Lights & Sound Blogs?
May 27, 2008 6:38 PM Subscribe
Are there any good websites/blogs for Lights & Sound (as in theater)?
Basically the main guy who does all the lighting and sound for my high school theater is leaving and so it will be me and a few other guys who have to run it and we aren't as experienced as he was. I was wondering if there are any good websites or blogs that show new equipment and techniques and that sort of thing. We all can run sounboard and the faders but don't really know about new equipment/add-ons except through word-of-mouth. Any ideas?
Basically the main guy who does all the lighting and sound for my high school theater is leaving and so it will be me and a few other guys who have to run it and we aren't as experienced as he was. I was wondering if there are any good websites or blogs that show new equipment and techniques and that sort of thing. We all can run sounboard and the faders but don't really know about new equipment/add-ons except through word-of-mouth. Any ideas?
Best answer: controlbooth.com is a truly great community consisting mostly of high school tech theater people. While it's been a while since I kept up with the site regularly, you should find a lot of people to answer questions, and interesting discussion threads that may give you new ideas.
Also, there are a couple of free magazines that might be of interest. Live Sound International is pretty good, but has limited coverage of theater. Stage Directions is thin, but often has some nice articles.
Lastly, for sound in particular, you might want to look at the Theatre-Sound mailing list. It's rather high traffic (sign up from a gmail account so you can search through past messages and ignore it if you don't have time), but populated by some of the best sound designers out there. There's always discussions of new gear and problem solving, and if you ask nicely and aren't a jerk (not that you would be of course) people are quite helpful about going out of their way to help you. You can learn a lot by lurking and reading this list. The mailing list page also has some good links to other resources.
Finally, have fun and be creative! Experience is important, sure, but it's important to remember that this is an art here. Being creative with what you have is a whole lot more important than having the latest and greatest gear and not using it in creative ways that support the production.
posted by zachlipton at 8:31 PM on May 27, 2008
Also, there are a couple of free magazines that might be of interest. Live Sound International is pretty good, but has limited coverage of theater. Stage Directions is thin, but often has some nice articles.
Lastly, for sound in particular, you might want to look at the Theatre-Sound mailing list. It's rather high traffic (sign up from a gmail account so you can search through past messages and ignore it if you don't have time), but populated by some of the best sound designers out there. There's always discussions of new gear and problem solving, and if you ask nicely and aren't a jerk (not that you would be of course) people are quite helpful about going out of their way to help you. You can learn a lot by lurking and reading this list. The mailing list page also has some good links to other resources.
Finally, have fun and be creative! Experience is important, sure, but it's important to remember that this is an art here. Being creative with what you have is a whole lot more important than having the latest and greatest gear and not using it in creative ways that support the production.
posted by zachlipton at 8:31 PM on May 27, 2008
I belong to lightnetwork it is frequented by a huge range of lighting pros an rookies alike. Lots of great info and lots of friendly folks who are willing to help. It's also a bit of a hangout for a lot of "road dogs" who keep in touch with each other while touring. Makes for some great stories and lots of insider info. You have to register but it's free. also prosoundweb for the audio side of things.
posted by HappyHippo at 9:46 PM on May 27, 2008
posted by HappyHippo at 9:46 PM on May 27, 2008
One more thing, it's not exactly what you were asking for, but you might get a lot out of a few inexpensive books that are out there. For getting really practical advice I'd recommend:
A Practical Guide to Stage Lighting by Steve Shelly
The Backstage Handbook: An Illustrated Almanac of Technical Information
The Health and Safety Guide for Film, TV, and Theater
Maybe your school would even buy these for you. I'll also second zachlipton. Have fun, work with what you've got, and come up with creative solutions. Knowing about the latest technology is fun, but if you invest in your skills as a designer you can watch your talent flourish even if you don't have a huge budget.
posted by Thin Lizzy at 9:57 PM on May 27, 2008 [1 favorite]
A Practical Guide to Stage Lighting by Steve Shelly
The Backstage Handbook: An Illustrated Almanac of Technical Information
The Health and Safety Guide for Film, TV, and Theater
Maybe your school would even buy these for you. I'll also second zachlipton. Have fun, work with what you've got, and come up with creative solutions. Knowing about the latest technology is fun, but if you invest in your skills as a designer you can watch your talent flourish even if you don't have a huge budget.
posted by Thin Lizzy at 9:57 PM on May 27, 2008 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Thin Lizzy at 7:12 PM on May 27, 2008