Module: 9

Technical Styling

Having creative vision and a good eye for imaginative detail will be crucial for planning your event.

Likewise you will need to have a methodical and detailed approach to organisation to ensure that every

last element is carefully considered so that your event comes off perfectly. One other skill the modern

day event planner will also need is a good grounding in the more technical aspects of events. You need to

make sure that you have an up to date knowledge of everything you need to make the most of new and

existing technologies which will really give your event that all important edge.

What you’ll learn in this module:

9.1 Mood creation with lighting

9.2 Good aesthetics

9.3 Staging and rigging

9.4 Special effects and technology

9.1Mood creation with lighting

Imaginative lighting can really take an event from special to extraordinary. The range of styles and types

of lighting available give enormous scope to the event planner and are great at creating drama and

excitement in a cost effective and often simple way. While lighting installations can be really complex

with timed, computer controlled light changes and colours, they can also be really simple yet effective.

Here we will look at the different lighting options available to the event planner:

Outdoor lighting

This is where you can make that all important first impression upon your guests. As they arrive at the

venue, particularly for an evening function, what better way to set the scene than dramatic lighting

illuminating the driveway and the entrance pillars. How about gas flame torches attached to the front

gates and then dramatically staged along the way to the venue. An exciting and dramatic introduction

for your guest and a great way to build the anticipation. It’s really important to light the rest of the

grounds of your venue to continue the dramatic theme. From a small back garden at the family home to

the sumptuous grounds of a stately home, lighting really has incredible, transformational powers and

can add interest and grandeur to any setting.

Festoon lighting – those traditional strings of lightbulbs - looks lovely whether you drape it from

balconies, along walls and fencing or hang it from trees. Spotlights work really well for example where

you want to highlight a statue, water feature or any particular trees or plants. You can use spotlights to

create focal points and guide your guests to look at the highlights of the space. By the same token,

leaving less interesting areas unlit gives you the scope to hide any dull, unsightly or functional parts of

the space. This will give a lovely magical feel to the scene.

Moonfloods are an impressive way to illuminate the whole front of a building or any larger feature.

This kind of lighting is especially useful if you have a particularly lovely venue you want to show off

and provides a lot of light over a large area. Lighting from the inside of the building shining outside

will also look really dramatic.

Playful paper lanterns strung between trees create a light and romantic feel and will make the

setting look effortlessly dressed. These kind of lights will sway in any breeze so the light will gently

move from side to side which can be very beautiful and atmospheric. Do be mindful of the weather

though. If you are lighting a winter event or where there is a likelihood of rain, paper lanterns might

not be the safest choice as they are not massively robust at withstanding water.

Another easy yet atmospheric light for outdoor spaces are fairy lights. Available in all kinds of

colours and shapes, fairy lights are easy to install and will bring an instant, charming look to any

setting. They look particularly beautiful placed in trees and you can get either static light or can set

them to flash or twinkle as you wish so they are flexible and enable you to experiment with different

settings to suit the mood.

Where you have a message to get across at your event, whether it is a happy birthday greeting, a

congratulations message for the bride and groom or the name or logo of the brand you are

launching, you can logoscan your message and have it projected around the event. Think of the

wow factor of having your message up in lights against the venue’s front façade or projected onto

the pathway as guests arrive. Projected messages do not need to be static either. They can be

programmed to move and rotate so that the message stays front of mind and is gently reinforced –

this is particularly powerful where you are lighting a business event or launching a brand. Repetition

of your message will be really important in this case.

One of the particular powers of outdoor event lighting is that it is a great way to indicate a change in the

programme of the evening. As summer light wanes for example you can set your outdoor lighting to

gradually light up and begin to envelop the setting. This can be an indicator perhaps that the evening

drinks reception is starting or can be used to direct your guests into a certain area. You could for

example have kept an outside dance area unlit and out of focus and then as it gets dark enough, the

lights suddenly come on, the music starts and with it the dancing. Lighting has great power to subtly

control what you want your guest to see, do and feel.

When choosing your outdoor bulbs and colours, think carefully about the mood you want to create.

Outdoor lighting can need to be practical, showing your guests the way down a path through a garden

perhaps, here brighter whiter light will work. However for a flattering and atmospheric light, softer,

warmer light shades will be better.

One great advantage of carefully planning and executing your outdoor lighting is that you will be able to

get some amazing photographs so the power of lighting will last beyond the event itself.

Oftentimes outdoor lighting will involve dressing a marquee. Here romantic sting lighting at the top of

the upright poles around the whole outside circumference of the marquee looks beautiful. To light

the inside you will need some stronger, functional lighting but the really lovely benefits of a marquee

are the shadows which you can create along the top of the marquee. Bunting style lighting strung

back and forth in an asymmetrical pattern will produce a wonderful ambience.

