International Laser Display Association upcoming events

2026 ILDA Pre-Conference Course: Laser Safety Officer (LSO) (Monday, November 02, 2026)

Mon, 02 Nov 2026 08:00:00 GMT

This is to register for the full-day ILDA Laser Safety Officer for Lasershows course, taught in person. This covers laser shows only -- no medical, industrial or other non-lightshow laser usage. While European and international regulations are discussed, the majority of the regulatory discussion is on U.S. laser and aviation issues.

To take this class, it is best if you have prior laser show experience. If you have questions whether you are ready for this class, contact the instructor.

More information on the course is at the ILDA laser safety course webpage.

(Note: The LSO course is NOT included in the ILDA Conference registration. The LSO course is a separate event, requiring separate registration and fees. If there is insufficient interest -- not enough registrants -- the class will be cancelled and registration fee will be refunded.)

2026 ILDA Pre-Conference Course: Lasershow Operator (Monday, November 02, 2026)

Mon, 02 Nov 2026 08:00:00 GMT

This is to register for the half-day ILDA Lasershow Operator course, taught in person. (This is the first half of the full-day Laser Safety Officer (LSO) course.)

Be sure you are signing up for the course you want. This one is Lasershow Operator, the longer and more expensive one is the LSO course.

More information on the course is at the ILDA laser safety course webpage.

(Note: The Lasershow Operator course is NOT included in the ILDA Conference registration. The Lasershow Operator course is a separate event, requiring separate registration and fees. If there is insufficient interest -- not enough registrants -- the class will be cancelled and registration fee will be refunded.)

2026 ILDA Conference - FULL CONFERENCE REGISTRATION, including Lase-Off and Awards (Monday, November 02, 2026)

Mon, 02 Nov 2026 11:00:00 GMT

This registration is for the ILDA Conference, including the Lase-Off and Awards dinners. (Note: The Conference does NOT include a Laser Safety Officer class or the Cultural Day event.)

Spouse/Guest info: When you register, you can also register a spouse or one or more guests who are staying with you in the same room. The cost is $325 per ILDA Member's spouse/guest, or $425 for a non-member's spouse/guest. The spouse/guest can attend all meals, the Welcome Reception and Dinner, the Lase-Off, and the Awards Banquet. They can NOT attend the business, seminar or workshop meetings. A Spouse/Guest is defined as a person related to a Full Conference registrant. The relationship must be that the spouse/guest is married, is a significant other, is a family member, or is a personal friend who is not employed in a lasershow-related business

ILDA Founding Member: If you are one of the 36 people who attended the first organizational meeting in August 1986, contact ILDA to find out how to get free Full Conference registration.

If you have a problem registering, click here for help or contact mail@ilda.com.

2026 ILDA Conference single event - General Business Meeting ONLY (Tuesday, November 03, 2026)

Tue, 03 Nov 2026 09:00:00 GMT

This registration is for ILDA Members attending the General Business Meeting ONLY. It does not include any other ILDA Conference events, and it does not include any meals, refreshments or snacks.

If you want to attend the Full Conference, please sign up for that instead. The General Business Meeting is included as part of the Full Conference events, for Members only. (Non-members cannot attend the General Business Meeting.)

Enter the 2026 Laser Jockey competition (Tuesday, November 03, 2026)

Tue, 03 Nov 2026 18:00:00 GMT

If you wish to enter the Laser Jockey competition which takes place during the Lase-Off event, register for this event.

Note that to enter as a contestant, you MUST be registered for either the Full Conference, or for the Lase-Off event (if you do not wish to attend the entire conference).

In addition, after registering here you MUST also send an email addressed to the following six persons, so they will know of your registration. In the email, describe the laser system you will be using. A DSP system and a Pangolin Beyond system will be available; anything past that you will need to bring to the Conference or discuss with the six people below.

