Lighting Comparisons

Fresnel;

650w – 1.2kw

Beam angle can be changed from 6 to 60 degrees

Soft edge pool of light

Barn doors

Can be gelled

The lens is a series of stepped concentric circles on the front and pebbled on the back and is named after its French inventor.

The size of the beam can be adjusted by moving the lamp and reflector closer to or farther 

from the lens, either by a screw mechanism or a simple slide. The beam can be shaped by 

the four barndoors attached to the front of the lantern. 

Profile; 

Source 4 750w

Fixed beam angle (Can be changed by changing the nose)

Spot light – Hard or soft focus

Gobo’s are used in this lantern

Can be gelled

Profile lanterns produce clearly defined spots of 

light and are the most focusable and versatile of the lanterns. They have a lens (some have two lenses), a lamp and a reflector, and they also have shutters and a gate. 

Profiles get their name from their ability to project the shape of anything placed in the gate of the lantern between the lamp and the lens. These shapes may be formed by the shutters, or they may be cut out of thin metal (a “gobo” – see diagram right). An iris diaphragm (usually known as an iris) can be inserted in the gate to allow the beam size to be reduced down to almost nothing, to achieve a very tight spotlight. Some profiles with only one lens have two sets of shutters, one of which gives a hard edge to the beam, and one which gives a softer edge. These are known as bifocal profiles. Profiles with two lenses (zoom profiles) are best for projecting gobos and other shapes, as the size and sharpness of the beam is fully adjustable throughout the beam angle range of the lantern. 

Parcan; 

Par 64 1kw

Oval beam

Can be gelled

This lantern quickly found favour due to the relative cheapness of the lantern, the weight and the ease of focussing. The lantern itself is simply a “can” in which the PAR lamp is contained (hence “Parcan”). The PAR 

(Parabolic Aluminised Reflector) lamps are available in a range of beam angles (see table below), depending on the amount of diffusion on the front lens of the lamp. The lamp is a sealed beam unit consisting of a lamp, reflector and lens in one. Because the light produced can be very intense, Parcans are especially suited to strong colours or for special effect. Be aware that deep colours can burn out quickly at full intensity. The beam produced by a Parcan is an elliptical projection of the filament of the lamp, and this can sometimes be seen (as shadowed lines across the beam) in the Narrow lamps. The elliptical beam can be rotated 

simply by rotating the lamp.