How to do Magic Tricks

Advice and Support for Magicians

Magicians Props Vs Magic Gimmicks

by Dominic Reyes 1 Comment

Magic Props and Gimmicks

By Malcolm Duff

What's the difference between magic props and magic gimmicks?

“Props” – as you almost certainly know – is the name given to anything that you use during your performanceof a magic trick that aids you in producing an effect.

A lot of magicians confuse the word “props” with the word “gimmicks”, thinking that they are interchangeable, that they both mean the same thing. They do not. Whilst it is true that all gimmicks are props, it is not true that all props are gimmicks.

For example, if you do card magic tricks then one prop that you will need is a deck of playing cards. “Duh..”.
Now, you can use a deck that is “gimmicked” in some way so that you can perform one or many effects that cannot be performed with an ordinary, genuine deck and so that deck of playing cards is a gimmick as well as a prop. However, there are many astounding magic tricks that can be performed with an un-gimmicked deck and so that deck is a “only” a prop.

Here is a breakdown of what I consider you need to know about props;

Handling

You should be able to manipulate your props (if they are capable of being manipulated) with ease.
There is nothing sadder than watching a card trick being performed by someone who is obviously uncomfortable with a deck of playing cards. Someone who cannot shuffle easily, or drops cards, or handles them awkwardly or too slowly. We've all seen them – and we do not want to repeat their behaviour.
So – if you do perform card magic tricks  – you need to know that deckof playing cards inside out. You need to handle it as if it were part of you. Be sure that your spectators will notice this – even if they are unaware that they have noticed. They will be more comfortable with you if you are comfortable with your cards.

How do you get to that point? Well, yes, it is our old friend magic practise again. Always carry a deck of playing cards with you – and I mean always. You can hold it in your hand(s), shuffle the cards, cut the cards and so on, as you are doing something else – walking down the street, waiting for a bus or whatever. It is well-known that the best American Football Quarterbacks always carry a football with them – some even take one to bed! You need to be the same with a deck of playing cards. An added benefit of always carrying a deck is that you will come across situations where there is an opportunity for an impromptu performance. More practise right there. By the way, you will know when you have reached this point with cards; You will feel that something is missing if you do not have a deck on you and – even better – none of your friends will play cards with you for money!

All of the above applies to many props that magicians use – like coins, sponge balls, matches, silks and lots of others.

Knowledge

This only applies to a subset of gimmicks. It is almost too obvious to mention but it is important. Here is the scenario; You acquire a new (to you) magic trick from some supplier, get it home, open it up, follow the instructions, practise it over and over until you can adequately perform the magic trick and then slip it into your act. Now, you may be amazed to discover that there are some performers who do this without actually knowing how the gimmick does what it does. They make the gimmick work by following – blindly – the instructions. However, knowledge of how the gimmick works will mean that you know which parts of the magic trick are more important than others – which parts can you drop? How can you improve the effect? Etc. So find out – or figure out – how it works.

Planning

Before venturing out to a gig – whether an amateur or professional magician – you should make sure that you have all your props with you. Double check. Test them. Take spares for those props/gimmicks that can run out – like sharpies or post-it notes or whatever – also take spare batteries for those gimmicks that use them. If you are a successful magician – or otherwise wealthy – you might consider new batteries for every performance. If the prop/gimmick/effect relies on a separate duplicate of something – is that duplicate looking scuffed or dirty? Do you need a new one? If it relies on multiple items make sure that everything is present. One idea is to have a routine for when you “pack up” after a gig. Put those things that rely on each other in a separate bag or box. Maybe the original packaging?

I can illustrate this one by a quote;

 

“The only thing random about a magic effect is the punter”.


I do not know who first said this but I do know the impression that it made upon me. The performer has planned everything that they can. Leaving, surprisingly, nothing to chance.

If you do not learn “Planning”, I guarantee that you will just after it bites you – and it will.

However, planning is not everything – here is the next…

Appropriateness

My favourite, mainly because I have fallen foul of ignoring this on more than one occasion – I know, I am a slow learner.

I currently perform most often to the same audience. I know them all by first name – they know me. This has advantages and disadvantages. The advantages include things like; you know the personalities of each punter, you know with whom you can or cannot “get away” with something, you know which type of effect will go down well and which will not, which punter will follow your instructions and which will try and ruin your effect – Oh, yes, they will. I find that surprising, since I am more than capable of ruining an effect without any help from a spectator.

Anyway, back to appropriateness. There are many effects that I cannot perform for that audience. Not because I cannot do them but because they know me too well.

For example, if I use a production wallet then I fail. They have never seen me with a wallet. Why do I have a nice posh black leather one now? Am I wearing a jacket with secret pockets? They have never seen me wear a jacket. Am I wearing “back tie” dress when the audience are all dressed casually?

