the entire set or individual screens. Together with the 3 standard projection screens around the room, this allowed for video playback, sponsor acknowledgement, silent auction real time updates, Event Tweet and live to screen camera images. To incorporate the silver of 25 years, we utilised aluminium trussing around the screens, in the air and around the circular ceiling feature that featured an 8m wide projection of the AFC’s 25 year logo. LED lighting enabled all truss to be lit in a dramatic silver colour and allowed the room to be washed in changing colours depending on the events during the night. Event Tweet was used in both landscape and portrait formats on screens around the room to engage the audience with the evening’s proceedings. An alias twitter account (@AFC_Gala Insider) was created and curated by Staging Connections during the evening. Images of certain auction items were tweeted during the night as well as announcing major auction items as they were auctioned. These tweets together with tweets from attendees were moderated and then displayed on the room screens using Event Tweet. All of this combined for a fitting setting for The Superjesus to kick off the night, the auctioneers to auction the major items, a fun filled panel-type quiz game hosted by popular radio station, Nova FM's, Ryan 'Fitzy' Fitzgerald and a party band to finish off the night. The 25th year of the Adelaide Football Club was certainly celebrated in style. Love looking at beautiful events? Check out some of our recent work and get your daily dose of event inspiration by following us on Instagram! ... Read More

We are thrilled to forge our new partnership with Sea World Resort's Conference Centre and invest in the latest technology for events in this new conference centre on the Gold Coast, and all existing function spaces at Sea World Resort and the Paradise Room at Sea World Theme Park. Sea World Resort Conference Centre recently hosted VIP corporate event planners for their inaugural event, and we look forward to an ongoing commitment to providing unique and outstanding events with our wonderful venue partner. The Event Brief The Staging Connections team were engaged to design, create and deliver the farewell lunch for the Day 3 famil program for Gold Coast Tourism Corporation - setting for 80 VIP guests in the new Conference Centre at Sea World Resort. Caroline Duveau-Clayton, Sales Manager Conference and Events at Sea World Resort, wanted to create the essence of Sea World Resort, basing the theme on ‘Ocean’ elements and also integrating ‘fun’ elements to the lunch to encompass Village Roadshow Theme Parks, the parent company. The Audio Visual Solution VIP guests had a memorable welcome at the entrance by various characters from the Village Roadshow theme parks; magnificent horses and cattle dogs from Australian Outback Spectacular, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles from Sea World Water Park plus Marilyn, Austin from Warner Bros Movie World with some farm animals from Paradise Country also making an appearance. A red carpet marked the grand entry, and this newly constructed building was officially opening its doors for their first corporate event! To add a touch of theatrics to this memorable event, the entrance and spacious pre-function area was lined with black and yellow hazard tape, bright orange witches-hats and workmen who hi-jacked the stage during the welcome speech. With this the workman, started a percussive dance utilising various work tools, culminating in a short tap routine which finished with them announcing the centre is now open for business, tearing off the hazard tape and opening the glass doors. Entrance hall set-up with plasma screens The room was filled with subtle blue lighting, based on underwater colours and patterns. The tables featured a blue crisp and white stripe runner and a cylindrical vase filled with coral, beautiful shells and star-fish filled with water and placed on an illuminate light box. 'Ocean' themed table centerpeices with blue wash lighting to enhance theme. An underwater ocean scene was projected into all screens and overlayed with the Sea World Resort logo, creating a beautiful ambience whist guests wined and dined. Theme of the night was 'Ocean' with abundance of seafood on offer for guests. Entertainment included a History of Music routine by “Those Tap Guys” and an impromptu dance routine by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles filled the room with high-energy, leaving guests laughing, clapping and dancing. Left: Those Tap Guys performing on stage. Right: VIP guests treated to buffet experience prepared by world-class chefs. If you are interested in hosting your next event at Sea World Resort Conference Centre please visit Venue Locator. ... Read More

Yellow buildings have been spotted in Tasmania! If you happened to be driving at night around some of Tasmania’s major cities you may have noticed some prominent buildings glowing a brilliant yellow. This stunt was all in the name of raising awareness for road safety in Tasmania – a campaign we were thrilled to play part in. National Road Safety Week ran from May 3 – 8 this year, with the aim of increasing awareness about the need for all road users to be safe and courteous on the roads. Last year, 36 people died in road crashes in Tasmania and 260 were injured. The road safety week was filled with activities thanks to the joint effort of the Road Safety Advisory Council, Tasmania Police, the RACT and Southern Cross Television. Staging Connections Area Manager for Tasmania, Fletcher Austin, says they were excited to be part of the campaign and to do what they can to shine a light on road safety. “We lit up several key buildings across Devenport, Hobart, Launceston, and Burnie. We used 9 x 500watt HUI Cyclonic’s with a yellow gel cover as well as LED flood lights situated in strategic positions to cast an elegant wash over the buildings,” he says. One of the buildings was Launceston Town Hall which became a beacon for the city. Launceston Town Hall during Road Safety Awareness Week Tasmania Header Image courtesy of Chris Lazarri referenced from Sarah Group ... Read More

