Beginners

Welcome to one of the greatest hobbies in the whole world! This page is dedicated to you, the newcomer to this hobby so that you can fully understand what the animated lighting hobby is all about and what your role in it will be if you decide to join in. There's also a helpful section in our forum called Getting Started where you'll find more detailed information -- highly recommended reading!

• How Computer Controlled Animated Lighting Works

• Skills you will need

• Tools you will need

• Supplies you will use/need

Supplies you will use/need

• Consumables vary with each installation and no two installations are alike. However, it's likely that you'll use multiple kinds of tape -- masking tape, painter's tape, duct tape, electrical tape, silicon tape -- the list is almost endless. You'll use various kinds of screws (sheet-rock, self-tapping and machine types), nails of various kinds and lengths, cable ties/"zip-ties" in various lengths (buy kinds that are UV resistant), plywood, paint of various types and colors, PVC pipe and fittings, etc. In any event, you'll make lots of trips to your local hardware store or home improvement center as you create your display.
• Extension cords. Lots of them. You'll use big, long outdoor extension cables for main power runs and smaller cables for shorter runs. Some users buy large spools of SPT-1 or SPT-2 wire and bags of "pirate plugs" so they can cut lengths and make cables to exactly the lengths they need.
• Storage bins. Lots of them. This is often an overlooked item but large, plastic storage bins with covers are helpful to preserve your equipment, wire and other display elements during the off-season so that you can use them again. Careful attention to storage can extend the useful life of your gear for many years and save money.

• Immutable Issues: Money and Time

Immutable Issues: Money and Time

• Money. Even though this is a do-it-yourself hobby, it is not inexpensive to get involved in it. In fact, it can be unbelievably expensive if you're not careful. This hobby is addictive in the sense that you'll always be able to justify the need to add another string of lights here or there, or that you need another dozen extension cords, or that you need another roll of duct tape or another bag of a thousand zip ties... and the expenses creep up on you $10 or $20 at a time. Before you get started, determine how much money you can afford to spend, and then double that figure because that's a bit more realistic as to what it truly will be. The first year is one of the most expensive because you need to acquire not only the lights, but the tools and infrastructure materials you'll need to control them -- the extension cords, control cabling, controllers, USB adapters, etc. A good guideline to follow is to start small. Plan a display of perhaps only 8 or 16 channels, get some experience in how the equipment works and how to connect it together, how to design sequences and how to solve basic construction and mounting issues because these things are the building blocks of the whole hobby. Starting small will also limit your financial exposure.
• Time. Most beginners underestimate the amount of time this hobby can take. Experienced DIYers in this hobby often start planning their shows a year in advance. Sometimes construction and sequencing for a very complex, single prop can take two years or more. The DIYer in this hobby is by nature an inventor who's going by the seat of his pants because there's not a one-size-fits-all kit you can buy. Building the electronics is one small part of it and one usually becomes quite proficient in electronic assembly rather quickly. Stringing wires takes more time than you'd imagine. Figuring out how to get control wires from your computer to the controllers takes some planning and thought -- and sometimes may include drilling holes through concrete walls. But universally, most DIYers in this hobby agree that the most time-consuming activity is designing the control sequences on your computer and matching them to music. For every minute of audio, you can easily spend two or three hours deciding what lights you want to turn on or off, and how quickly, and how bright or dim you want them to be. It sounds silly, but this is the artful part of the hobby. This is the part that brings smiles to your viewers and what makes you really proud of what you've created. So if you decide you want to have five sequences and five songs in your show, consider that it will probably run about 12-15 minutes. And sequencing that much time can easily take an entire week.

• Where to get more info

Where to get more info

This is what the forums at diychristmas.org and other Christmas-lighting sites are all about. You'll want to join one or more of them so that you can interact with other DIYers, post questions, read solutions and hopefully, help others along the way as your own skills increase.

• diychristmas.org hosts this Wiki, registration is free, and there are no fees attached to using the forum in any way. The site does accept voluntary contributions to help defray operating expenses, and profits from the DIGWDF Store are all directed toward supporting the diychristmas.org forum to keep it free.
• DoItYourselfChristmas.com is another very popular and broad source of information for the animated lighting hobby.
• AusChristmasLighting is another terrific forum for some really creative users from "down under" and a great place to learn how others around the world practice this craft.