[Scarab]

I want to do a "open air" Hollusion, meaning just out in the yard. I assume I need to two stakes that I'll paint matte black and then attach the Hollusion matierial to the stacks. On AtmosFX website they say a little bit of ambient light BEHIND the Hollusion screen makes it look better. But should I project from the front or the back is the question? How do I make the Hollusion material "disappear" as much as possible?

Any info or ideas on "free range" Hollusions will be much appreciated!

Thank you in advance for any info given!

Scarab

 

[JCO]

I've never done Hollusions outdoors but if I do, I'll try this stuff first: https://www.mosquitocurtains.com/application-halloween-projection-screens

With all Hollusions you want as much of your viewing area as possible covered so the audience has no other frame of reference. No matter how sheer the material, there is still a chance it can be detected if you have a portion of the viewing area covered and an adjacent area not.

Hot spots and bleed-through are dealt with in a simple fashion - keep it out of the spectators' line of sight! You might rear project with the projector in a location the viewer can't see (off to the side, low behind a prop, etc.) The bleed-through would need to land on, say, the back of some prop (a wall, a crypt, a bush, etc) or fly over their heads if the projector is low to the ground.

You could also front project and hide the projector behind or inside a prop, sign, wall, etc In such a case I would try to disguise bleed-through in one of three ways. (1) Have the bleed-through land in a location or on a prop that can not be seen by the viewer. (2) Project where the area behind the screen travels out over a large distance. The farther the projection travels, the larger and fainter it gets, until at some point it becomes unidentifiable as a coherent picture. (3) Disguise the bleed-through by a "fire/ice" light or other random visual background.

Yes, you need your background illuminated, at least to some degree, to achieve the "hologram" effect. If it's dark in the background, there's no way to tell that you can see through the character because there's nothing there to see!

 

[Scarab]

With all Hollusions you want as much of your viewing area as possible covered so the audience has no other frame of reference.

Can you please explain this further? I don't understand what you're getting at.

Scarab

 

[SHANMAN310]

I think he means having the biggest screen material as possible so It's not easily detected from the areas around without the screen.
I'm doing the same thing you're talking about in our haunted trail and new to this also. I'm thinking of doing mine between two trees or building a mausoleum for our graveyard scene and putting the screen there.

 

[GirlNo3Belcher]

Definitely need to follow this thread! I'm also planning on doing this for the first time.

We have a stone patio area a few steps down from our driveway. This year I want to move our patio tables/chairs to the driveway and create a little seating area there, then use a hollusion projection in the actual patio area (probably the dancing skeletons from Atmosfx's Bone Chillers or the dancing people from Macabre Manor). The projection will be visible to anyone in the driveway or yard. Because the patio area is stone, I won't be able to use stakes, so I'm thinking of hanging it between two trees.

Anyone decide yet on which screen they're going with?

 

[Scarab]

I'm bought the AtmosFX material for Hollusion. Their other screen material is superior as well unless you're going to go Carl's.

Scarab

 

[JCO]

Think of it this way - let's say you're doing the effect indoors on the outward facing widows of the room. If you have one window covered with projection material but not the other one, you'll be able to see the difference. If, on the other hand, you have BOTH windows covered, the audience has no other frame of reference and just assumes that's the way the entire room looks.

Similarly, if you have a screen mounted in your front yard but the areas to the left and right of the screen are left uncovered, you'll get a similar effect. One way to deal with the issue is to have a narrow viewing area like between two buildings, between two trees or bushes, etc. I've also heard of the concept of a "ghost portal" where the screen is bordered by two columns or posts on either side and then an archway or horizontal sign at the top. This at least gives some semblance of a reason why the "atmosphere" within the portal looks different than the surrounding area.

 

[kippystarz]

I'm posting to follow this thread. I am also putting up a screen in my front ~grave~ yard and can post pictures of mine this weekend!

 

[Scarab]

I want to create a Hollusion in my yard. Actually, in the middle of my yard where there is nothing to anchor the sides and top and bottom of the Hollusion material.

My questions is:
Has anyone done this successfully?
What did you use as a framing material that was strong enough to hold the Hollusion material tight and thin enough to not disrupt the illusion of a free floating apparition (or whatever you choose to project) in your open yard?

Thanks in advance for ideas!

 

[SparrowWalk]

I want to create a Hollusion in my yard. Actually, in the middle of my yard where there is nothing to anchor the sides and top and bottom of the Hollusion material.

My questions is:
Has anyone done this successfully?
What did you use as a framing material that was strong enough to hold the Hollusion material tight and thin enough to not disrupt the illusion of a free floating apparition (or whatever you choose to project) in your open yard?

Thanks in advance for ideas!

Hey Scarab,

I used some garden stakes behind 2 of my larger tombstones. They worked well and I used some twine to pull them tight (you can see it in the lower left of the daylight pic attached). The stakes also served to keep my tombstones propped up. May be tough to pull off a freestanding hollusion, with no cover, but the stakes worked well and held the material.

allFENZ 5 ft. Polyethylene Coated Garden Stakes (10-Pack)-GSK-05 - The Home Depot

allFENZ Garden Stakes are the ultimate in lightweight sturdy garden support. These stakes feature a sturdy steel center and are coated with durable plastic for weatherproof protection. Use the stakes for tomatoes, peppers, dahlias, lilies, or any other flowering or fruit-producing plants...

www.homedepot.com

Side note, new house last year so I didn't want to bury those stakes too deep since I didn't know where all my underground stuff was.

 

[Scarab]

Do you front project or back?

Scarab

 

[SparrowWalk]

Rear projection. I've also used 2 of these with pretty solid results. Also rear projection

Vigoro 84 in. Black Steel Traditional Single Shepherd Hook-844635VG - The Home Depot

Easily display hanging flower baskets, birdhouses, wind chimes in your home with the help of this Vigoro Black Steel Traditional Single Shepherd Hook.

www.homedepot.com

 

[Ifyoubuildittheywillcome]

I use 2 2x4s, about 8 feet , cut the bottoms into a point, then hammer them into the ground, staple a shower curtain on, project from the rear, my shower curtain is a plastic sheer, not clear, if I can find my video from last year I will post that too

 

[Ifyoubuildittheywillcome]

Its a little blurry, but that's my camera at night, the actual projection is clear

 

[Ifyoubuildittheywillcome]

Its a little blurry, but that's my camera at night, the actual projection is clear

Halloween projection from last year