CHAUVET® Professional - Lighting Insights Newsletter: All the world may indeed be a stage as Shakespeare wrote, but despite what some may think, the rules of theatrical stage lighting do not always apply to churches. At least that’s the view of LD Greg Persinger of Vivid Illuminations in Nashville; TN. Persinger knows whereof he speaks. The author of numerous church lighting articles, he has designed rigs for 75 houses of worship. In this far ranging interview the church LD, who will be conducting a seminar for CHAUVET Professional at WFX 2014 in Dallas, shares his views on the unique world of house of worship lighting.
2 comments:
Wow, this interview was surprisingly detailed. It is interesting to hear the differences in management and organizational posture between churches and other types of venues. I can see how church personnel are generally less knowledgable about common industry practice and pricing. The fact that advising churches on new installations and purchases is a notable sub-specialty is astounding.
As somebody who is interested in the consulting and installation side of the lighting industry, I find it fascinating to hear how "one-size-fits-all" certainly does not work and that different types of organizations can require different consultation specialists.
Having essentially never been to church and having very little idea of what goes on in there, I had never imagined that Greg Persinger’s rather specific job existed. This interview was super interesting, and gave cool insight into a job that’s definitely similar to theatrical lighting but with some important differences. I suppose nothing about his approach is particularly mind-blowing or revolutionary. Designing a system based on purpose, budgetary constraints, client preferences and space and upkeep considerations is probably pretty similar to what the lighting designers here learn, but what makes this man invaluable is clearly his expertise from working in church lighting for so long. I find it pretty cool that when designing for a church, you’re designing as much for an audience as for a community, which is one of the things that sets it apart from theater. It’s probably very interesting (and possibly frustrating at times, I’m sure) to work with pastors, who most likely don’t have a lighting tech background but might have cool ideas about the type of setup and look they want for their church.
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