https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news.atomBig Screen Pro - News2024-03-27T08:20:42-04:00Big Screen Prohttps://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/audience-size-and-your-outdoor-movie-system2024-03-27T08:20:42-04:002024-03-27T08:20:42-04:00Audience size and your outdoor movie systemBig Screen Pro The most obvious feature to consider is the outdoor movie screen size. And the major manufacturers in our industry typically mention this ratio in their marketing materials.
Interestingly, this ratio may differ from outdoor movie equipment manufacturer to manufacturer, for the same projection screen size. This can become confusing and here's how to make sense of it.
Projection screen size versus audience size
The approximate viewers count according to screen size comes from the actual experience of a given manufacturer and the marketing message that they want to convey to you as a user. But there are other considerations to keep in mind when estimating the screen and audience size ratio.
Audience proximity
How and where your audience will be seated. If your event is planned in a park and your viewers will be seated on blankets your outdoor movie screen will be comfortably entertaining fewer people than if when they are in chairs.
Sometimes your audience may watch the content while standing. Say at a concert or a short film festival. This will accommodate many more people compared to an audience on blankets or seated in chairs.
But in reality in most cases you will get a mix of the three arrangements. Typically the outdoor movie venue managers will have a number of chairs and benches. Some people will arrive with their own blankets or folding chairs. And passers-by will stop and be watching while standing.
Screen elevation above the ground
One of the best venue types for outdoor movie screenings are amphitheaters and elevated concert stages. The higher your screen is above the ground the better is the viewing range — so more people will be able to comfortably watch the content.
This is especially true when organizing a drive-in screening. You may have noticed that permanent drive-in projection screens are usually elevated. This is done to avoid the vehicles that are parked in front of you from blocking the view.
Viewing angles
Another important factor often overlooked by outdoor movie event producers is the viewing angle of your outdoor movie screen. The viewing angle depends on the brightness of your projector, ambient lighting that may dim the projected image and the projection screen gain.
Other factors to consider
Sound distribution. It's important to make sure that the audience seated far off can hear the sound clearly while the front rows don't suffer from the sound that's too loud. If the movie has subtitles you may want to use a bigger size screen and also make the subtitles bigger for the audience.
Conclusion
Outdoor movie events are all about the pleasant vibe and enjoy the experience. This is why it's important to make sure the comfort of your audience is maintained throughout the whole movie under the stars event. Proper screen size, comfortable spacing and good sound balance are some factors to keep in mind.]]>
https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/can-you-replace-a-projection-surface-in-open-air-cinema-elite-screen2024-03-13T05:38:06-04:002024-03-13T05:38:06-04:00Can you replace a projection surface in Open Air Cinema Elite screen?Big Screen Pro
Despite such longevity, some unforeseen situations can occur.
Here is a number of the most common of them: your Open Air Cinema Elite screen could get damaged by sharp objects, collect mold if stored wet for a long time; or the projection surface could be damaged with aggressive substances.
Normally, any damage of the screen's inflatable frame can and should be repaired. Whereas the projection surface has to remain flawless and in perfect shape to ensure the best viewing experience.
Luckily the Elite projection surface replacement process is fairly easy, with some nuances.
Here they are. If you have made that decision to replace the Elite projection surface following these steps:
1. Get in touch with the Big Screen Pro team on sales@bigscreenpro.com and mention in your email which type of Elite projection surface you want. There are three types: optimized for front projection, rear projection-only and universal (front+rear projection surface). There are also sub-zero solutions available for outdoor movie screening under extreme freezing conditions.
2. A Big Screen Pro sales rep will get back to you with a quote that will include shipping costs.
3. We will ask you to inflate your Elite screen and take measurements of the projection surface, grommets count and grommets spacing. The reason is that Open Air Cinema Elite screens have had numerous design modification over the years. Precise measurements from you will ensure the best results when it comes to us fitting your new surface to your Elite screen frame.
