Lighting Tip: Light and your Eyes
What is Light?
Light travels at 186,000 miles per second and is expressed in wavelengths in billionths of a meter (nanometers). This visually perceived energy is measured in the range of wavelengths from 380 nm to 780 nm, a small portion of the electromagnetic spectrum
The color temperature of the lamp and the quality of color rendering (Color Rendering Index) of different lighting sources will impact your perception of colors, as the different wavelengths are reflected off objects.
How the Eyes Work
Light from a source (sun, lamp, etc.) is reflected off an object, first entering the eyes through the clear outside part called the cornea. Some of the light that strikes your eye gets through an opening called the pupil. The amount of light entering is controlled by opening and closing the iris. Light passes through the lens and hits the retina, which is a light sensitive layer in the back part of the eye. The retina transmits the information it gets to the brain via the optic nerve.
Luminance is the strength of visual sensation reflected off a surface, generally called ‘brightness’.
Reflectance is the ratio representing the percentage of reflected light to the light arriving on a surface.
Confused by lighting terms? Let our lighting experts help with your lighting project by giving us a call at 949-589-3020 or email us back and we’ll gladly share everything we know.
