Light boxes for Arcade Marquees, Translites and Movie/Arcade Posters

Phetishboy

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Light boxes for Arcade Marquees, Translites and Movie/Arcade Posters

What is the desired style of lighting to put behind/inside these? Flouro, LED, fibre optics, CFL's? I assume standard tube florescents would work, but how to mount them? On the back of the box, side wash, one on top pointing down, one on bottom pointing up? What would give the most even lighting and reduce 'hot/ bright spots? Anyone experimented with this before?
 
For marquee's I'd use LED's. One strip at top and one at the bottom if you feel it needs more light. Ikea has LED strips for $10 or so. Not sure if they can be daisy chained, but that would make it easy to do a row of them along a wall perimeter with just one outlet. LEDs will also keep the profile low, which is a plus.

Anything bigger than a marquee I would probably use tube flourescents, but it really depends on space. Posters you top light on the exterior, unless they are translucent.

Lots of stuff on google if you use light box design in your search.
 
For marquee's I'd use LED's. One strip at top and one at the bottom if you feel it needs more light. Ikea has LED strips for $10 or so. Not sure if they can be daisy chained, but that would make it easy to do a row of them along a wall perimeter with just one outlet. LEDs will also keep the profile low, which is a plus.

Anything bigger than a marquee I would probably use tube flourescents, but it really depends on space. Posters you top light on the exterior, unless they are translucent.

Lots of stuff on google if you use light box design in your search.

Easy Colonel, I'm new to this 'internet thing'. So this 'google', it can help me find what I seek? BTB, all the Movie Poster lightboxes I have seen were backlit from the inside, which is what I am doing first, would a light source mounted on the top inside light it up nicely? Or would I need one at the bottom too? These are one sided posters, but the white on the back should act like the white on a screened marquee, no?
 
BerzerkLit.jpg
 
Well it seems 3 - 18 inch florescent fixtures were the ticket. Here is is so far:

With flash:

P5240401.jpg

P5240402.jpg


Without:

P5240403.jpg

P5240404.jpg


Now to paint it and install the aluminum channel.
 
It looked better than the pic shows, but I know what you mean. I didn't build it, but it might have been better to put the light in facing away from the marquee with aluminum foil or something reflective in the back of the box to redirect it back to the front...
 
it might have been better to put the light in facing away from the marquee with aluminum foil or something reflective in the back of the box to redirect it back to the front...

That is the way I light models when I use LED's.
LED's create hot spots if facing at the front of the area to be lit so I make a box and use foil or paint it white to reflect the light.
Then point the LED's away from the lit area.
That is the only drawback to using LED's.
 
That is the way I light models when I use LED's.
LED's create hot spots if facing at the front of the area to be lit so I make a box and use foil or paint it white to reflect the light.
Then point the LED's away from the lit area.
That is the only drawback to using LED's.

I wonder if painting the backside of the inside piece of acrylic white would help disperse the light more evenly. Maybe just put a nice thin piece of white vinyl on it. Then the light passes thru the white vinyl, then the white back of the poster, then illuminates the front with a softer glow.
 
I wonder if painting the backside of the inside piece of acrylic white would help disperse the light more evenly. Maybe just put a nice thin piece of white vinyl on it. Then the light passes thru the white vinyl, then the white back of the poster, then illuminates the front with a softer glow.

It probably would work but you might have to try a few different materials to diffuse the light and get what you are looking for.
Try the thinnest material first then got to thicker if needed.
I would paint the entire inside of the light box white and see how that looks first.
White reflects better that foil.
 
I wonder how frosted acrylic behind the poster would look?
Maybe some colored Mylar.
There are a few different types here at Tap Plastics.
Those are another way to diffuse the light.
Take a look here Phet it might help. http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/category.php?bid=24
They have a lot of materials that can be used to diffuse light.
 
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I've always thought of putting the lights behind the side walls of the box shining in on all four sides (shining across to each other) with no bulbs directly behind the object being illuminated...
 
That's how many wall mounted commercial signs are illuminated. Four edges, or two edges depending on size of sign. Think exit signs or public transportation stuff.

Nice job though Phet.
 
That's how many wall mounted commercial signs are illuminated. Four edges, or two edges depending on size of sign. Think exit signs or public transportation stuff.

Nice job though Phet.

Thanks Colonel. I tried to do the side wash, but the depth of the box is only 3.25 inches. Turning these fixtures on their sides, they measure 4.25 inches deep. I will have to mount them on the backing. Wonder why the built in outlets on these fixtures aren't switched? You turn the first one in the daisy chain off, but the rest stay blazing. Wonder if I could just add an inline lamp cord switch to the end cord, outside of the box, thereby cutting the power before it hits the first fixture? It would be like unplugging it I would think.
 
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