What's an average lead and production time for your new Elite projection surface? The projection surfaces for Open Air Cinema Elite screens are custom-made in Canada, on request. And it normally takes 10-14 days to ship once we get the measurements from you.
The new Elite projection surface comes with a sufficient number of bungee cords to attach the surface to the frame.
Getting a new Elite projection surface will make your outdoor movie screen look like new. For a fraction of the cost of a new Elite screen. Get ready for the upcoming outdoor movie season and make your order in advance.]]>
https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/how-to-prepare-your-outdoor-movie-equipment-for-the-upcoming-season2024-02-28T06:05:34-05:002024-02-28T06:05:34-05:00How to prepare your outdoor movie equipment for the upcoming seasonBig Screen Pro
Don't procrastinate
We at Big Screen Pro had several situations in the past when a customer would ask for our outdoor movie rental services, let's say in April, and they would need it "tomorrow". And that was when we realized that we should have prepared the equipment several weeks before this situation happened.
Or imagine that Netflix released the next season of your favourite show and the weather is good enough to watch it in your backyard — while you are not sure where you stored the screen anchoring stakes when you wrapped the season last year.
Make checklists
An outdoor movie system consists of numerous components. An absence of a single small element — think an HDMI cable will make your show impossible. So don't downplay the role of component checklists. Pro tip: backup spare components that you know you'll need at your commercial screenings must be part of the component checklist.
80% of outdoor movie system components can be checked on indoors. A projection control console, power cords, audio cables and a projector can all be turned on for a quick technical check, indoors.
Check the weather to know when the season has arrived
Come March, make sure to regularly check the weather to establish when the warm season is here. From our experience, it becomes comfortable to watch movies outside when the evening mercury rises to 60°F.
Finding all your outdoor movie system components in advance, making checklists and planning your outdoor movie season will guarantee a smooth and stress-free transition from winter to the full-scale summer screening season.]]>
https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/projector-lenses-for-your-outdoor-movie-theater2024-02-14T06:14:33-05:002024-02-14T06:14:33-05:00Projector lenses for your outdoor movie theaterBig Screen Pro There are three more categories of projector lenses according to their throw: ultra short-throw, short throw and long-throw lens. The first category (ultra short-throw) are almost never applied during the outdoor movie screenings because of the limited image size that can be projected using these lenses. Typical screen sizes covered by the ultra short-throw lenses are 80'', 100'', 150".
Optoma EH340UST. Maximum Screen size is up to 100" in diagonal.
The projection distance of these lenses is impressive. They can project a maximum image size from just 3" or 5" away from the projector screen. This is especially handy for small living rooms or when you want to swap an LED TV to an ultra short-throw projector. Ultra short-throw projector lenses never come with a Zoom feature. So you have to know the exact place where the projector needs to be placed in relation to your projection screen.
Short-throw projector lenses or projectors with a built-in short-throw projector lens are commonly used in outdoor movie systems. These projectors are more expensive compared to normal lens projectors. Many models do not have zoom. And the projected image is typically limited to 16'-25' screen width. Short-throw projectors come handy when an outdoor movie event is limited by the venue dimensions. Think of a small backyard or a concert stage.
Long-throw projector lenses are available exclusively as an interchangeable lens for a projector. As to our knowledge, there are no projector models with a built-in long-throw lens. Long-throw lenses are the most expensive models because of the complicated optical elements design.
Long throw projector lens by Optoma (BX-CTA13)
The Big Screen Pro rental division had several situations where only a long-throw lens could be used during an open air cinema event. For example, a 20' outdoor movie screen needed to be placed close to a wall. So no short-throw lens could solve the situation. The placement of the projector behind the screen was limited because of a large artificial pond at the centre of the venue. So the only option was to place the outdoor projector 100' away from the inflatable screen. This is where a long-throw lens saved us.
