# lighting help, perhaps some layout design help too



## wandererrob (Aug 8, 2007)

Hi all,

Among other things I really want to rework and improve my haunt lighting this year. I think lighting is an essential part of any haunt and mine, while functional, is meager at best. I'd love to do somehting a la Skull and Bone, but the biggest challenge is the indirect approach to my haunt. Unlike many houses that face the street, mine sits at a weird angle relative to the driveway and main approach tot he haunt.

To give you an idea of what I'm trying to say, here's what it looks like:

http://floorplanner.com/rht2zu/Haunt plan/Lost Lake Cemetery

The approach to the candy is through the gate and along the red line, which is actually the back of the house because the front is little more than a second floor porch (treacherous climb in the dark) over a big, steep hill. In other words, ain't nobody coming to the front door. Ever.

I've toyed with the idea of pushing the path into the woods to lengthen the walk slightly, but still the TOTs basically have to approach along the side of the haunt then come through it more squarely. Or, as it stands now, they come in from the side right through the middle of it.

So the question is, how best to light it to maximize the mood setting before they get into the midst of it. Then how to keep the mood sustained so it's not lost as their angle of approach changes. I've actually even toyed with the idea of taking out part of the dog's fence (the green line) and having them approach through the woods, which aren't dense, via a path. But then the little ones don't have the option of just stopping at the garage instead of proceeding through the haunt. Though, Isuppose a sign diverting them on to the driveway could work. You can see this illustrated at the link above by clicking on LLC 2.0 (the blue line is the tentative new approach.)

As you can see, I'm asking for help whilst partly just thinking out loud so others can see the thought process and help with the perspective.

Any advice would be gratefully received!

Thanks,

Rob


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

I definatley think you should add most or at least part of your wooded area...
Maybe some down lighting in blue to keep it on the full moon look in the woods.
DON'T make more work for yourself by taking the dog fence down. 
You should somehow start at where you first suggested and wind them thru the woods and then back out to front area to get the candy at the end!!
..I would guess your lighting is depending on how bright or how gloomy you want it..
more blues and green and then a few red and some yellow, choose which color works best on the piece or section for highlighting.
some large spots and some (minis for highlighting) would work..
do you have any real pics of your yard that may help in placement of lighting also?


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## sharpobject (May 7, 2008)

what's the wooded area to the right of the house (looking at your diagram)? Can that be used as, or incorporated into, your haunt area?


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## wandererrob (Aug 8, 2007)

sharpobject said:


> what's the wooded area to the right of the house (looking at your diagram)? Can that be used as, or incorporated into, your haunt area?


That part of the property is wooded and very uneven, hilly ground. I'll be incorporating it in the haunt eventually, but it'll be purely atmospheric to help set the mood as they come up the driveway. I wouldn't dare try to make a path through there though. Besides, nobody really approaches from that direction anyway. My road runs on the diagonal part of the property line (upper right) and almost all the TOT's approach from the "top" of the diagram.


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## BoysinBoo (Dec 10, 2007)

Lillys lighting is just about "dead" on, I think. Blue down lighting through the trees really gives the moonlight feel, but a few other floods placed at the base of props show cast long spooky shadows that will shift as the TOTS change perspective.

As to the path: What about having them start at your gate, and then proced clockwise around the blue line. It would eliminate the need to move fencing, while still incorporating the woods area that you want.

By the way, nice layout on the yard.


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

BoysinBoo said:


> Lillys lighting is just about "dead" on, I think. Blue down lighting through the trees really gives the moonlight feel, but a few other floods placed at the base of props show cast long spooky shadows that will shift as the TOTS change perspective.
> 
> As to the path: What about having them start at your gate, and then proced clockwise around the blue line. It would eliminate the need to move fencing, while still incorporating the woods area that you want.
> 
> By the way, nice layout on the yard.


Boys ..that's pretty much what i meant thanks for clarifying it..
bu ti would still wait til lthe end to hand the candy out.


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## wandererrob (Aug 8, 2007)

BoysinBoo said:


> As to the path: What about having them start at your gate, and then proced clockwise around the blue line. It would eliminate the need to move fencing, while still incorporating the woods area that you want.


That's actually one of the options I'm considering. The idea of putting in a gate of something through the fence was mostly to "straighten" out their approach a bit so I could focus more on trying to light the haunt from one angle. Besides, it's just garden fence (green wire). So I could even just cut a section down the middle and bend it back for the night then zip tie it back together afterward. I't in the bushes, so nobody would know it's there except us. 

Either path coming from the gate requires me to bend the lighting, for lack of a better way to put it. Therein lies the big challenge here. Getting that Skull and Bone style lighting when I don't have a single, straight-on approach angle to work with.



BoysinBoo said:


> By the way, nice layout on the yard.


Thanks 

And thanks for all the thoughts everybody! Please keep it coming! This is the kind of discussion I need.


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## Lilly (Jun 13, 2006)

I think it will work out good anyways..the straight on approach is not what you need for the way your yard is set up.
You can always use small little lights just as a source light not everyhting has to be well lit.
Work with what shadows you can bring out also.

Maybe even setting your lighting first and then placing significant pieces 
you can always add , turn , change the light then


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## SkullAndBone (Sep 21, 2005)

Heya Wandererrob,
I cant see your layout, so I will shoot from the hip a bit.

It sounds like you have a chance to make a very interesting dynamic path, I would take advantage of the opportunity.

For overall lighting, I would try some very heavy moon like backlighting (I like blue) on your larger elements to set the scene. Strong back lighting will cause all those elements to appear as black shillouettes [sp] .. This will be nice when you may not have time to detail the whole yard. With a generous layer of fog, you can get a very cool sleepy hollow look.

Once the scene lighting is done, I would come in with some detail lighting for specific areas to draw the eye to locations you want the tot to pay attention to. Thats where some nice uplighting will come in handy. Personally I had a kick using low voltage landscape lighting last year. I really liked the effect after I put some gel's over the fixtures.

To polish it all off, I would do a trail of breadcrumb lights, like very dim lanterns to pull the tots along your trail. In my haunt, I use ghost jars with LED tea lights. I find LED tea lights to be very cost effective and the light they throw is so dim, it does not pollute your scene. However, it is still bright enough to mark the trail.

Good luck! I cant wait to see some pictures.

Happy haunting.
Rob


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