In this episode of The Next Level, Andy Kushner and guest co-host, Zachary Oxman, discuss key topics from last week’s interview with Ray Thompson. Zack is a true artist and creative who has quite a story as a sculptor and how his work ties in to what Ray does.    Welcome to another episode of The Next Level, in which I have a guest co-host, and the two of us talk about my recent interview of the week. This week we discuss lighting pioneer, Ray Thompson who is an icon in the event and lux wedding industry.  As an artist and creative, Ray has a lot to add to how powerful of an impact lighting can make. This is a fun episode to talk about because Ray is the founder of Images by Lighting and a true innovator in the field of lighting design. His award-winning team create emotional environments for events including lux weddings, major film events, and lighting designs for superstar musical artists.   Show Highlights: [02:49] Zack finds it fascinating that Ray creates works of art through the manipulation of light. [03:16] Zack realizes how important it is to display his work under the right light and the right setting. It completely changes everything,  [04:06] Ray does a lot of jobs for Colin Cowie where he first does a walk through and then goes home and imagines it in his mind. [04:51] Anything we see is the effect of light that gives us our perception of that experience. It's an incredibly powerful tool for an artist and planner/designer to use. [05:15] Ray uses light as a pointer to create emotional artwork.  [05:36] His is the choreography of emotion. He uses color to elicits emotions from the clients.  [06:35] Artists have to distill down the story they are sharing to apply their light with it.  [07:51] Finding a collaborative way to bring the people along on the journey is like being a conductor.  [09:27]  Ray shares his favorite design advice which is being involved with the event producer as early as possible. [12:54] We look at what's to be done and maximizing on a budget, creating quality with what you have to work with. [13:36] If you don't pay yourself enough to be in business then you won't be in business very long. [13:57] The importance of talking about every aspect of production, before getting to the locations to start working, is part of loving and embracing the business aspect. [15:48] Andy brings up a book, Rocket Fuel, which discusses how the “visionary” is the creative who comes up with the ideas. It's the “integrator’s” responsibility to execute. [16:54] Ray's team also has post meetings to discuss anything that went right or wrong during the production experience and to discuss if there can be more efficient solutions.    LINKS: The Wedding Biz Website The Wedding Biz Instagram The Wedding Biz Facebook   Images By Lighting Images by Lighting Images by Lighting on Instagram Images by Lighting on Facebook @images_lighting on Twitter   This Week’s Guest Co-Host Zac Oxman Zachary Oxman on Instagram Zachary Oxman Facebook Page   Last Week’s Guest Co-Host THE NEXT LEVEL: ANDREA EPPOLITO: Celebrating the Greatest Luxury of All   LINKS & RESOURCES: Rocket Fuel: The One Essential Combination That Will Get You More of What You Want from Your Business   Brett Culp Interview on The Wedding Biz BRETT CULP: OBSTACLE OR OPPORTUNITY   Colin Cowie’s Interview On The Wedding Biz: Colin Cowie: Part 1 Creating Groundbreaking Luxury Experiences Colin Cowie: Part 2 Creating Groundbreaking Luxury Experiences   David Beahm’s Interview On The Wedding Biz: David Beahm: Risk & Synchronicity   SPONSOR LINKS Kushner Entertainment www.kushnerentertainment.com