Change the Look of Your Venue with Lighting

I recently coordinated an event for lawyers from San Francisco who chose the ballroom of a local hotel for their event. Most hotel ballrooms look somewhat alike - same nondescript beige or light brown walls, airwall tracks in the ceiling and air walls pushed against the end walls. Some of the better hotels try to improve the look by installing decorative light fixtures, which help to lessen the "conference room" feel, but can't disguise it entirely.

For this event, the clients chose to use decorative lighting to totally change the look of the room, as seen in the photo (compliments of Tana Photography). Columns of purple light shined upward, against the walls, creating a deep purple glow close to the floor and suffusing the room with a soft lavender glow. The room looked elegant and inviting.

You can use lighting in various ways to add to the ambiance of your event, wherever it is held. Though lighting an entire room can be expensive, there are ways to minimize cost, such as using only a few strategically located spot lights shining upward from behind a screen or curtain or focused on an architectural feature. Most any color can be used, though some are more flattering and inviting than others. Colors such as blue tend to make a room look cold, while red adds energy and keeps people moving.

Currently, only a few merchants in the Boise area offer colored theatrical event lighting, though that is sure to change as the popularity of the lights catches on. Plain spot lights good for accent lighting are available from rental centers.

If you want to add something to make your event extraordinary rather than ordinary, consider including special lighting.