Basically, this can be expressed as “Am I doing anything, wearing anything, using anything that is not appropriate for the audience or venue?”
If you do have a “regular” audience you can, of course, train them over a period of time as to what to expect about your presence.

Supply

Two things here; You have to obtain your props. You will – most often – be getting them from source(s) that are getting them from a manufacturer/distributor. This is more than fine. Find a magic dealer that has satisfied you. Stop using sources that have not. If you try a source – that you have not used – try them with some of their less expensive items to test their whole process. How was your experience?

The second thing about supply is that, as you get better at performing, you will be able to notice the difference between the products of different manufacturers of the same prop. You will find that you can handle one better than another. It could be weight, size, flexibility and so on. Cards are a very good example. Which “brand” do you like best? Why? How do different brands differ? How many have you tried? If you are really presumptuous – How can a deck of playing cards be improved?

Creation of props

I mention this one because it exists.

You perform magic tricks. There are only two types; Those that you have learned – by whatever means – and those that you have created. “Magic” tricks are a lot like chess. I do not mean that the skills needed are in any way equivalent or comparable, just that – in chess – you can regurgitate or create. More usually, just as in chess, you will do both.

So, if you do create a “new” magic trick, or an improvement to an existing effect, that needs one or more props then you could sell that effect and those props! It it's an adaption to an existing magic trick, you should gain permission from the origianl creator and credit them in full for their work. Yes! You can do that. That is exactly how you got the last one that you learned/bought. Someone else created it. It could be you that pushes it forward!

 

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Filed Under: beginners, best magic tricks, Buying Magic Tricks, how to do magic tricks, magic advice Tagged With: how to do magic tricks, magic advice, magicians props

Feeling Clumsy and Don’t Know How to Start Learning Magic Trick – Problems

by Merchant of Magic Leave a Comment

Feeling Clumsy learning magic tricks

David writes:

‘It is only recently that I have tried to learn magic, but the thing I find most perplexing, is where should I start? Where can I learn the basics. There are so many incredible things out there, it is easy to get lost and become confused. Most people dream of winning the lottery, or becoming a famous singer, or the like. Not me. I would love to be able to amaze and astound people with card magic. That has to be the ultimate goal. But I feel clumsy, and when I look at the hands of magicians on TV, I see slim and nimble fingers. Unlike mine.’

It’s great news that you have started to learn. You’re in for such a fun time! Learning how to do magic scores over many other hobbies as you can instantly start performing to a level that will impress your friends. That’s a far cry from the ‘painful’ learning period that beginners (and the people they live with) have to go through when learning a musical instrument.

As a place to start, check out these recommended first magic tricks for beginners.

You may also find these posts useful:

Where to Start Learning magic

How to start learning coin magic

You mention that you are worried about your hands. There’s no need to worry. Larger or small hands are no barrier to learning sleight of hand.

The main skill you will learn is dexterity in your fingers, a light touch, and the timing placement of your hands. These factors are not influenced by the size of your hands, just by the amount of practice you are prepared to put into your magic training.

Like anything worth learning, you are going to be clumsy at first. Your hands need to develop a light touch and you need to perfect the timing and flow for any moves you work on. Keep working on a magic practice drill.

As you work on your sleight of hand, choose some self working magic tricks, so you can begin performing right away whilst you work on your performing style, and confidence.  Remember that it’s not a race. You build up skill over the long term. The only difference between you and a professional magician is the number of hours spent on practice.

 

 

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Filed Under: beginners, how to do magic tricks, how to start earning magic tricks, recommended Tagged With: beginners, how to do magic tricks, how to start earning magic tricks, recommended

Why Sleight of Hand Isn’t Always Best for Magician

by Merchant of Magic 11 Comments

 By Dominic Reyes
 

Sleight of hand is all well and good, but is it really any better than using gimmicks or self working magic tricks?


 

Sleight of hand for the sake of it.

Magicians are addicted to learning new moves and techniques. However, practice of sleight of hand just for the sake of it can be a sure fire way to waste your valuable practice time. Recreational practice is not a problem in and of itself, unless that’s all you’re doing.

If you decide to commit your valuable practice time to mastering a move, make sure you also have an application for it. Being able to perform 20 different colour changes is no better than mastering a single method, that fits perfectly in the magic trick you want to perform. You only need to learn one method, until you have another magic trick or routine that actually requires a different technique. Don’t waste time building things that you don’t have a use for. Spend your time collecting complete magic tricks, not individual moves.

Unnatural moves.

Everyone loves to invent. Magicians especially love creating and modifying sleight of hand. A problem can occur when it’s done for no other reason than to publish and name something.

At the Merchant of Magic, it’s rare that a day goes by without the team receiving a video clip from a magician who has ‘created’ a new variation. Sometimes these variations are awesome, but mostly they are a traditional classic move with a layer of unnaturalness added.

