You have a garden, a landscaped courtyard, or another type of land, and you dream of combining the pleasure of watching a film on a very large screen and the joy of knowing that it is happening outdoors (in short, to bring outdoor cinema to your home), but you wonder how to do it if it’s complicated or come up with movie party ideas, what equipment is needed, etc.? we will guide you.
First, Think About The Layout Of The Space
Whether you live in the city center, a little more out of the way, or in the countryside, to choose the exact place where you are going to set up the space for the projection/broadcasting of the film, it is important to take into account times the surface of your land (obviously), the number of guests you intend to welcome (it goes without saying), but also, and we think about it less, the different light sources that are around the future location. Indeed, if street lamps are nearby, for example, and their lighting is strong, these risks altering the quality of the broadcast of the image and, at the same time, the entire experience. It is, therefore, necessary to choose the positioning of the projection equipment, the screen, the chairs or armchairs, etc., according to all these criteria.
Then, Get Well Equipped
Who says movie night says adequate equipment (plus it rhymes)? No secret, if you want to impress your guests with an image and sound worthy of a real dark room, you must make the best selection. Fortunately, there’s something for every budget, and you’ll see that the list of items to get isn’t very long.
The Portable Projector
If the idea, for you, is rather to bet on the occasional aspect of this movie night, and therefore you prefer to spend less money on your projector because you do not necessarily intend to use it often, if you intend to project the film on a medium-sized screen, or if what matters to you is having a machine that is very mobile so that you can take it with you everywhere, then can maybe you should go for a portable projector. The strong point of this device is, as its name suggests, to be portable, therefore mobile, to be able to be transported, in short, you have understood. As it is specially designed to fit in your luggage, it is very light.
Its other great advantage is that it often does not need to be plugged in. Indeed, some models run on battery, which allows you not to bother with any wiring problems (of course, you will have to think about recharging it before starting the film). Moreover, although they also have different ports, they are sometimes equipped with internal memory, so you do not need to connect any source.
Most often using less advanced technology than a “classic” projector, the cost of a portable projector is reduced compared to a larger model, which is a big point to consider. On the other hand, a lower luminosity is to be expected. Indeed, the portable projector needs the total darkness possible to offer a good quality image, just as it cannot project the film on a large screen (the rendering can be dull if you enlarge the diagonal too much broadcast).
Screen
Having a good projector isn’t everything. Indeed, as good as it is, if the support for the image is of poor quality, one might as well settle for installing a television outside, and voila (we are not saying that televisions are bad, far from it, but the idea here being to broadcast an image large enough for all your guests to enjoy, it would be a shame to have to settle for a standard size screen).
We won’t teach you anything by telling you that the ideal is for the screen to be completely white. Why? Because black absorbs all frequencies visible to the human eye. In other words: nothing would be seen on a dark background. From there, it’s time to define what type of screen would suit you best
The Sound System
Your garden is not your living room. It is obvious that the sound will not be broadcast the same way. Similarly, imagining that there are many of you during the screening, it will be impossible for you to do according to individual comfort.
If the projectors are equipped with built-in speakers, very often, and even for indoor use, they do not offer optimal sound quality. It is, therefore, necessary to associate the projection of images with a more efficient sound system. Always to limit the accumulation of cables, you can opt for Bluetooth speakers that can easily connect to your source device or even to your projector, subject to compatibility, of course, and some models of which are even dedicated to outdoor use (nothing prevents you from preferring mains powered speakers of course).
There are autonomous models whose battery lasts particularly long: sometimes up to 30 hours! Thus, not only are you sure that the film’s soundtrack will not stop in the middle, but you can also extend the evening by playing music, for example.
