TimPlinth Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Hi there, this is my first post to the forum :unsure: I had a not-completely-original idea to build some lighting effects from round rice paper lanterns. Turns out the idea I was going for is pretty similar to Pulsar's ChromaSphere. I want to maintain the look of the rice paper lanterns. Do you have any ideas on what I could use to light the inside of some round rice paper lanterns, some 40cm and some 90cm in diameter. I was thinking a cheap LED Parcan might do the trick. However, the beam spread would probably be too limited to give the desired effect. Obviously anything that generates too much heat has to be ruled out or else it will turn in to a pyrotechnics show! The budget for this job is reasonably tight so I can't go too crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeterlinck Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Obviously they would fire proofed :unsure: so why not a standard house light (ceiling rose)? You can get up to at least 150W, dimable, cheap and readily available... You could even go energy efficient for that smaller carbon foot print and fuzzy feeling inside. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimPlinth Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 I forgot to mention, I'd really like them to have an RGB fixture inside. This will allow me to 'colour' the lanturn to any colour I like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Steve Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I saw this exact effect on a recent tour of Scouting for Girls. They used your 1980s paper sphere type lamp shades, with a ChromaDome inside. If it's low budget then perhaps the Showtec (or similar) LED PAR36 units might be of use inside instead? You could stick a bit of frost or silk over them to help spread the beam perhaps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GridGirl Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I'm sure I've seen RGB MR16-sized LED bulbs. I have no idea where, but I'm pretty sure they're available and might solve your problem fairly effectively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimPlinth Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 They used your 1980s paper sphere type lamp shades, with a ChromaDome inside.I suppose the advantage of the ChromaDome is the light source sits fairly close to the opening of the fixture. The LED Par's I've used have a reasonable nose that forces the light in to a beam. Do you know how the ChromaDome's were placed inside the shade? Were they mounted on top shining in? Or inside the lantern facing toward one of the sides? I might still give an inexpensive LED Par can a go and see what it looks like. I'm sure I've seen RGB MR16-sized LED bulbs. I have no idea where, but I'm pretty sure they're available and might solve your problem fairly effectively.The MR16 is definitly an option but I wasn't sure how good the light output was for a large rice paper shade. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamtastic3 Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I'd go with what has been suggested: A birdie RGB, put a light frost gel on the front and place the birdie at the opening of the shade. You could (with experimentation) put a small piece of tin foil at the bottom to 'bounce' some of the light up where the beam heads down..... it's just one of those wild suggestions :unsure: As for the MR16's, I don't think they are controllable as such. I've seen them in a bar where they just change through the RGB every few seconds in a GU10 240v fitting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekij Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 I'd be very surprised if an RGB LED_16 (it's not strictly speaking an MR if it's LED) would give either the power or the spread for what you are looking for. IKEA have 4*RGB LED lamps about the size of an MR16 (but flat) but the power is nowhere near what you would need if you want to see the lamps against any other source. Personally I'd be looking to 'modify' an RGB LED_36 to put the LEDs on the outside of a small sphere that I'd mount inside the rice_paper unit. PS: When I first read the topic title I thought it was some weird variation of Rock/Paper/Scisors and needed moved to the Crew Room! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimPlinth Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 Ok, I'll give it a go and let you know the results. Thanks for the ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeterlinck Posted March 31, 2008 Share Posted March 31, 2008 Just thinking - you haven't mentioned the setting these are going to be in... You could use an LED Can through a hole in the back giving a good spread towards the audience... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimPlinth Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 It's for a low-key concert. Was planning to suspend the spheres from the ceiling at various lengths and sizes. It is to liven up the venue a little and provide some nice soft atmosphere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamtastic3 Posted April 1, 2008 Share Posted April 1, 2008 Why not try longer shades instead of the round ones. Ikea do a few different types. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David A Posted April 1, 2008 Share Posted April 1, 2008 There is a Showtec product, theLED sphere 30cm around 105 euros, if this is in the ballpark. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimPlinth Posted April 1, 2008 Author Share Posted April 1, 2008 Why not try longer shades instead of the round ones. Ikea do a few different types.I already have some of the smaller round shades, so I'd like to use those. Using some different shapes is definitely a possibility. I'll have a look and see what is around. There is a Showtec product, theLED sphere 30cm around 105 euros, if this is in the ballpark.I did consider something like this ready-made-product so to speak. However, I want to maintain the look of the traditional rice paper shade. Not only that but the large shades are bigger than the biggest LED Sphere. I would definitely consider hiring something like this if it was available, but I don't think I can get anything in my area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maeterlinck Posted April 1, 2008 Share Posted April 1, 2008 I'm going to suggest my original suggestion again, only using 3 bulbs in RGB. You probably won't win any awards for colour mixing but I'm sure you'd get some nice variations... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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