The goal of sleight of hand isn’t to be unique or different, but rather to do something invisibly. Sleight of hand needs to look like ‘nothing at all’. Perfect technique strips away any movement and hand positioning, leaving only normal ‘everyday’ handling or action. If a sleight adds anything unnatural to your movement or hand position, it could be weakening the magic trick rather than improving it.

The busy fool principle.

Despite what we were all told at school, how hard you work, is sadly, not a direct indication of your likeliness to succeed. Hard work only leads to success if it’s focused in the right direction. This is done by creating and working towards clearly defined goals.

If we take earning a living from magic as an example, any magician can get a full diary of gigs if their fee is low enough. A magician can easily do 5 gigs every week for a fee of £50 each. That magician works really hard and feels successful as they have as much work as they can handle. However, another magician can have a larger income by charging £300 per gig, but only landing a single booking each week.

In just the same way, many truly obsessed magicians practice night and day learning moves and sleights, but have not set a goal to build a magic act. They work like a ‘busy fool’ building their knowledge without any goals to make the effort pay off for them.

The Emperors new clothes.

The Emperor: ‘The collar’s always around the neck, the sleeves always come off the shoulders, the waist always goes around the middle! When will they invent something original?‘ – The Emperor’s New Clothes 1987


So many moves are published that are nothing more than pipe dreams, invented by magicians who never actually perform them. The moves get attention from other magicians who also learn them, without any real intent to perform them either. 

The inventor gets plenty praise, and the students congratulate each other on their skills mastering these obscure moves. There are countless online discussion groups built around discussing, reviewing and often arguing over these techniques, their originality and development. There are even online magic shops that specifically repackage this behaviour into a fashionable lifestyle culture.

It’s a fun pastime, sold as ‘training magicians’. In reality, it may not be doing that at all.

Technique over entertainment

Which would you rather watch?

5 different variations of the classic pass (that should all look the same anyway)

OR

5 different uses for an Invisible deck?


Which would teach and entertain you most? I don’t actually need to write any more on this to get the point across, do I?

Practice vs. the average magician.

Let’s face it. Practicing magic is boring for most people. Some magicians love it, and the work itself is part of the reward and becomes a passion, but most people feel they have better things to do with their time than sit down and drill sleight of hand. The fun part is discovering a new trick, or discussing how a trick works. Most magic forums probably 99% discussion of new tricks, reviews, reverse engineering, marketing, and arguments about which trick is the best. You have to dig very deeply to find the 1% of useful discussion about practice and rehearsal.

We can moan about this as much as we like, but it’s simple maths:

 The average magician is only prepared to spend an average amount of time working on their technique. This means that half of the remaining magicians are even less prepared to practice than them!


The result: A lot of terrible sleight of hand! 

The Merchant of Magic was established as a magic shop to:

  • Help people fall in love with magic.
  • Guide beginners to practice.
  • Help magicians design an act.
  • Encourage magicians to perform.


If you have ever visited the shop, or called the team by phone, you’ll already know that the team often recommends the use of gimmicks over sleight of hand, for the majority of beginners. The sleight of hand guides and tutorials are also recommended by the shop, but the focus is on quality act creation, not an artificial ideal of purity in magic. After all, that’s how ‘he who must not be named’ would probably run a magic shop. 

Using gimmicks doesn’t make you some kind of ‘mud blood’. In fact, it puts you in excellent company with magicians like David Copperfield, Dante, Devant, and Dia Vernon, and pretty much every other famous magician. The greatest magicians throughout history have always been partial to using gimmicks.

Come on Dominic, it’s not as simple as that.


Maybe. I’m definitely polarizing the issue to a large extent. Few magicians choose only sleight of hand, and refuse to use gimmicks. Most magicians study sleight of hand, and also buy self working tricks or gimmicks.

My point isn’t that you should choose to abandon sleight of hand, and fill your act with gimmicked props alone. You shouldn’t choose between sleight of hand or gimmicks at all.

I’m warning that it’s very easy to get wrapped up in ‘technique’ being sold to you as the path to being a fabulous magician. It’s hard to spot because it’s not being sold to you by magic dealers, it often comes from other magicians who are also caught up in the same trap of assuming competent sleight of hand defines the quality of a magician.

I recommend that you ignore advice based on the assumption that sleight of hand is always better. There are excellent techniques, and there are terrible techniques. In just the same way, there are amazing gimmicks, and dreadful gimmicks. Forget about the method of a trick you are thinking about learning. Look at the effect, the presentation, and what actually happens from the point of view of the spectator. If those elements are awesome, then you should learn it, regardless of the mechanics involved.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments section below:

 

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  • Understanding Misdirection Free Ebook
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Filed Under: how to do magic tricks, magic advice, practice, sleight of hand Tagged With: how to do magic tricks, magic advice, practice, sleight of hand

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