The Wash Light
The Shotlight Wash starts off with a top-of-the-line 1500W wash light. It packs in all your standard features and then some. It has a standard pan/tilt range (252°/540°). What sets it apart is speed — particularly for a fixture this size (it weighs in at 102 lbs). Another surprise is how quietly it operates, thanks to its three-phase motors. Its 100 percent hybrid mechanical and electronic dimmer also allows for very smooth intensity fades, even over long time periods.
The fixture, recently ETL listed, has a great CMY color mixing system and an additional variable CTO filter to correct for color temperature. In addition, it has two fixed color wheels with a variety of saturated and hard-to-mix colors. An additional feature of these wheels is a color macro channel that allows you to jump to pre-mixed colors using the two wheels. This color system can be used to mix from the fixed wheels, the CMY wheels or the CTO filter, all with speed and accuracy, so jumping between colors is fast, easy, and reliable. The fixture features an effective modular design for easy maintenance.
The beam of the light is another one of its strengths. The zoom allows for a 11° to 74° beam angle. When it is zoomed down fully, the fixture produces a very strong column of light. When combined with its relatively large aperture size, it produces a great effect and makes the fixture very versatile. There is also an effect mechanism that can be put into the beam when it is zoomed down. It gives a linear shape to the beam, and an additional faceted prism can turn that linear shape into several, almost making a star pattern. These effects shape the beam and can be rotated or indexed for more interesting effects. The fixture also comes with an additional frost filter to diffuse the beam further. For me, the coolest part was that, with the beam shaper in, the light can be zoomed out and the effect is no longer visible, with little loss of output. This means that you could have the effect running with the lamp zoomed a bit out, then zoom it in to “reveal” the effect, without it snapping in place — another feature adding flexibility to the light.
The Shotlight Wash also comes with the conveniences associated with the latest generations of moving lights. It has a battery in the top box which allows for quick addressing while the light is not plugged in. It has 5 pin and 3 pin connectors for DMX data transmission. There’s an Ethernet port for ArtNet control. The connections are standard XLRs, with two PowerCon connectors for power — one for the main lamp and a separate one for the strobe. Both power lines have separate rocker switches. The fixture’s firmware can be updated from the Ethernet port, then cross loaded to the other fixtures in the line, either via the Ethernet line or 5-pin lines, which is convenient when dealing with rigs already hung or hard to reach. This can also be done without power as well, making it even easier to keep fixtures up to date and prepped in shops.
The Strobe
The two 1500W strobes are independently controlled and can be used separately from the main fixture as needed. They have an intensity, rate and duration channel that lets you create a variety of strobe effects. You can also build effects with these through a console as you would a more standard strobe, such as a Martin Atomic 3000. The bulbs will strobe between 0-16 Hz and have an automatic blackout function if they detect unstable frequencies.
When the bulbs fire separately, the are outputting 1500W each, but when firing together, the total power is limited to 1500W overall for safety. Their ability to function separately means they can operate at different frequencies and intensities, creating yet another visual effect rarely seen up until now. The strobes can also maintain a low-intensity setting, flickering and strobing. They can also create a longer-lasting burst — for about 5 to 8 seconds — before they thermal out and need to cool down. Internal sensors monitor temperature safety and keep the lamps timed out until they can be safely used at full intensity again. The blinding effect is very effective, with twice the presence as a normal single-bulb strobe light.
The Shotlight Wash also features a strobe effect macro channel to regulate the speed, control and overall use of the mechanical strobe functionality within the wash fixture and the strobe functions of the two strobe bulbs. This allows the user to let the three parts interact as one.
There are lots of additional features and functions, including simultaneous sync, counter-sync, randomized, ramp-snap and a variety of timed options. They add up to a seemingly limitless array of possibilities that can work together with the fixture’s pan, tilt, color-changing and zoom functionality. So while the overall concept of the Shotlight Wash is fairly simple, it’s capable of producing some pretty complicated and interesting looks.
Clay Paky Shotlight Wash
Pros: High quality, feature-packed 1500W wash light with two front-mounted 1500W strobe lamps and separate controls allows for wide variety of looks and effects.
Cons: None that I could find
How Much: $17,400 (MSRP)
Cory FitzGerald is a New York-based lighting designer and programmer, currently out on tour with Bruno Mars.
