Recent from talks
Gobo (lighting)
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Gobo (lighting)
A gobo is an object placed inside or in front of a light source to control the shape of the emitted light and its shadow.
For studio photography purposes, the term "gobo" has come to refer to any device that casts a shadow, and various pieces of equipment that go in front of a light (such as a gobo arm or gobo head).
In theatrical lighting, however, the term more specifically refers to a device placed in "the gate" or at the "point of focus" between the light source, called a lamp, and the lenses (or other optics).
The exact derivation of the term gobo is unclear, although it appears to have originated in cinema studios in the 1930s. It may be an American slang abbreviation of "go-between", or "go-before" (just as New York's "SoHo" signifies the area "South of Houston Street").
Some lighting professionals believe that it is an acronym for "goes before optics" or, less often, "goes between optics". An alternative abbreviation might be "graphical optical black-out". The treatment of the word as an acronym is recent.
The term gobo has been adopted in the recording industry to refer to a screen or sheet of sound-absorbent material that shields a microphone from sounds coming from a particular direction.
In the photographic industry, a "gobo" describes any opaque, usually black, panel, or "flat", of any dimension, that goes between a light source and photographic subject (such as between sun light and a portrait model) to control the modelling effect of the existing light or, used as a "cutter", to create shadows; or even to control reflections; or between light source and lens, to cut flare. Use of gobos augments light-shaping devices attached to the lights themselves, whether continuous or flash, with cones, snoots, honeycomb grids or barn doors being the most common such fittings.
The use of the gobo is "subtractive", as opposed to using a "reflector" to bounce added light into a shadow (thus "additive" lighting). Use of a gobo subtracts light from a portion of an overall shaded subject and creates a contrast between one side of the subject and the other.
Hub AI
Gobo (lighting) AI simulator
(@Gobo (lighting)_simulator)
Gobo (lighting)
A gobo is an object placed inside or in front of a light source to control the shape of the emitted light and its shadow.
For studio photography purposes, the term "gobo" has come to refer to any device that casts a shadow, and various pieces of equipment that go in front of a light (such as a gobo arm or gobo head).
In theatrical lighting, however, the term more specifically refers to a device placed in "the gate" or at the "point of focus" between the light source, called a lamp, and the lenses (or other optics).
The exact derivation of the term gobo is unclear, although it appears to have originated in cinema studios in the 1930s. It may be an American slang abbreviation of "go-between", or "go-before" (just as New York's "SoHo" signifies the area "South of Houston Street").
Some lighting professionals believe that it is an acronym for "goes before optics" or, less often, "goes between optics". An alternative abbreviation might be "graphical optical black-out". The treatment of the word as an acronym is recent.
The term gobo has been adopted in the recording industry to refer to a screen or sheet of sound-absorbent material that shields a microphone from sounds coming from a particular direction.
In the photographic industry, a "gobo" describes any opaque, usually black, panel, or "flat", of any dimension, that goes between a light source and photographic subject (such as between sun light and a portrait model) to control the modelling effect of the existing light or, used as a "cutter", to create shadows; or even to control reflections; or between light source and lens, to cut flare. Use of gobos augments light-shaping devices attached to the lights themselves, whether continuous or flash, with cones, snoots, honeycomb grids or barn doors being the most common such fittings.
The use of the gobo is "subtractive", as opposed to using a "reflector" to bounce added light into a shadow (thus "additive" lighting). Use of a gobo subtracts light from a portion of an overall shaded subject and creates a contrast between one side of the subject and the other.
Recent media