The power of projector technology today is truly amazing. You’ll notice it every time you visit an I-MAX theater and catch a 3-D movie. But projectors aren’t just being used on the big screen and in home theaters and gaming rooms. In fact, projectors are now used in almost every industry to wow us visually. From 3-D billboards, to impressive lighting displays at Nine Inch Nails concerts, there’s no limit to images projectors can produce.
All of us at MyProjectorLamps team are obsessed with projector technology, and we’re always on the lookout for new examples of how far projector displays have come. These are a few of my favorites that are pushing the boundaries.
It was a challenge to pick just a few though. First, there are just so many to choose from, and they just keep getting better. These aren’t cheesy Laser Dome, 1970s displays of yesteryear. They’re 3-D, HD and larger than life. Plus, the medium is so subjective; projectors are being used to create masterful works of art with light and artists are using them in impressive ways. Everyone’s tastes are different. Here are 6 that I found particularly impressive:
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Tupac’s Hologram at the 2012 Coachella Music Festival
When Tupac’s hologram was used on-stage at the 2012 Coachella Fest, it made headlines – everyone thought the future was here. But you might not know that the effect has been in use since the 1860s. Really. A similar analog effect was developed in 1862 called Pepper’s ghost.
Instead of using projectors, the technique requires precisely angled mirrors and two similar, adjacent rooms. One room is empty, while the other contains the “ghosts.” People who walk into the empty room can’t see the mirrors or the other room, and then, when ghosts enter the mirrored room, they’re projected into the empty room.
Today, with 3-D holograms, a similar effect is used that employs digital projectors. For instance, with Tupac’s hologram, an image was projected from above the stage. The image hit a mirrored surface on the floor of the stage, which reflected the image onto a transparent screen angled toward the audience. The screen isn’t visible to the audience, and thus, an animated 3-D picture appears to be there in the flesh. Although this wasn’t the first time a 3-D hologram was used in a live performance – Disney World has been using Pepper’s ghost for years – it was the most buzzworthy. Now, we’re seeing this more and more; for example, Michael Jackson made an “appearance” at the 2014 Billboard Music Award and holograms.
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“Pixel” from French Dance Company Adrien M / Claire B
This is the ultimate merging of light and dance; in fact, light becomes a prop throughout the performance as it’s displayed on stage. The Adrien M / Claire B dancers are completely immersed in thousands of pixels, and the light moves fluidly with the dancers’ movements. It’s truly other-worldly, and a perfect example of just how far light projection has come.
One particularly impressive effect: The dancers have to wade through a rainstorm of rain drops of light that run down an opened umbrella. You have to see it for yourself to believe it.
Pixel
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A Glass-Shattering Display on the Nine Inch Nails Tour
Nine Inch Nails concerts have always pushed the lighting design envelop. But on the Live: With Teeth tour, the electronic band took it to another level. The band used DLP projectors to project images onto a screen at the front of the stage.
Before the show, images like static TV pictures would play, evolving into what appeared to be a pure glass sheet in front of the stage. Then, lead singer Trent Reznor would hoist his guitar and shatter the screen, and the digital “glass shards” would fall upwards as the screen was pulled upwards. The effect can be seen in the documentary Beside You In Time.
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3-D Projection Mapping at H&M Amsterdam
3-D projection mapping has been used for a while now to turn buildings and other oddly shaped objects into projection screens. One of the first times the technology was used for entertainment was at Disney World’s Haunted Mansion in 1969. The technology enables nearly anything to become a screen including bridges, human faces and sculptures. Recently, though, the power of 3-D projection mapping has taken on a life of its own.
This example from 2010 H&M Amsterdam launch is particularly impressive, because the light show blends so well with the building’s historic Renaissance architecture. Plus, the roughly 3-minute display includes some very cool effects, like making it appear an entire wall is falling off onto the street below.
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ACDC vs Iron Man at the Rochester Castle
Here’s another 3-D mapping project. This one features an AC/DC song and video projected onto the front of Rochester Castle in England. There are many reasons this one’s so impressive. First, the display uses the age-old architecture of the castle brilliantly and incorporates a realistic-looking animated stone façade. It really appears to be a part of the castle. Plus, the video incorporates live AC/DC performance footage that’s crystal clear even though it’s more than 5-stories tall.
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Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Light/Music Blending
The current season of the Los Angeles Philharmonic features a first-time lighting display that’s powerful. The new in/SIGHT series from the orchestra features a light display designed to enhance the Walt Disney Concert Hall’s architecture, as well as enhance the musical performance. It’s an exciting digital update to the traditional orchestra performance experience, and highlights a new form of producing classical music.