General sequence design

[BlackwolfK9]

Is it better to just have some lights come on to the beat and build to more lights or have a lot come on and then slowly turn off.  Just trying to get a basic design theory.  Do you display things at a very controlled rate so that viewers can have time to see new things coming on?  We watched our sequence last night and it seems hard to focus on what is happening, almost like too much going on at any given time.  Sorry to ramble.

[Brian Mitchell]

See this thread.

http://forums.lightorama.com/index.php?/topic/25472-how-i-sequence/

[George Simmons]

I try to stay away from patterns of how things are lit.  Some songs build, some songs don't - all depends on the music you're working with.

 

IMO, and it's just my opinion and no intent to offend anyone:  I watch a lot of videos - both from veterans and newbies.  The veterans because I like their work and am always on the lookout for ideas that inspire me.  And newbies, to follow certain people's "careers" so to speak.  The biggest turnoff for me is too much flashing - fades can be so much more dignified if only people would give them a chance.    The second biggest turnoff is seeing everything in the yard working all the time in every song.  Sometimes less is more.  

 

If you think there's too much going on all at the same time in a sequence, then there probably is.

[dgrant]

I'm still very much a newbie, being my second year at this time. I try to sequence for effect, for the lack of a better description. But, I also start with a non-assigned "beat track". I usually try the beat wizard and if I can't get it to lock onto the beat, then I'll resort to the tapper wizard. Once  I have the pulses or beats in the beat track, then I can easily sync onto or into, various events that I wish to make happen in the display. The most difficult and time consuming part I run into is attempting to sync a voice to a prop. I use the graph display but its not always on the beat either. I use lots of fades and for voices, fade-downs, which gives a better effect. Song somes need lots of flashing lights and other songs need easier transitions. The most difficult song I've done was Judy Garland's, "Over the Rainbow" from the movie the Wizard of Oz. There's no beat...lol.