Celebrities unite in support for men’s mental health at the Men in Black Ball. Staging Connections pulled out all the stops to deliver an impactful backdrop to the Men In Black Ball in support of men’s mental health and fight against depression with the Momentum Forum Events Australia charity. The signature black tie event included testimonial speakers, live bands and entertainment, a 3-course gourmet dinner. MCs for the night were Tim Gossage and Chiara Zaffino from Network 10. Staging Connections installed their latest design products, Event Backdrop at the event – a striking 6m x 3m illuminated screen with VIPs photographed in front. Guests were invited to ‘get social’ with Event Tweet – a platform for social media integration onto large format screens. Plus there was Staging Connections’ usual array of class-leading technology AV and design and produce the stand-out event at the Pan Pacific in Perth, 12 June 2015. Event Tweet kept audiences entertained and engaged throughout the night and extended the event into the social sphere. Glamorous celebrity guests and socialites were in attendance and bought the event and the charity into the spotlight. Carly Melderis, Staging Connections Pan Pacific Perth commented on the stunning event backdrop and the audience engagement throughout the night, “The impressive Event Backdrop could be seen from every angle and had a huge presence in the room. The team used moving and LED lights to compliment the backdrop and create a dynamic atmosphere. “The client wanted to increase the events presence on social media so our Event Tweet platform worked wonders. Once the guests saw their photo’s and posts appearing on screen everyone was getting involved, posting their photos and comments which was great to see. Event Backdrop was used as a spectacular branding solution on stage. Barbara McNaught, CEO and Founder of Momentum Forum Events Australia was delighted with the result and commented on how the team contributed their event, “The Men in Black Ball hosted 420 guests and had a five star quality and delivery. The service and food were excellent. The challenging amount of guests were handled very professionally by the team. We keep receiving very positive feedback from the guests. Great acknowledgement for Staging Connections for their contribution to the layout of the room as well as sound and visual.” Guests were treated to a fantastic performance by a Blues Bros. cover band. Table settings were clean and sophisticated with a touch of glitz and glamour added with the crystal ball centrepiece. ... Read More

For this year's annual conference, Capital S.M.A.R.T raised the benchmark when it comes to corporate events. Partnering with Staging Connections and other event specialists, they immersed their leadership team in a themed conference experience over two days, making a lasting impression and setting the bar high for conferences to come. Clever theming transforms a conference into an immersive event; delivering key messages in a dramatic and memorable way. Event Brief Staging Connections partnered with Capital S.M.A.R.T to assist with delivering their annual conference in 2015 for 120 members of their leadership team. The brief was simple, to support the Capital S.M.A.R.T event team produce an amazing conference experience by providing outstanding audio visual, staging and event design services. The conference objectives included: To recognise Capital S.M.A.R.T’s recent success and future plans, and To share the company direction and vision as they enter their 7th year of operation. Whilst it’s important to deliver an engaging experience for attendees, it is vital these key messages are communicated effectively and the best way to ensure this is by transforming a conference into an immersive event. An immersive event differs from a typical styled event, as the event theme is woven into every touch point, and not just the event day itself - from the invite, to the entrance way, the room environment, catering and post event communications. Event Solution Staging Connections worked alongside Capital S.M.A.R.T and several specialised event service providers to craft and deliver an immersive two day event. When these event services are used harmoniously, they truly transform your event into a memorable branded experience. As the objective underpinning the conference was to recognise the company’s achievements of celebrating entering their 7th year of operation and communicating the direction for 2017, Staging Connections worked with Capital S.M.A.R.T to bring their ‘007 Bond’ theme to life. This theme was integrated throughout every aspect and acted as the creative ‘glue’ tying everything together in one cohesive message across the multi-venue event. The Welcome Reception and concluding awards night were hosted at Park Hyatt Sydney and The ivy, venue partners of Staging Connections. As the main conference demanded more space to cater for the days’ activities, it was held at Fox Studios’ Stage 7 – specifically chosen in keeping with the 007 theme. Working in conjunction with the event partners, the ‘007 Bond’ theme was woven into every aspect of the event and it was Staging Connections’ role to enhance