Category Archives: Uncategorized

In a recent post I described my progress in developing a very compact RGBW floodlight that I plan to use for both art lighting and landscape lighting projects. I have an existing controller (the SLiC v2 board, described in this post) that is able to drive two of these “Fido” floodlights. But I challenged myselfContinue reading “Flex Controller”

I set this project aside about a year ago, but now I have an actual application in mind and I’ve resumed work. Not exactly an art project – I plan to use them as accent lights surrounding a deck I’m building in the back yard. To save you the trouble of reading updates #1 throughContinue reading “FidoLight RGBW Spotlight: Update #6”

Gamma correction, as applied to LED lighting, is a confusing and commonly-misunderstood topic. Proper application of gamma correction is important in achieving smooth brightness and color fades. Although there are a least a couple of articles out there that explain this concept and its application to LEDs (see links at the end of this post),Continue reading “Gamma Correction for LED Lighting”

Things have been a bit slow since my return from Burning Man, and I feel a bit guilty about not having anything really juicy to post about. It’s mostly my fault, since I’ve become somewhat obsessed with building a deck in my back yard and trying to finish before it gets really cold here inContinue reading “Project Updates: October 2022”

In this article I’ll share my preferred techniques for protecting the components of an outdoor LED lighting system from the elements: rain, humidity, dust, sunlight, etc. I’ve been designing LED lighting systems for outdoor art installations/sculptures since 2019. My first couple of projects were for Burning Man, and my primary concern was ensuring that theContinue reading “Weatherproofing Techniques for LED Lighting Systems”

I just returned from Burning Man, the annual event of epic proportions in the Northern Nevada desert. In case you haven’t seen my previous posts (like this one, and this one), I’ve been working on the lighting for a large glass-and-steel shark sculpture created by artist Peter Hazel. With a lot of dedication and sweatContinue reading “Desert Shark”

There are so many balls in the air right now, but I wanted to give you some updates on three projects that are currently underway. Jerry the Shark First, there’s the 20-foot long glass and steel Mako shark that artist Peter Hazel plans to display at Burning Man in late August. I described the basicsContinue reading “Project Updates: July 2022”

Wow! What an adventure! I just got back from installing the new lighting system in Fly By, a 24-foot all glass and stainless steel Manta ray sculpture that resides in the historic, tiny town of Nipton, California (population < 20). The origin story of Nipton is pretty fascinatingly, and its recent history is no lessContinue reading “Manta Ray (Fly By) Update #2”

In a previous post I described the origins of a project to replace the lighting in one of Peter Hazel’s existing sculptures, a 24 foot tall glass and steel Manta ray called Fly By. This was a perfect opportunity for me to try out the new controller hardware I’ve been developing – boards that canContinue reading “Manta Ray (Fly By) Update #1”

The goal of this article is to give you all the information you need to design the wiring for a project that includes one or more addressable LED strips. And you’re thinking: “Does the world really need another article explaining power injection?” Well, yes, but only if you’re not satisfied with generic “rules of thumb”Continue reading “Wiring Design for Addressable LED Strips”