Indoor lighting

The inside areas of a venue will be required to fulfil many functions throughout the course of an

event and lighting plays a really important part. Purpose built function rooms such as banqueting

suites at hotels, will usually have bright fluorescent lighting and perhaps chandeliers which will

provide functional central light. This will work well when the space is being used for a meeting or

formal presentation. When the space is needed for a more celebratory purpose then additional well

planned out ambient lighting will also be needed.

To line the walls and in particular to form a backdrop to a special part of the room such as a wedding

top table, a lighting curtain looks fantastic. These can be easily hung from the ceiling and will serve

to highlight that special area and draw the attention of the guests in that direction. Lighting curtains

also have the advantage of covering large spaces and can work particularly well if your venue space

is showing signs of age or is normally used for more everyday events. This type of lighting is really

transformative and brings an instant sense of glamour.

Further atmosphere can be added by washing walls, ceilings and walls with ambient light. This

general lighting covers large areas and is often better in muted colours with soft light. It then works

well to highlight certain elements such as balloons, floral arrangements and any interesting

architectural items with a brighter focussed light. Spotlights are also key to pick out singers,

presenters or to light up the bridal couple in their first dance for example.

Soft, muted light will be needed on each of the tables. Here you can experiment with all kinds of tea

lights and lanterns and you will be able to incorporate the colours and essence of your event with the

colour of the lights you choose, the vessel they are displayed in and any adornments you put on them.

Another area of lighting which you will often need to think about is dancefloor lighting. You will

normally need to engage the help of a specialist dance music provider as this sort of lighting can be

particularly complex especially when you want to bring in unusual effects such as lighting changing in

time with the music and so on. Dancefloor lighting needs to be fun, energetic, uplifting and attractive. It

also needs to be flexible so that it can adapt to the kind of music being played. The dancefloor fillers

which gets everyone up on their feet dancing to well known music will often move to a softer, romantic

pace as the event progresses and the lighting will need to reflect this change. Disco lighting stacks, lit

floors, UV lighting and disco balls are all dancefloor elements which can be used to create a great party

atmosphere.

For a more funky and grown up event, you might want to look at furniture which is lit from inside with

LED lights. Poseur or cocktail tables work particularly well with this technology and can create really

dramatic effects especially when coupled with a lit floor in a contrasting colour.

In summary, lighting is an essential and very exciting part of the event mix. It offers the event planner so

many options and will be vital in setting mood and creating atmosphere. The choice of colours, strengths

and types of light available is positively dizzying and it will be really important to discuss your

requirements with a professional lighting expert to illuminate your event to stunning effect.

9.2 Good aesthetics

For any event you plan the overall look needs to be fantastic and to be highly attractive for the guests.

Our experience of an event is based around what we see, feel, hear, smell and taste. Everyone’s

experiences of these senses will be different but there are some researched norms and guidelines for the

event planner to consider to ensure that their occasion will be pleasing at many sensory levels to as

many guests as possible.

To start with there are the practical considerations such as the amount of space you allow per guest at

your event. You need to strike a balance where you create a buzz and the fun sensation of being in a

crowd, a group of guests with a shared purpose. However there is nothing worse than having too few

guests in a space where they are swimming about feeling lost. That is a surefire way to dilute any

atmosphere. In this scenario it’s a great idea to have some clever room dividing tricks up your sleeve

which can reduce the size of the event space even perhaps at the last minute if there’s a less than

anticipated high turnout. At the other end of the scale, feeling squashed and claustrophobic at an event is

also unpleasant. Any sense of making your guest feel special will soon be washed away if there isn’t

enough room to circulate comfortably, find a place to sit if you want to or to dance the night away.

As a rule of thumb, you can look to these kinds of space sizes to comfortably accommodate your

guests:

Another skill for the event planner to master with regard to the aesthetics of events is FengShui. The

principles of FengShuiare derived from the ancient Chinese ‘system of laws considered to govern spatial

arrangement and orientation in relation to the flow of energy (chi), and whose favourable or unfavourable

effects are taken into account when siting and designing buildings’.

When you are planning a party or event of any kind, the following FengShui advice can be applied:

Declutter: Make sure the event space – especially important for home based events – is uncluttered and

all personal and unnecessary items are cleared away well out of sight. Free up any overly busy shelves,

leave the space with just a couple of interesting items.

Traffic flow: Think about how your guests will move through the event space. Provide a place near the

entrance to store coats and bags; get your guests into the reception area having had an opportunity to

leave any items they don’t need and prepare themselves for the event. Make sure any areas which are

out of bounds are appropriately labelled.

