Points of Lighting

Meetings & Conventions: Short Cuts October 2002 Current Issue
October 2002
Short Cuts:
Points of Lighting

When entertaining dollars are tight, skip the pricey props and flowers and turn on the lights instead. “For about $800, you can transform a room with light,” says Alysha DiGiorgio, director of marketing for Kensington, Md.-based Digital Lighting (www.digitallighting.com). “Something as simple as lighting the walls with different colors can create a whole theme.”

Knowing what lighting technique will work, however, depends on the event. For banquets, for example, forget the strobe lights and go for an elegant look. “Try pin-spotting or color-washing tables for a nice, soft, elegant look,” suggests DiGiorgio.

For even the tightest budgets, lights can set the perfect tone and create just the right mood, says Sara Nelson, owner of Austin, Texas-based Midnight Sound & Lighting (www.midnightlighting.com). “Red seems to be a popular color now. It creates a lush, exotic, mysterious ambience.”

For more serious events, where the emphasis is strictly on setting goals or announcing a merger, choose colors that incorporate the company logo, advises Deborah Adams, owner of Cambridge, Mass.-based Adams Lighting Company.

“A strategically placed logo that emphasizes the corporate message is important,” says Adams. To get the lighting just right, “Give the lighting person something printed with the company’s logo, so they can create an exact color match,” she recommends.

For a directory of lighting experts, visit the Web site of the International Special Event Society at www.ises.com.

• Cheryl-Anne Sturken