Gobo

A stencil placed in a lighting fixture to project a pattern or logo.

How it works in practice

A gobo sits inside a projecting fixture, between the lamp and the lens, and casts its shape onto a surface. There are two main kinds. Steel gobos are cut metal: cheap, durable and limited to solid shapes and text, in one colour from the fixture. Glass gobos are printed or etched: they can carry full colour, gradients and fine detail, and they cost more and take longer.

The fixture matters as much as the gobo. A theatrical ellipsoidal gives a sharp image at a distance. Compact LED gobo projectors are easy to hide and good for floors and small walls. Moving-head fixtures carry a wheel of stock patterns and can animate them, but they cannot take a custom logo unless the supplier fits one.

How to handle it

1. Get the artwork in vector format. Thin lines, small text and low contrast do not survive projection.
2. Order custom gobos early. In our experience a couple of weeks is a safe lead time; rush orders cost more.
3. Decide the surface and size: a 2 m monogram on the dance floor, a 3 m logo on a backdrop, or a pattern across a ceiling.
4. Confirm the throw distance and a mounting position, often a stand, a truss or a ceiling point that the venue allows.
5. Ask for a test projection at load-in, with the room lights at show level.
6. Put any colour or pattern change in the run of show so the operator knows when to switch.

Questions to ask

• Is the price for the gobo alone, or the gobo plus fixture, stand and set-up?
• Will it be steel or glass, and can you show a mock-up on our surface?
• How will it look once guests are standing on it, or in front of it?
• For a sponsor logo: has the sponsor approved the file and colours in writing?

A projected logo competes with ambient light. Keep house lights low near the projection and avoid aiming it where uplighting washes the same surface.

Related tools

Sponsor gobos are an easy deliverable to include in a sponsorship deck. Track the cost in the event budget sheet.