If you’ve been around for a while, then you might just remember our blog post on the reasons every project needs a lighting designer (but if you need a refresher, check it out here!) One of the key ways we support the mission of any project and maximize client goals is by having our pulse on the ever-changing technology within our industry. There is also more lighting research happening than ever before, which means it’s important to have an expert who is up-to-date on your project. Today, Junior Designer Nick Maurer is tapping into the latest and greatest technology – VR, AR, and XR – that have upped our lighting game for clients near and far.

Virtual Reality

VR, or virtual reality, is the full immersion into a virtual world or landscape. VR is mostly popping up in industries like gaming and virtual conferences (in response to the pandemic), but the architecture and lighting industries are starting to get involved as well. 

VR is a great solution for showing clients their environments before the project is built. It’s the best digital rendering solution out there, so of course, Morlights has worked to implement VR into our process of working with clients. Our goal is to have dynamic videos and real-time lighting that is compatible with VR available to our clients in the next few years. While we wait for rendering software to grow, we are proud to be a part of the industry-wide push forward in embracing this technology with capabilities today.

Augmented Reality

AR, or augmented reality, is the partial immersion of a virtual world. This type of technology may not work well for digital rendering purposes but is always a good solution to elevating collaboration from 2D to 3D. 

AR helps give users an idea of light levels in a room while interacting with the space. Using 3D mapping, a person wearing AR glasses would be able to walk around a space and see where an ideal placement for a luminaire may be. They can even determine the proposed calculations for placement and more. Think of it as holograms that only the wearer of the glasses can see! 

Mixed Reality

And lastly, XR, or mixed reality, is a great combination of VR and AR. XR is actually being used to make television and movies like The Mandalorian and The Batman, by using several high-resolution LED walls and ceilings to project scenery onto the back of the shots. The LEDs that are used are able to create extremely accurate lighting for the camera. To step into the world of XR, users/viewers enter a room rather than using one headset, which also enables groups to view a space without needing multiple VR headsets.

Thanks to VR, AR, and XR, and the other tools in our technology toolbox, we’re able to not only illuminate projects for our clients in dynamic and unique ways but also ensure the lighting design properly adds to and illuminates the rest of the design and functions effectively – while achieving everyone's end goals: saving and making you money!