Decoration: The five elements of FengShui are wood, fire, earth, metal and water and to achieve balance

you will need to incorporate all of the elements in your planning. You can do this for example by

bringing in pot plants, a fireplace, a water feature and so on. Another approach is to subtly incorporate

each of these elements into the fabrics and textures you are choosing.

Colours: Certain colours work better in FengShui. Black and white for a bride and groom are considered

to be particularly auspicious. Other positive colours to choose are yellow and red, purple and green and

green and blue. Earthy tones are recommended for table coverings.

Seating: For a free flow party, provide seating for about a third of your guests at a time. This will

encourage mingling and bring energy to the room. Cluster seats in sociable patterns and avoid placing

seats just around the edge of the room.

Tables: Round rather than rectangular tables are the best choices as they encourage guests to feel more

relaxed.

Let it shine: Providing reflective surfaces such as crystal chandeliers, sparkling veils or diamante detail

on clothing will bring extra sparkle which again encourages positivity.

Traditions: Follow those traditions which are culturally important for the hosts. So for example at a

Chinese wedding, a red bridal dress is very popular choice as red is considered to be the colour of

happiness.

Venue: Outside venues where you can see and hear flowing water, lush gardens or beautiful gardens

encourage harmony and positivity. An inside venue with a high ceiling can have the same effect.

9.3 Staging and rigging

At many types of events a stage or some kind of raised platform will be needed. This could

be a small, low platform to add a little touch of relief to the room for example to place the

top table at a wedding. At the opposite end of the scale, large stages will be needed for

holding festivals, concerts and grand performances. There are lots of types and sizes of

stage for the event planner to choose from. There are numerous factors to be considered

when selecting the right stage for an event such as:

How big is the space available for the stage?

Will it need to be moved around with ease or will it be fixed in one location?

What will the stage be used for?

What load will the stage need to bear in terms of people/equipment etc.?

How deep will the stage need to be to allow performers the right space they need?

Are there any particular electrical or lighting needs to think about?

How much set up and dismantling time will be needed to get the stage ready?

Will specialist equipment such as forklift trucks be needed in the build or can it be put together

manually?

Are any different levels required within the staging platform?

What is the surface like on which the stage is to be built? Is it sound and secure enough?

Do you intend to reuse the stage and if so how much space will be required to store it?

How much backstage provision is needed?

Will a top canopy roof be need to protect performers from the elements and to accommodate

lighting and sound structures?

At the smaller end of the scale, stages can be made from modular squares which are light

and easy to put together and take apart. These are often to be found at community events

and in places such as school or church halls. They offer a low tech solution while giving

some height for occasional performances. These have the advantage of having legs which

can be folded away when not in use so can be easily stored.

The smallest types of professional stage are suitable for a product launch or Christmas light

switch on and can take from two to five hours to build. Larger stages will take up to a day to

construct and can include special features such as 360 degree turntables and have a very

substantial strength to hold sophisticated sound systems and complex sets. These larger

stages will require a skilled team to prepare them as well as advanced equipment to build

them. These larger stages are used in stadia and where a very large audience is expected.

Lecterns and podia – Where there is a need for a presentation of any kind such as a product launch,

speech or awards ceremony you will need to provide a lectern on which any papers or a laptop can

be rested. There are lots of styles and materials to choose from including lightweight aluminium,

acrylic, hardwood and laminate. Podia can be customised with any branding or event logos inserted

onto the front. A professional touch which is a great way to reinforce your theme and promote your

client.

Rigging

Rigging is a highly specialised field where manual lifting is not possible and objects need to be moved

and lifted into position. It is the structure which is suspended from the ceiling to hold lights, sound

equipment, speakers and other media.

It can be officially defined as:

“The temporary suspension or attachment of materials and equipment to a building or structure (including

temporary structures built specifically for the purpose) by means of wires, cords, slings, chains or lifting

appliances and related equipment.” AVVEGAS (2012:online)

More complex and large scale events often need heavy equipment such as lights, sound equipment

or special effects rigged to the top of a stage or to a venue ceiling or roof. Rigging is often custom

made for a specific venue and is tested to very high standards to ensure safety and suitability for

what it is holding. Mothergrids, made of high tensile, steel trusses are often fixed permanently into

place onto a roof and then other items are rigged onto these grids which significantly speeds up the

setup of a complex set. Rigging is vital at any modern event of any size. Without rigging, the back of

any venue would be in semi darkness, the performer would barely be heard and all exciting lighting

and pyrotechnic effects lost on all but the lucky few at the front.

