| Cool Special Effects Stuff |
| This page describes some of the interesting methods and devices used to do more than just beams and 'drawing' with lasers. Some of these produce very striking and beautiful images to behold. Over the years, laser enthusiasts and show producers have come up with some very creative ways to 'play' a beam of laser light to an audience. Here are just a few that I have employed while playing with my cool toys. In fact, after a few of my shows I learned that the favorite images of most of the viewers were some of the ones projected using one of the devices on this page, and were the easiest to produce. |
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| One of the simplest ways to increase the 'ooo - aaaaa' factor of a laser show is to make the beam visible. Since us hobby laserists can't afford to buy or even power one of those multi-watt lasers that don't need fog to be seen brightly, we resort to stuff like this 'fog in a can' (Fantasy FX), shown to the left. This stuff is great for use in a closed room when you're just messing around or experimenting with your beams. I've used almost two cans of the stuff so far, but it goes a long way. I even used it outside one time when it was a little too breezy and I really needed to light up the beams. I tried to use the fogger below, but you need still air for this to work effectively. Well, for that matter you need still air for any fog, can or otherwise. I was spraying it directly above the galvo's right into the beams to get at least a partial effect. The unit below is a 700 watt fogger. I got it for about $60 from MCM electronics who had it 'on special'. A few months later they had a special again so I got another one, this time for even less. I also bought a gallon of "fog juice" from them. This stuff goes a long way, so don't buy too much at one time. I also tried attaching a tube to the large cylinder where the fog comes out to direct the fog, and that worked well. I was able to blow fog directly up into the beams. Well, suffice it to say that fog and lasers go very well together. |
| This lumpy thing used to be one of those blank cover CD's that you find on the top and bottom of a bulk pack of CDR blanks. It got this way on purpose... I used a propane torch to slowly and carefully melt it without discoloring it or making it bubble too much. The whole purpose if this thing is to make the laser beam do weird and wonderful things. It's hard to describe... you just have to see it. It's kind of like a cross between the northern light and fire and clouds. It's really cool looking. The center is left intact so it can be mounted on a very slowly turning gearmotor shaft, say .5 to 1 RPM. Then it is positioned in front of a laser beam. This can be inside a laser 'projector', or just on a stand in front of a beam or two. The result is projected onto a screen or wall or ceiling or the like. It's really worth the effort to make one of these, but if you're not handy with a torch, have someone who is take a look at this picture and try to make something similar. You'll be glad you did. Oh and by the way, this device is called a "Lumia Wheel". |
| There is happily an alternative to making your own, and that is to go hunting in 'good will' stores for just the right type of candy bowl... that's right, I said candy bowl. My first Lumia 'wheel' was a candy bowl that I "borrowed" from my wife. Actually, when she saw what it did when a laser shone through it, she was excited to give it to me! That's the kind of effect lumia has on people. But it's gotta be just the right kind of candy bowl. It needs to be clear smooth lumpy glass or crystal, and the pattern must be as close to random as possible. This will achieve the best results. To the right is the first setup I used to project lumia onto a screen for a laser show audience. As you can see, it's low tech at best. But it's visually stunning and hypnotic. This was the simple thing that everyone liked the best and commented the most on after the show. The motor is a low speed gear motor that was connected to a variable DC power supply, and the lasers are just externally powered red pointers. |
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| Try taking a laser and pointing it through a lense of one of those 3D glasses you get at a 3D movie. What you see to the left is the pattern a single red beam makes when pointed through the pictured 3D glasses. This is not the type that have one red and one blue lense, the lenses actually look the same visually. The lenses are optical gratings. Different types of gratings are available that do many different things to a laser beam, but this is by far the cheapest available, being free. The pattern seems like a simple one, and it is, but spray some fog in a dark room and see how even a simple effect like this can look very impressive. A fan of beams from a single beam, and for free. Not bad. |
| This is a cool little device that performs the same function as my candy bowl lumia above, but this one you can buy complete, as you see it in the photo on the right. I found this in one of those Spencers Gifts stores you see in practically every large shopping mall. I got it on special and didn't expect much, but was very pleasantly surprised by how well it worked. I contains three red lasers that are positioned using the black thumbwheels you see protruding from the silver fins. The plastic dome on top spins very slowly, with the lasers shining through it toward the ceiling, or whatever other surface you choose. For it's first demo, my wife and I sat it on the floor, turned on Dark Side of the Moon (Pink Floyd), and shut off the light. We laid there staring at the patterns until the CD finished. Needless to say, it's earned a place in my collection. |
| More to come... .... L8R |
| Unfortunately, MCM no longer sells this fogger and seems to be discon-tinuing the sale of the fog juice. However, I did find another site that, at least for now, has cheap fog making supplies avail-able: Cool Stuff Cheap has a several foggers and fog juice for reasonable prices. Ya might want to check out the whole website! Tons of cool stuff. |
| Warning! If you attempt to make a lumia wheel like the one above, do it outside, and do it at your own risk. Be safe! If not, read on... |
| Updated 8-21-06 |