Virtual Santa from Christmas Light Show

Christmas in the Shire

Christmas in the Shire

Apprentice elf
Joined
Dec 10, 2010
Messages
88
Location
Sutherland Shire, Sydney NSW
Just a quick one to see if anyone has used or is using the Virtual Santa from Christmas Light Show in their display this year? Was thinking of doing it this year, but I'm not sure yet and would appreciate some feedback. Even if some has seen it in real life? Does it look fake?
Cheers
Christmas in the Shire (Craig)
 
Craig keep it simple this year or you will not get a display going :D

plus i do not think with your house layout that this would work.
 
Yeah, I was thinking for the lady next door. I think she has the perfect window and the perfect house.
I was wondering if anyone has personally seen the DVD in action and if the illusion is believable, or look fake beyond belief.
Cheers
Shire
 
The video is quite good. I haven't set mine up in a window, but I think it would look great when set up correctly.
 
I have seen a couple of places with it and it looks very good. Ask Tuppet/Tuppetsdad as they had it in their display, my 3 year old (2 at the time) loved it and didn't want to leave santa.
 
I have it in my display for a few years now. No sound, just the video. I have to say, it's a real crowd pleaser!! I bet I could only have candles in the other windows and no lights on the house and there would be people standing on the sidewalk.

I simply used light weight painter's plastic taped to the inside of the window and it work very well. No need for mylar - and I can still see out the window during the day.
 
Was the biggest hit (most talked about element) last year

I went the easy route
From Best Buy:
Rear projector $150
DVD player $20
From on line:
Rear projection screen material $60

Hung the screen inside at the front window, pluged the stuff up, put in the Virtual Santa DVD
Watch the kiddies have a great time
 
I have used it now for 7 years, and if I ever pulled it out of the show, I might lose about half my visitors. He has come to be one of the cornerstone parts of the display.
I put him in my Home Office window and visitors can walk up very close to see him. It is close enough so that I run speakers on the porch and turn the sound up so that the visitors can hear the sound track. The kids squeel on the walkway up to the porch watching him.
 
I have got Virtual Santa this year.

We made up a wooden frame and stretched white lycra over it. We already had a projector that we didnt know what to do with.

With the wooden frame the good thing is we can take it up and down easily as its going on my daughters bedroom window. I didnt want her windows covered permanently for 5-6wks over Xmas.

Ive had it up and it looks fantastic at night, just fiddle with the sizing and yer good to go :)
 
I think it looks pretty cool. I'm contemplating giving virtual santa a try for ourselves this year. we have a projector already, so it wouldn't be a terrible cost, just work out a projection surface for the window, somewhere to set the projector, and the DVD itself, and we are good to go.


As I indicated in one of my other posts, I'm kind of interested in trying out some ways of integrating projection into our lights setup. It could be a somewhat efficient way of getting some movement, and colour into spaces like walls, and/or trees etc....
 
I for one will be working with projection this year, I have our condo which is 25ft wide * 20ft high which I am going to project and video map different areas (resolume and irmapio) using a short throw 3000 lumen projector from a 12ft throw distance. I even had to move the megatree to a different location at the side instead of in the middle. Virtial Santa and Sants'a symphonies are for 1 of the mapped areas and the rest will be various content from motionloops.
 
Christmas in the Shire said:
Yeah, I was thinking for the lady next door. I think she has the perfect window and the perfect house.
Click to expand...

In my opinion, if you put Santa next door, you might as well not even put your display up.
All the kiddies will force Mom & Dad to watch Santa. LOL :D
 
Thanks Guys, I'll definitely give it a go I think. Even if it is next door in the old ladies house. It will be wonderful to see everyone’s reaction.
Does anyone else hide in the crowd and pretend you’re a spectator? Or is this just me?
I'm a little warped sometimes!!!!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top