Mobile stage Getting SUN in Miami

Miami.  It’s kind of painful to even talk about it now that winter is here and we’re freezing our you-know-what’s off, but c’mon, it’s home to the Miami Dolphins and our Mobile stage, so bundle up and keep reading.  What’s this Mobile stage, you ask?  Well, it’s set up in front of the stadium and it’s basically Band Central  (check out even more pix of it on our web site, www.imageproductionservices.com) ~ the Dolphins not only put on a great show on the field for the fans, but they know how to get the crowd pumped ~ and keep ‘em that way ~ before their butts even hit the seats.  Kickass bands, great stage, great sound system, a few brews, some friends, some hot Miami babes, and high, high energy all ‘round  (and that’s before the game even starts!)…that’s the recipe for a good time. 

 So a few weeks ago, our Mobile stage hosted the Air Force Band along with “The Big Man” himself, Clarence Clemons (yup, from Springsteen’s E Street Band, that’s the one , and ~ talk about a small world ~ a band from MA featuring bassist Lenny Bradford.  It’s always cool to see someone from back home when you’re away doing a gig.  The crowd went crazy for the band and the energy before the game was sky-high.  Thanks to Michael Lanio of the Mobile stage network ~ this guy worked his ass off to make sure the bands and the crowds had the best experience possible ~ and boy did they!  We’ve been partnering with Michael on a lot of great out-of-state gigs and he’s very cool to work with ~ in fact, we’ll all be back in Miami setting up more  gigs throughout the winter (yeah, I know, poor us, having to work in the, warm Miami sun when you all are “enjoying” a typical New England winter ~ yup, it’s good to be us!)

Soon im off to  Daytona Bike Week, where I can unwind from all the gigs and really let loose.  This is MY reward at the end of a long season…nothing like it in the world…and for those of you who won’t be down there with us, I’ll be keeping you posted on just HOW amazing it is on face book. Were at imageroductionservices so add me as a friend and jump on our mailing list at www.imageproductionservices.com

After that, I’ll be heading home to start the Spring season of gigs ~ and the schedule is already INSANE…but I wouldn’t have it any other way!!

Stay tuned for more updates…I’ll get back at you soon, promise.

D_

Sound Gig at Harvard School for public health

Hey everyone, we’re at Harvard!  Well, The Harvard School for Public Health, that is.  On December 9, the school held its first live forum in the new FXB space.  Since the space is so new, it was really kind of a blank canvas ~ but that gave Image the perfect opportunity to show just how we can transform a space.  We’ve been converting the FXB into a full functional forum studio using live event gear and for this event, we brought in a custom-shaped stage ~ the space has a unique shape that was a bit of a challenge, so there was no doubt that custom was the only way to go. 

For the three person panel, comprised of Ted Turner, Abigail Trafford, and HSPH Dean Julio Frenk, we knew we’d be doing the live and broadcast sound, so we used Sennheiser UHF lavs and got to bring in our new EAW JFL210 speakers with a Yamaha O1V digital console.  LOVE these JFLs, they’re so controllable and make everything so easy.  They’re a big part of why this events went so smoothly .

 The JFLs may have been the stars of the sound for the event, but they had some help.  We’d also put some fill speakers on the second and third floor balconies to cover overflow.  We fed the broadcast a couple of aux’s and they in turn fed that right online.  The whole event was web cast in full HD live, and complimenting the sound (and of course, the esteemed panel of guests) was the lighting provided by well-know broadcast lighting consultant John Gates of Gates Service Group in Natick, MA.  All cameras and encoding were provided by the in-house staff, led by HSBH’s Sarah Bearse.

Great event from start to finish ~ one of those times when all the elements came together perfectly and seamlessly.  You can check out  the end result at http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/forum/goals-to-action.cfm, and of course see what else Image has been up to at www.imageproductionservices.com.

LED Lights for Miss Mass pagent

I don’t care how many years Image has been doing events of all shapes and sizes, with needs from a couple of simple mic’s to the most advanced sound and stage set-ups ~ I’m never going to get tired of setting up a killer light show.  There’s just something about the “wow” factor, about getting to play with the look and feel and give the audience something spectacular.  And that’s exactly what we got to do at Miss Massachusetts (a two day event that we’ve been doing for almost 12 years now), this year held at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium on November 27^th and 28^th. Before I get into the details, though, I have to give a huge thank you to the amazing house crew, led by the equally amazing Norm ~ he truly went above and beyond the call of duty for us to make sure that everything ran smoothly. 

Ok, now for the fun stuff.  We did 8 movers and 48 colorblast LED lights ~ and they made the backdrop really pop.  The house did stacks and racks and we brought the playback equipment including an instant replay. Have to say, there a bit old school but that 360 rocks every single time. We stepped up the video a bit this year with our Sanyo 12K projector, it really gave us the punch we needed. The 10 x 14 rear screen seemed to fit the set perfectly. It was simple switching with a Sony 1024 (gotta love them dam things) just 2 laptops and HD video for the eye mag.

Since we’ve been doing this event for so many years, this time ‘round I decided to step up the set a little by fabricating a new truss podium, complete LED reading lights on top and 2 shock mounts for the countryman mics.  Yeah, I’ll say it, it was pretty cool and worked out great ~ but since I’m not one for resting on our laurels, we’re already brainstorming about how we’re going to top ourselves for next year’s event.

You can check out more about the event at http://missmassachusetts.tripod.com/index.html.  Congratulations to Loren Galler Rabinowitz for being crowned Miss Massachusetts this year.