Q&A with Drew of Tangerine Media Group

I saw Drew, of Tangerine Media Group, at a networking event last month and we spent quite a bit of time discussing lighting, why it's important and the best ways to use it. After our conversation I thought it might be nice to pick Drew's brain and get a videographer's perspective.

Becky: How long have you been in the event/wedding industry?
Drew: I have been involved in the event industry for 15 years. I was a DJ for the first five and I have been a videographer for the past 10 years.

Becky: Why do you feel lighting is an important addition to a reception or event room?
Drew: Decorative lighting is the single most powerful and cost-effective way to transform your event space. Whether your event is in a hotel ballroom, a country club, an urban loft, a museum gallery, a historic mansion or an outdoor tent, absolutely any space will be greatly enhanced by the addition of decorative light. Lighting adds texture, depth and visual vibrancy. I often overhear guests say “wow” when entering an event space that has decorative lighting.
Lighting is also such a flexible medium that easily allows you to personalize your event space. Whether it is the use of your wedding monogram or corporate logo projected onto the wall or dance floor or the use of certain colors to evoke a specific mood or theme, lighting is the answer. It also can be strategically used to draw your guest’s eyes to the points of interest in the room that you want to highlight, such as the cake or centerpieces. When working with a lighting designer, they will ensure that the lighting scheme you choose augments all of the floral and decorative aspects in the room.
Decorative lighting also serves a very practical purpose in your wedding ceremony space. If you are getting married indoors in a location that is not a church or synagogue, etc., decorative room lighting ensures that your guests can see the ceremony and read the ceremony programs. If you are getting married under a chuppah, make sure that the chuppah is lit so everyone’s faces can be seen and the rabbi will have enough light to read the ketubah and blessings. Even if you want to have a “candlelight ceremony,” a good lighting designer can create that effect without making the room dark.

Becky: Is there something specific you always recommend to your clients? Why?
Drew: Often we find that many clients had not considered the possibility of using light as part of their décor. We always convey to them, if there is no decorative lighting, their facility typically has no choice but to dim the overhead fixtures usually leaving only “muddy,” unflattering light mixed with any candle light that may be on the tables. Bottom line, turning off or just dimming the lights doesn’t make the room atmosphere romantic or intimate, it just makes it dark, simple as that. So then what is the point of having beautiful flowers, linens, cake and elegant place settings in a dark and flat atmosphere?
Specifically, we usually suggest up lighting which tends to be the foundation of any lighting design. Then we suggest a nice color wash on the dance floor. We also suggest that the dance floor be evenly lit without bright “hot spots” and dark corners. From a videographer’s perspective, any pattern or design that is projected onto the dance floor area should be soft and diffused and not sharp. Sharp light patterns create a “Swiss cheese” effect on people’s faces as they are dancing, which is not very attractive. Also, any event with a live band should have the band lit with some color wash because it looks silly to have performers in the dark. If at all possible, it is preferable to have any monogram projection be on a wall ensuring that it will be visible all night long. A monogram projection on the dance floor disappears once guests start dancing.

Becky: How does lighting effect your job? Positively? Negatively?
Drew: Good lighting is almost a necessity to your videographer and your photographer. It helps us immensely because we can capture better images and video with depth and background. Decorative lighting allows us to use very little on camera lighting, sometimes none at all. That makes us be even more unobtrusive. We also “play” with the lighting to capture more artistic and dramatic video. Simply put, decorative lighting is a must.

Thanks so much Drew! it was great chatting with you and thank you so much for the insight!