Rigging is a highly specialised field and should always be left to the professionals. Rigging experts

will complete site surveys, draw up plans, secure permissions and implement a stringent health and

safety plan prior to any event. Rigging by its very nature is extremely heavy and needs to be dealt

with in careful detail to ensure that it performs its function safely and without incident.

9.4 Special effects and technology

If you want to take your event to the next level, and have the budget to do so, there are some

amazing special effects which you can employ to truly dazzle your guests and make your event one

which will never be forgotten! Often you will need to engage the services of a specialist to pull these

off safely as there are often complex technical setups required and there’s a high level of health and

safety needed. The range of effects available is really wide and with all the advances in technology,

new and interesting effects are being developed all the time. What is particularly exciting is that

much of the technology which is used for feature films is being rolled out to the events sector, so

world class special effects usually only experienced on film, can now be seen first-hand.

Here are some of the choices the event planner can consider:

3D Video projection mapping – This involves a video being taken of a building and then using

computer graphics and 3D effects, the images are manipulated as needed and then mapped back onto

the original building. This technology can create awe inspiring effects such as the building collapsing,

people running along corridors inside the building as windows light up in sequence with sound

following. Storyboards of images can be created and then a magical story will unfold in front of the

mesmerised crowd. This effect was used memorably onto Buckingham Palace during the Jubilee

celebrations as the Union Jack was brought to life and the words to the Madness song ‘Our House’

appeared projected onto that iconic building. Video projection works well at large scale events and can

entertain a large crowd as it can be viewed from a long distance.

Search lights – Inspired by the iconic ‘20th Century Fox’ lights, search lights dramatically searching the

sky or lighting up a beautiful building, installation or statue, introduce an immediate sense of glamour.

These lights use moving head technology and as they scan the sky above they can be seen from up to 5

miles away so are a great way to draw attention to your event and pull the crowds towards you. Search

lights work particularly well at really large scale events such as rock concerts, sports events and national

celebrations. They will also inject an immediate sense of Hollywood for film premieres and awards

ceremonies.

Waterscreens – Where your event takes place near a large expanse of water such as a lake, river or the

sea, you could consider using a waterscreen for a really unusual effect. Waterscreens work by using

innovative technology to spray the water upwards into a semi-circular and semi-transparent arc which

acts like a screen. Images can then be projected onto that screen producing a really dramatic illusion.

This works well when you want to use the water expanse to your advantage and will have the element of

surprise as these screens seem to appear from nowhere and disappear just as quickly. Great for

innovative product launches, music industry presentations and unusual promotions. A word of warning

though - water depths, tides, shipping lanes and maritime regulations need to be carefully respected for

this effect so this is definitely one for the professionals.

Flames, smoke, fire and explosions – There are lots of possibilities for using fire to exciting and

dramatic effect at an event. Jet and balls of flame can be timed with pinpoint precision perhaps to signify

the finale of an event or to add emphasis to the drumroll moment – as the new product is launched, the

star walks onto stage or the event is reaching its dramatic conclusion. Vehicles can be staged to explode

into flames or the rock star’s stage can appear to explode in flashing light. A very highly specialised field,

explosives training and qualifications are vital here. Dry ice

Confetti – Using liquid Co2 to power them, confetti cannons produce lovely, magical effects. They

are great to use at the end of an event and will leave your guests on a high. How about at the end of

a product launch with the music pumping, confetti blasting all around, nothing like employing all the

senses to bring your message home. Likewise confetti or balloons floating down from the ceiling at

the end of an event is a beautiful and exciting way to conclude a memorable occasion. Confetti

cannons were used to create an amazing effect in Trafalgar Square during the 60th anniversary

celebrations of VE Day.

Pyrotechnics – Spectacular fireworks are a firm favourite at events of all sizes. The drama they bring

work at all levels from an intimate wedding to a stadium rock concert. Fireworks have a unique way of

telling a story and pulling on all kinds of emotions. Heart shapes can be created as well as the initials of

the bride and groom for a wedding event; all sorts of colours and shapes are available to tie in with a

brand or promotion. Fireworks are particularly popular and get a great emotional response from an

audience as they are so closely associated with the excitement of childhood bonfire parties; they are the

most popular and well-loved symbol of celebration. Prior to an event all displays need to be planned and

tested via computer first and any music or other soundtrack synchronised perfectly. The site will need

to be carefully risk assessed first and safe watching distances and marshalling put in place. Firework

displays are usually costed by the minute. Therefore it is possible to include a short, yet meaningful

display even on a tighter budget while longer and more dramatic displays can be afforded for larger

scale events.