Address your email to:

lasertech-canada@outlook.com (Derek Garbos)

horacio@lasernet305.com (Horacio Pugliese)

Dirk.Apitz@dexlogic.de (Dirk Apitz)

matthew@cs.uni-bonn.de (Matthias Frank)

nicolas.squire@gmail.com (Nick Squire)

mail@ilda.com (Patrick Murphy)

2026 ILDA Conference single event - Lase-Off dinner & event ONLY (Tuesday, November 03, 2026)

Wed, 04 Nov 2026 01:00:00 GMT

This single-event registration is for persons wanting to attend only the ILDA Lase-Off and Laser Jockey competition. Registration includes dinner beforehand, plus the Lase-Off and Laser Jockey events. Time will be approximately 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm.

(Note: This event is included in the Full Conference registration, and the Full Conference Spouse/Guest registration. So if you registered for the Full Conference, do NOT also register for this event.)

2026 ILDA Conference single event - Awards Banquet and Presentation ONLY (Wednesday, November 04, 2026)

Thu, 05 Nov 2026 01:00:00 GMT

This single-event registration is for persons wanting to attend only the ILDA Awards Banquet and Presentation. Registration includes the formal banquet beforehand, plus the Awards presentations. Time will be approximately 7:00 pm to 11:00 pm. Suggested dress is business formal (suit or sport coat with tie for men, suit or formal dress for women).
(Note: This event is included in the Full Conference registration, and the Full Conference Spouse/Guest registration. So if you registered for the Full Conference, do NOT also register for this event.)

2026 ILDA Post-Conference Cultural Day bus tour (Thursday, November 05, 2026)

Thu, 05 Nov 2026 08:30:00 GMT

This is for a private bus tour featuring Red Bull Hangar-7, with aircraft, F1 cars, art and a café, along with a quick visit to Leopoldskron Palace, and a longer 1-hour visit to Hellbrunn Palace, famous for its gardens and trick fountains.

This includes bus transportation from our hotel at 9:30 am, and back to our hotel at 1:30 pm.

If you are also interested in the Sound of Music tour, this leaves from near our hotel (a 4-minute walk) at 2:00 pm. This is a public tour, not organized by ILDA though some ILDA attendees will be on the bus. Contact the tour company directly to reserve your tickets.

2026 ILDA Post-Conference Course: Audience Scanning Safety (canceled) (Thursday, November 05, 2026)

Thu, 05 Nov 2026 13:00:00 GMT

Due to illness/inability to travel, the Audience Scanning Safety course will not be taught in person at Salzburg, sorry.

You can take the online self-directed Audience Scanning Safety course if you are interested in this topic. If you have any questions about the course, contact ILDA.

This is to register for the half-day ILDA Audience Scanning Safety course. This covers how to do safe, legal and effective audience scanning at laser lightshows.

This course is for both operators (responsible for safe exposure) and show designers (responsible for implementation and measurements). Prior laser show safety experience or courses are recommended. If you do not have such prior experience/courses, or if you have questions, please contact the instructor, Greg Makhov, at greg@lsdi.com. Greg is ILDA's Safety Committee chair and an instructor for other laser safety courses.

(Note: The Audience Scanning Safety course is NOT included in the ILDA Conference registration. The course is a separate event, requiring separate registration and fees. If there is insufficient interest -- not enough registrants -- the course will be cancelled and registration fee will be refunded.)

2-day LASER SAFETY OFFICER (LSO) course online - Mon Nov 16 & Tue Nov 17, 2026 (Monday, November 16, 2026)

Tue, 17 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT

This is the two-day version of ILDA's Laser Safety Officer course. It has been split into two parts, Monday November 16 and Tuesday November 17, 2026. Both parts begin at 7 pm Eastern/New York time, running until approximately 11 pm.

This is for the online ILDA Laser Safety Officer (LSO) for Lasershows course described here. It is NOT for the Laser Operator or Audience Scanning courses which are separate, different courses.