this theme via first-class audio visual solutions, staging services and event design. Right from the Welcome Reception at Park Hyatt Sydney, attendees were treated to a teaser of the 007 Bond theming with eye-catching creative banners and on-screen graphics created in-house by Capital S.M.A.R.T. It was during the main conference at Fox Studios where the Staging Connections team truly shone. Numerous audio visual, digital, staging, and design elements were employed to create the captivating event environment. The end result of the collaboration was a truly immersive conference where the audience was enveloped in the theme, the brand and its vision, ensuring the event’s talkability for months to come. Features of the event included: Famous James Bond quotes hung on easels lining the red carpet entrance. A dramatic lighting sequence grabbed the audience’s attention and revealed silhouettes of James Bond and his three Bond girls. A kabuki drop, which on queue to the Bond music, swiftly revealed the main meeting space, which also housed a dramatically-lit Aston Martin DB9 Vantage hero car with licence plate “007MI6” . Intelligent moving lights gave the conference a Hollywood film ambience. Custom-designed furniture in the brands colours were surrounded by black drapes, evoking an intimate feel to the space. New company branding was revealed with logos projected through gobos. The main presentation screen was flanked by two 4m x 2.4m internally-illuminated Event Backdrops – which are high-resolution images printed onto large canvas screens. Guests revelled in the continuation of the themed experience at the Awards Night at The ivy, with James Bond movie highlights projected along the entrance hallway. Staging Connections designed custom martini centrepieces overflowing with crystals highlighted with table pinspots to reflect the theme’s bold colours. To maximise the return on investment and ensure the attendees’ journey was completely themed, Staging Connections’ cost-efficient Event Backdrops were utilised at the conference sessions, and as the stage background and entry foyer feature at the awards night. Guests had their photographs taken in front of the striking 007 Bond themed Event Backdrops, with many sharing their photos on social media, lifting the brand’s engagement and social media penetration. Staging Connections integrated a variety of sensory elements into the conference, focusing the attendees’ attention away from everyday life and transporting them to an immersive, memorable environment. By weaving a uniting theme through all parts of the conference, the key messages were reinforced at every stage, delivering a stronger brand experience for everyone involved. What did the client say? “The event was a fantastic experience for our leadership team, and provided a clear message on the future direction of S.M.A.R.T. The development and execution of the weekend with Staging Connections was a collaborative and efficient process. They were able to turn our vision into a reality with cutting edge technology and industry leading knowledge. The entire team at staging connections were fantastic to work with.” Evan Camilleri, COO – Capital S.M.A.R.T “First class service from the whole The Stagging Connections team, the smallest of detail made a real difference. We were amazed to see how quickly Fox Studio’s Stage 7 was transformed from concept to reality so quickly!” Carmel Cannizzaro, Program (Event) Manager - Capital S.M.A.R.T Organising a corporate event or conference? Contact Staging Connections today to see how we can transform your event into an extraordinary experience. ... Read More

...To raise much needed funds for the Children's Cancer Institute! This year our fearless leader took part in the Dare the Boss fundraiser in support of the Children’s’ Cancer Institute. The Staging Connections team set a challenging target of raising $2,000 in 4 short weeks. We are proud to announce we blew this target out of the water, raising a staggering $6,427.38. The reward for our efforts was seeing our Managing Director, Tony Chamberlain, don the magnificent ‘Chicken Suit’ and giving an impromptu performance of the Chicken Dance. Pictured: Managing Director of Staging Connections, Tony Chamberlain, with President of Freeman AV, Ken Sanders, (right) We would like to extend a huge thank-you to all who donated, including staff, clients and friends of the Staging Connections Group. A special mention to Freeman – our new owners – for courageously committing to matching whatever amount we raised. Without your support we would not have achieved such an impressive amount nor witness a performance that will stick in our minds forever. Dare the Boss is a unique fundraising opportunity for companies to raise vital funds for childhood cancer research while having some fun with their Boss during International Childhood Cancer Awareness Month (September). It was a fantastic experience and we highly recommend all companies to get on board and band together to help the Children’s Cancer Institute end childhood cancer. The Children’s Cancer Institute is the only independent medical research institute in Australia wholly dedicated to putting an end to childhood cancer. Sadly, every year more than 950 children and adolescents in Australia will be diagnosed with cancer. Every week nearly three Australian children will die of cancer. These are facts you can’t ignore. Thank you again for your support and we look forward to next year’s challenge! ... Read More