If you are shopping for your first outdoor movie system whether for your backyard or a rental business, a normal-throw projector is your best option. But if you are looking to now expand your outdoor projector fleet — consider a short-throw projector with zoom, or invest in a projector with interchangeable lenses.]]>
https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/what-is-the-bare-minimum-equipment-for-an-outdoor-movie-screening2024-02-02T05:58:17-05:002024-02-02T05:58:17-05:00What is the bare minimum equipment for an outdoor movie screeningBig Screen ProMore]]>
To understand what one would need to make an outdoor movie night at a minimum let's break the process down. There has to be a reflective surface to project onto. Obviously there should be a projector in place. When these two requirements are fulfilled you are already capable of showing retro silent-era movies. But what if you want to screen a recent blockbuster, with sound FXs and thought-provoking dialog. Think, an audio system with sufficient loudness and clarity.
To sum up, a projector screen, projector and a speaker set are what you basically need to pull off a movie event. To be precise, you will also need a source of electrical power to power it all up and some sort of a media player which can be your phone or laptop. And a set of cables to connect the system together.
This all might sound simple before we get into the details. Ask yourself a question: are all projection surfaces equal in terms image quality and viewing angles? Obviously this is not the case. A quality projection screen capable of accommodating larger audiences and reflecting proper tints and colours properly is what you are going to need to entertain large crowds.
We at Big Screen Pro recommend a pair of speakers with at least 800W of power each, for audiences of 100+. Another question would be: will any outdoor-rated projector do? It's not that simple. Your choice of an outdoor movie projector model has to correspond with the outdoor movie screen size. The larger your screen is the brighter the projector needs to be. Besides that, depending on your audience seating plan, you might want to consider a projector with a short throw or long throw lens.
What if you want the outdoor projector to be on the opposite side from the audience. Get yourself a rear projection outdoor movie screen. At the next stage of your outdoor movie producer journey you will gravitate towards convenience.
Being able to show content from various sources like Blu-ray players and streaming HDMI sticks, ability to regulate volume from your projection control position at the venue, remotely. A wireless mike to make announcements for your audience, an additional pair of outdoor speakers to distribute the movie sound equally across the audience seating area.
Understanding a minimum set of equipment tailored to your specific outdoor movie event needs is a useful mental exercise for an outdoor movie producer of any skill level. By doing, backyard movie hobbyists may come up with new ideas on how to make their open air cinema experience more exciting and convenient.]]>
https://www.bigscreenpro.com/blogs/news/introducing-big-screen-pro-projector-enclosure2024-01-17T07:43:24-05:002024-01-17T07:43:24-05:00Introducing Big Screen Pro projector enclosureBig Screen Pro
So recently we committed to finding a solution. We tried an improvised tent and even protected the projector from the rain by covering it with trash bags. But all of this was unreliable and energy-depriving. Looking for a commercial solution on the market we have found heavy, typically permanent installations and very expensive products.
In the end, we've developed our own Big Screen Pro product. We tasked our R&D department with the following: Big Screen Pro projector enclosure has to be lightweight, road-ready and able to effectively maintain necessary humidity and temperature conditions inside the box. And here is the result: a top-loading projector housing, made of aluminium and painted with durable commercial-grade paint, made for exteriors.
There are three ball-bearing fans (one for air intake and two for exhaust). The quality of the protected image is insured by optically transparent glass front panels. The panel of the projector enclosure transmits 99 % of the emitted light from your projector. For your convenience there are spare electric sockets protected from the elements to power up a media player and other accessories. When the projector is inside the box it can still be controlled by the remote control thanks to the built-in infrared transmitter.
The size of the projector enclosure by Big Screen Pro allows to accommodate our most favourite Optoma projector models, with the largest one that could be fit in being Optoma ZH606, a 6000 lumen laser projector for up to 30' wide outdoor screen.
We tested the projector enclosure under a pouring rain in August and freezing cold with snow in December. And everything went as planned.
Get in touch with us today to talk about your projector protection needs. And even if your projector is larger than the standard size — we at Big Screen Pro can make a larger projector enclosure for you.]]>