Fluttering Ghost

Monster Heads

Creepy Clock

Vampire Bat

Lighting

Special Effects

Sound Effects

HALLOWEEN LIGHTING

Creating your Halloween Experience almost always means the addition of strings of decorative lights, strobe lights, black lights, special effects and electrically powered decorations. Properly used, lighting will make your experience more effective and creepy.

Over the years we've learned how important lighting is to the experience. Properly done, lighting can heighten the atmosphere, while poor implementation can ruin it.

A graveyard scene is a perfect example. Let's say we've created a small graveyard in a garden using a few homemade tombstones, a couple of plastic ravens and a few pumpkins.

If you under-light the graveyard it will not be very visible and have little or no impact on your visitors. Conversely, if you over-light the area you can ruin the effect by making it too stark.

In the case of a graveyard scene , we would recommend adding a blue coloured flood light to illuminate the graveyard.

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HALLOWEEN SPECIAL EFFECTS

Strobe lights are often seen on television and films to generate a lightning flash, or bright pulsing lights, but you can use them for the same effect in rooms, hallways or even outdoors to frighten and disorientate your trick-or-treaters. If used correctly strobe lights can add a great effect to your Halloween Experience, display or party, but if done poorly it will annoy your visitors and take away from the overall atmosphere.

Strobe light units come in a variety of shapes, sizes and power ratings. Prices range from about £5 to £500! Choosing one that fits your particular need depends on what effect you will be using it to create. For a small indoor lightning effect buy a 20 watt strobe online now, at TLC Direct, for only £4.68, or go brighter and larger and buy a 60 watt strobe unit online for only £29.09!

As with any electrical device, care must be taken to protect against electrocution. Make sure that the cord is hidden from view and not where it can be tripped over or snagged on.

For a fantastic spooky effect, add ghostly wisps to your experience by getting yourself a fog machine. Buy a high-quality fog machine unit online now at TLC Direct for only £40.94!

Combining the two effects together, strobe lights can be aimed into the fog generated from a fog machine to make a creepy and disorientating effect.

For best effect you should aim the light either up or down through the fog, not directly in the direction your visitors will be coming from.

For sci-fi or alien type displays, place a small strobe light inside of a large plastic pumpkin. Don't use a real pumpkin because of the moisture content. If you have tall trees near your house you can place a strobe light on the roof pointed up towards the trees. This looks very strange. Place a strobe light at the end of a hallway that trick or treats have to walk down.

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HALLOWEEN SOUND EFFECTS

Background music, often called sound-scapes for Halloween are used help to heighten the overall effect of being in a sinister place. Try to locate a few old CD players or speakers to hide under bushes in your garden, and make a CD with spooky sound effects or music that can loop round over and over again. The best effect is created with the use of two or more CD players; one playing background music, the other playing single halloween sound effects over the top.

For an even better effect, connect a PIR motion detector to your CD player. This will therefore only play sound effects when a trick-or-treater enters your garden. This can also startle them even more by playing a 'BOO!' sound effect quite loud, and not only does it give a great effect, it won't annoy your neighbours by having a "BOO!" sound playing really loud all Halloween night.

For some free halloween sounds, including the music and effects we use in our experience, check out our halloween sounds gallery.

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