For their 2015 Open Day, the University of Tasmania wanted to invite the world. The purpose of the event was to showcase the breadth of study and courses available and to provide an engaging experience between prospective students, teachers and alumni. With this in mind, the Staging Connections team were engaged to deliver a webcast portal to allow students from across the globe to experience and interact with the University of Tasmania. Staging Connections Tasmania recently designed and built a live webcast capturing the presentations across two theatres concurrently. The live recordings were streamed onto a branded webcast skin which displayed the speaker and their presentation side-by-side. The aim of the webcast was to provide future students with an insightful look into each course, hearing from lecturer's and past alumni. The webcast also allowed viewers to leave comments and share the videos and have attracted approximately 1000 views per presentation. We've explained previously the monetary benefits of webcasting your event, and now the University of Tasmania have an online catalogue of course overviews available for prospective students around the globe to view and share with their friends. This is great content for the Uni which they can repurpose for future marketing and promotional campaigns. What did the client say? "Great service and communication through the whole process from planning to delivery and follow-up." Staging Connections currently offers the most customisable webcast platform in the Australian market. For more information on our webcasting services. View Webcast ... Read More

Have you ever dreamt of hosting a conference or awards night in New York City, Paris, or even Marrakesh?! Whilst this will always remain a dream for some meeting planners, our talented stylists share some clever ways you can transport your guests for a fraction of the cost! Destination Styling: Transporting your guests to a new place Take your guests away with you to an exotic location! Popular 2016 destinations will include Rio, Morocco and San Francisco. Centrepiece and table styling will be key for these destinations! A statement ceiling installation and stage look will tie the look cohesively and make an impact. Remember to give your lighting design some thought as it will create the mood for your event. Soft furnishings will also create a comfortable space for your guests, try using coloured silks to drape over lounge furniture and intricate Moroccan ottomans to enhance your theme. Time Travel Styling: Go Back in Time Pick an era and go back in time, popular eras for this event season will include 50’s rock’n’roll and 70’s disco. 50’s style is all about transporting your guests to a time where everyone did the Lindy Hop and wore poodle skirts, try combining checked print with soft baby pinks and powder blue for authenticity. The most important elements for this look are the dance floor, props as well as furniture styling and design. Disco is king in the 70's! Try combining bright vibrant neon colours as well as a ceiling installation of disco balls to create a sensational event. Remember to include floral patterns and prints into your event and try using multimedia projection to recreate a psychedelic atmosphere. Use 70>’s floral inspired patterned cushions or bold rugs to create statement designs at your next event. Retro 50’s will rely heavy on the set design. Try creating a 50’s American diner with a black and white check dance floor. Use red vinyl seating and a jukebox as well as a milkshake bar to really hit it home. Colour palette for this look should consist of pastel blue, pink, yellow and green. Key Styling Tip: Soft furnishings are your friends! Soft furnishings are essential in creating inviting spaces. The trick with soft furnishings is to use them in a way which compliments to existing interiors present. This is a cost effective way of changing up your in house venue furniture if you are trying to be budget conscience. On the other hand, printed textiles are fantastic to adding details to your event. Textile choices can include banquet overlays, napkins or even carpet to really elevate the colour palette or corporate branding! Related Articles Catwalk to Trackside: Spring Racing Carnival Event Trends Trending themes for Corporate Christmas Parties Event Styling Trends for 2015 For more styling ideas visit Event Styling and Theming or view examples of our Recent Work. ... Read More

Great lighting is the foundation of a truly spectacular event. When it comes to creating the right atmosphere for your wedding ceremony and reception, using the right lighting features and techniques is crucial. But with so many options and ways to light an event, how do you know what the right lighting solution is? When planning your wedding, stress levels are already piqued so our experienced Technical Event Director, Rocco Anzellotti has developed a list of only 6 things to think about when planning your wedding lighting. Weddings don't come cheap. As we try to recreate the beautiful scenes from our favourite romance movies, we have to be realistic on what's achievable for the everyday couple without multimillion dollar production companies behind them. Earlier this year the Herald Sun reported the average cost of a wedding for Australian couples is now $65, 482. And that's not taking into consideration the recent wedding blow-out of the year by Auburn deputy mayor Salim Mehaje which has estimated to come in at around $200,000 - conservatively speaking. The Shopping Trolley - Setting your wedding budget Before even going down the path of deciding what lighting to use, you and your partner will need to set a wedding budget you're comfortable with. The next step is to then break that budget down and allocate amounts to the main areas - catering, venue, lighting, AV, dress etc. This will help manage your expectations as you'll need to be realistic in what you want and what you can afford. Of course, we're not expecting you to know this straight up so it's important that you keep an open mind about how your wedding will look and let the event experts come up with the best lighting solution that fits your budget. A good way to approach this is to think of it as a shopping trolley, "I'll have a bit of this and a bit of that". What's in the shopping trolley? - Lighting Ideas for Weddings Now that your wedding lighting budget is set, the second thing to think about is deciding what you want to light. Making a pool of all the possible elements at your wedding that will need lighting will help define and prioritise the best lighting solution. 