As an event producer in a competitive market, such as New York, you need to understand the intricacies of running a special event. It takes time, knowledge and a creative team of professionals who are experts at what they do. For an event to be successful, a myriad of details needs to line up at the right time in the right way. From the catering, to entertainment, to your lighting, every detail needs to work together to create a cohesive aesthetic that will dazzle your guests and reach your goal.
Each event has its own personality and aesthetic just as each comes with its own set of unique challenges. One of the best ways to set your event apart from your competitors is to create a spectacular environment that will dazzle your guests and have them talking about your event long after it’s over. One technical element that can help you to create this magic is your event lighting.
Event lighting rental in NYC can be a challenging arena, especially if your expertise lies in other areas of event production. Often, the best choice is to work with a qualified, full-service technical event production company to help you with the details of your event lighting rental in NYC. They can help you to execute your creative vision as well as provide all of your event lighting needs.
Let’s examine some of the details you’ll need to determine in order to figure out your event lighting rental in NYC. It’s a good idea to have a strongly developed concept as to what you are seeking to achieve before speaking with your technical event production company, who will closely work with you to achieve your creative vision and meet your goals.
First Step – Define Your Event
Determining your lighting needs starts by first defining your event. For example, lighting a trade show is going to be completely different than creating an environment for a small, intimate wedding! Does your venue feature interesting architectural elements that will benefit from the lighting? Will there be small children attending your event? If so, you may want to consider using wireless LED lighting fixtures which are free from wires and don’t produce any heat, making them safe for small children. All of these factors will go into determining what your event lighting rental in NYC will encompass.
Your technical event production company should have experience lighting a variety of event types and should help you to understand the typical needs of an event like yours. You should also begin to formulate a color scheme, event theme and any creative ideas you may have that can be achieved through lighting. The small details will help to shape your overall aesthetic and environment of your event.
Assessing Your Venue
Once you’ve chosen a venue, your technical event production company can do an onsite visit to begin the pre-production planning process. If they’ve been in the market for a while, chances are they will already have experience working with your venue and will know most of the layout details.
If you’re going solo, or are not working with a technical event production company, here are four areas to investigate during your site visit:
- Determine the venue’s capabilities. Do they have an in-house lighting system that is appropriate for your event? Have they worked on other events like yours? If you have special requests, or an idea for your creative lighting needs, can they provide the equipment and staff?
- If they have an in-house system, will you require additional lighting to supplement their existing house lighting?
- Assess the venue’s electrical capacity and rigging to determine the layout for your event, including stage placement, sound and event lighting rental in NYC needs.
- If you are working with a technical event production company they will work closely with both you and the venue staff to begin developing an event plan for your lighting.
Working with a professional technical event production company is a smart idea, especially at this stage in the pre-production process. They will have a network of lighting and production designers who can begin to formulate the lighting plan for your event. Working closely with you, they will begin to conceptualize your event lighting to achieve your creative vision.
Depending on your event, your lighting needs can be relatively simple, such as lighting a trade show floor and providing power to exhibitors, or remarkably complex, such as a special event featuring a musical performer, architectural focus lighting to highlight features of your space and environmental lighting for a dining area or dance floor. Collaborating with a lighting designer will help you to design a lighting plan that is cohesive and will join these different elements into an aesthetically pleasing and coherently themed event.
Choosing The Right Equipment
Once you’ve defined your event’s needs and assessed the venue, it’s time to put together your lighting package. This is when working with a qualified technical event production company for your event lighting rental in NYC will really pay off. They will take all of these factors, along with your budget requirements, into account as they work to create your lighting plan.
Each element of your event lighting will be chosen, programmed and set up with your end goal in mind. Your lighting designer will understand the latest technology and can build a plan that will take the capabilities of the fixtures into account. These can include, for example, using LED lighting and programming color changes for specific moments of your event, using moving fixtures to project a corporate logo onto a backdrop during a keynote address or creating specific lighting for a performance by your guest artist. These are just a few of the benefits of working with a technical event production company to help you determine your event lighting rental needs in NYC.
Lighting can be a major factor when it comes to creating the magic for your event. While, as an event producer, you may have experience designing and running many special events, part of your job is to build a team of talented professionals who have the experience and knowledge you may lack. Adding a professional technical event production company to the mix cannot only help you to achieve your creative vision, but they will also work with you to maximize your budget and can offer technical expertise to take your vision to the next level.
To compete in today’s market, you need an edge. Creative event lighting can help you to create a dazzling and magical event that will leave your guests talking about your event long after it’s over. Working with a qualified technical event production company can make the entire process easier and more rewarding!