The first day of the course is online instruction using Zoom. The second day of the course also has online instruction followed by a test lasting 1 hour and 15 minutes, then going over the test. The total course time is roughly 8 hours. During this time, we will take a 5 minute break every hour.

ILDA Members receive a discount . (If you are a Member, but you only see the non-member price, be sure to log in to the site before you come back to this page.)

Half-day Lasershow Operator course online - Mon Nov 16, 2026 (Monday, November 16, 2026)

Tue, 17 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT

This is for the online ILDA Lasershow Operator course described here. It is NOT for the Laser Safety Operator (LSO) or Audience Scanning courses which are different courses.

This Lasershow Operator course consists of the first day of the 2-day Laser Safety Officer (LSO) course. If you pass the Lasershow Operator test, you will get a Certificate of Completion for a Lasershow Operator. See ILDA's laser courses webpage for more information on the difference between the Lasershow Operator course (first half of the LSO course) and the full LSO course.

This 4 hour course starts Monday November 16, 2026 beginning at 7 pm Eastern/New York time, running until approximately 11 pm.

The course is about 3 hours of online instruction using Zoom, followed by a test that takes about 1 hour. There is a 5 minute break every hour.

ILDA Members receive a discount . (If you are a Member, but you only see the non-member price, be sure to log in to the site before you come back to this page.)

2-day LASER SAFETY OFFICER (LSO) course online - Mon Nov 16 & Tue Nov 17, 2026 (Tuesday, November 17, 2026)

Wed, 18 Nov 2026 00:00:00 GMT

This is for the online ILDA Laser Safety Officer (LSO) for Lasershows course described here. It is NOT for the Laser Operator or Audience Scanning courses which are separate, different courses.

ILDA Members receive a discount . (If you are a Member, but you only see the non-member price, be sure to log in to the site before you come back to this page.)

1-day LASER SAFETY OFFICER (LSO) course online - Fri Dec 11, 2026 (Friday, December 11, 2026)

Fri, 11 Dec 2026 16:00:00 GMT

This 8 hour online course starts Friday December 11, 2026 beginning at 11 am Eastern/New York time, running until approximately 7 pm. It is taught over Zoom.

The date and time of an online LSO class can be changed if no one has yet signed up for a class. For example, if you are in a time zone far from US Eastern, we can change the hours so it fits your schedule. If you are interested in a class but need a date or time change, contact ILDA. Once at least one person signs up, then the date and time for that class will no longer be changed.

This is for the online ILDA Laser Safety Officer (LSO) for Lasershows course described here. It is NOT for the Laser Operator or Audience Scanning courses which are separate, different courses.

The total course instruction time is roughly 6.5 hours, with a 75-minute test at the end. During the course, we will take a 5 minute break every hour, plus one longer 30 minute break for a meal.

ILDA Members receive a discount . (If you are a Member, but you only see the non-member price, be sure to log in to the site before you come back to this page.)

Half-day Lasershow Operator course online - Fri Dec 11, 2026 (Friday, December 11, 2026)

Fri, 11 Dec 2026 16:00:00 GMT

This is for the online ILDA Lasershow Operator course described here. It is NOT for the Laser Safety Operator (LSO) or Audience Scanning courses which are different courses.

The Lasershow Operator course consists of the first half of the Laser Safety Officer (LSO) course. If you pass the Lasershow Operator test, you will get a Certificate of Completion for a Lasershow Operator. See ILDA's laser courses webpage for more information on the difference between the Lasershow Operator course (first half of the LSO course) and the full LSO course.

This 4 hour course starts Friday December 11, 2026 beginning at 11 am Eastern/New York time, running until approximately 3 pm.

The course is about 3 hours of online instruction using Zoom, followed by a test that takes about 1 hour. There is a 5 minute break every hour.

ILDA Members receive a discount . (If you are a Member, but you only see the non-member price, be sure to log in to the site before you come back to this page.)