1. The Bridal Table The first thing to light is the bridal table as that’s why everyone is here. The Bride and Groom and the remaining wedding party are a major focus point. This should be listed as a priority. Throughout the wedding reception, all eyes are on the happy couple trying to catch their reactions to speeches or see the Best Man or Father of the Bride deliver their toast. That's why it's important you consider the most flattering lighting design for this table and don't rely on house lighting to make sure they are lit. Quite often people like to have a white drape behind the wedding table as a clean backdrop to the the table as the wall might not be very favourable to your wedding. So why not add some colour to those drapes. This can be done in a various way either colouring the whole drape or doing some uplighting which will have the look of beams of light going up the drape but with gaps between the colour. 2. The Wedding Cake The Wedding Cake is another hero feature that requires its own lighting. The cutting of the bridal cake is ritual at most weddings so it's imperative that you have enough lighting so no matter where your guests are seated or placed, they can clearly see what is happening. Not to mention the wedding cake is more of a form of art than baking item with the average cost coming in at around $500 according to the Bridal Guide. If you're investing this amount into the cake's design, you need to do it and it's creator, the justice in designing lighting that makes the cake stand out. 3. Decorating the Walls So thinking about uplighting now we have set the bridal table, cake and bridal table drape lighting, what about the room look? It can look quite nice to have some uplights around the room. This gives a nice ambience to the space. It also makes the people sitting in the room feel like its also part of the celebration. 4. Lighting for Wedding Toasts and Speeches Now a small one is the speeches, this can be done from the bridal table but if your planning not to then a light would be needed to highlight the person speaking. You don’t want the wedding video to have the brides father in the blotchy lighting and you don’t want the videographers light on the whole time 5. Introducing the newly weds! The walk-in. Depending on your location or wedding style, the walk-in can be a major part of a wedding. It's the first time you are introduced as a married couple in front of all your guests. In recent years, we've seen the walk-in extended to the entire wedding party - bridesmaids, parents with the bride and groom the last to enter. More often than not, they're supported by some backing music and moving lighting to give them the dramatic entrance they wanted and build excitement around the room - after all it is a joyous occasion! Lighting design is very scalable and can be tailored to suit your wedding venue and compliment the walk-in path. Why not get lights that can do the walk-in as well as light up the dance floor? 6. Lighting the dance floor Now that you have considered lighting for the formal parts of the wedding reception, the final element is the dance floor. If you've invested money into a decent live band or DJ you want to make sure you get a good crowd going. You can create a decent dance floor vibe with the use of some moving spot lights, gobos, coloured, lighting projections or even romantic festoon lighting for the more relaxed wedding. Good lighting for the dance floor delivers the same impact as you get in nights clubs by enhancing the music and overall atmosphere of the wedding. Last but not least is the wedding dance, or the bridal waltz for the more traditional weddings. This is your time to shine literally! Wouldn’t it be nice to have a moving spot light (called a Followspot) to follow you and your partner as your glide around the dance floor? By dimming all the other lights, this creates an immense impact as all of the wedding guest are focused on the couple. Another option here is to have custom gobo's made displaying the newly-wed's initials on the dance floor. The thing to remember is all of this is scalable. By having moving lights that can pan and tilt around the room you are able to tick off some of the above ideas with the same lights. What if the room you hired doesn't have enough power to run all of these lights? No problem! We currently run a lot of our wedding lighting in LED which is a low cost - low power run inventory. Weddings by Staging Connections Staging Connections provides creative lighting design and installation, venue styling, audio visual supply and management, staging and theme development and much more to give you complete confidence your wedding experience will run smoothly and leave a lasting impression on you and your guests. Related Lighting Articles 4 Lighting Ideas for Events 7 Lighting Tips for your event What is a Gobo? Written by Rocco Anzellotti, Technical Event Director, Staging Connections. ... Read More