LIGHTING FUNDAMENTALS

Purpose of Lighting Fundamentals

• TO DESCRIBE THE RELATIONSHIP OF LIGHT AND COLOR AND
THE DIFFERENT SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS
• TO DISCUSS THE BASIC PRINCIPLES INVOLVED IN LIGHTING
AND HOW THEY MEET THE PHYSIOLOGICAL AND
PSYCHOLOGICAL NEEDS AND RESPONSES OF THE PEOPLE TO
THE LUMINOUS ENVIRONMENT.
• TO ENUMERATE THE 5 LIGHTING METRICS, NAMELY,
LUMINOUS FLUX, ILLUMINANCE, LUMINOUS INTENSITY,
LUMINANCE AND LUMINOUS EXITANCE.
• TO PRESENT IMPORTANT TECHNICAL TERMS AND
TERMINOLOGIES USED IN THE LIGHTING SYSTEM.
OUTLINE
I. Light and Color
1. Light and Color
2. Use of Light
3. Direction of Light
4. Source Color Characteristics
5. Quantity
II. Light, Vision and Perception
III. Lighting Metrics
IV. Terminologies
1. LIGHT AND COLOR
• Light is defined as “visually evaluated radiant energy”
• Light is a form of energy, transmitted by radiation, and that it
is energy to which the human eye is sensitive.
• Newton (1600s): All heated bodies emit energetic corpuscles,
each having the same very high velocity and a size dependent
upon its color; postulated to travel in straight lines and could
be reflected and refracted.
1. LIGHT AND COLOR
• Huygens (1670): Every point on an advancing wave front
serves as a source of secondary wavelets, sent out radially
• Maxwell & Hertz (19thcentury): Showed that all radiant
energy consists of electromagnetic waves travelling at the
velocity of light.
• Best natural source of light is the sun
• The visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum includes
all wavelengths between 380 nm and 770 nm
1. LIGHT AND COLOR
• Incandescent –tend to produce light with greater amounts of
power in the longer wavelength ends of the spectrum (reds &
oranges); accounts for warm appearance
1. LIGHT AND COLOR
Ability To See Color
• Subtractive primaries –basis for
the development of all
manufactured paints and dyes
• Additive primaries –what the
eye uses in the process of
seeing light and color
2. USE OF LIGHT
• Accessibility to electric light is almost taken for granted, even
in the most remote locations
• Challenge is not only to provide light in an energy efficient
manner but to provide also a high quality of light.
• Factors that can be controlled in the design of a lighting
system:
- Direction
- Color
- Brightness (luminance)
- Quantity (illuminance)
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Directionality of the lighting can enhance and emphasize an
object’s perceived shape or form
• Techniques used:
- Key Light
- Fill Lighting
- Grazing
- Wall washing
- Silhouette
- Uplight
- Others
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Key Light
-Single point source of light
-Provides highlights and casts shadows providing
contrast and producing definite focus
• Fill Lighting
-Multi-directional or diffuse light
-Reduces shadows on an object caused by the key
light
-If totally diffuse, creates a cloudy day feeling and
minimizes shadows, which may be desirable for certain tasks
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Grazing
- Occurs when light strikes
a surface at a sharp angle, nearly
parallel to a rough surface
- Enhances any variations
in surface depth, revealing texture
- Will also emphasize
flaws and unevenness in surfaces
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Wall Washing
- Occurs when light strikes
a surface at a wide angle
- Provides even lighting on
a vertical space, increase luminance of
wall surfaces, and extend the space.
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Silhouette
- Light source is used not to illuminate an object
itself, but its background
- Applicable when one aims to reveal the outline of
an object against a brighter surface and to create separation
between the object and its background
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Ideal Direction of the Lighting
- Should be determined by the space function or
tasks
- Shadows at a work task may be irritating
- Excessive concentration and constant re-adaptation
of the eye can cause visual fatigue and a loss in performance or
increase in accidents
3. DIRECTION OF LIGHT
• Ideal Direction of the Lighting
- Highlights and shadows must be used sparingly
depending on the task to prevent the introduction of negative
factors
- Highlights and shadows, on the other hand,
provides a pleasant visual environment located away from the
major tasks
4. SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS

• Color is defined with a variety of metrics but the 2 most

common are:

- Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)

- Color Rendering Index (CRI)

4. SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS
- Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)
• Represents the relative whiteness
of a light source, whether the
source appears warm, cool or
neutral
• Measured in Kelvin (°K)
• Acceptable range of CCTs for
indoor environments is between
2500°K and 5000°K, with the
higher value representing a cooler
source
4. SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS
- Correlated Color Temperature (CCT)
• Often the first criterion considered in
the development of a space’s image
• CCT of a lamp refers to the absolute
temperature of a blackbody when its
visible radiation most closely matches
the color of the lamp.
4. SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS
- Color Rendering Index (CRI)
• CRI rating indicates how well an object’s colors are rendered by a
source.
• It is a comparison of 8 specific test colors under an ideal light
source in question.
• When color rendering is important, a source with a high CRI (e.g.
3500°K fluorescent with a CRI of 85) should be selected
4. SOURCE COLOR CHARACTERISTICS
- Color Rendering Index (CRI)
• If not important, a CRI in the mid 70s is less expensive and may meet
the client’s needs
• If extremely important, a CRI in the 90s may be recommended
5. QUANTITY (ILLUMINANCE)
• Quantity of light is commonly described in illuminance levels because
these are easy to measure
• In order to effect a noticeable increase in light level, the illuminance
must be increased by a factor of about 2 to 1
• Glare–result of excessive, uncontrolled light within the field of view
• The principal determinants are intensity, size of background
brightness, and position in the field of view of the light sources
• Luminance ratios of 5 to 1, 10 to 1, and 20 to 1 are often used to
provide highlights or for accent lighting
II. LIGHT, VISION AND PERCEPTION
• Light interacts with surfaces and
objects in space and with the human
visual system, affecting our
perception of visual tasks
• Visual perception requires
- a light source, the
stimulus
- a modifier of the light
source
- a receiver, the eye
- a decoder, the brain to
analyze the modifier
II. LIGHT, VISION AND PERCEPTION
• The Eye and Vision
- Cornea –transparent
membrane that bends the light rays as they
enter the eye
- Light rays travel through an
opening in the iris called the pupil; the size of
the pupil controls the amount of light that
enters the back part of the eye
-The light passes next through
the lens.

- The ciliary muscle changes the thickness of lens to bring image of the
object in retina.
- The retina is the innermost layer of the eye and contains the light
sensitive cells
III. LIGHTING METRICS

1. Luminous Flux
2. Illuminance
3. Luminous Intensity
4. Luminance
5. Luminous Efficacy and
Efficiency
III. LIGHTING METRICS
1. Luminous Flux
• Define as the flow of light, Φ
Measured in lumens
• A lamp receives watts and emits
lumens. The measure of success of
doing this is called efficacy and is
measured in lumens per watt
(lm/W)
III. LIGHTING METRICS
• Lamp Efficacies
III. LIGHTING METRICS
2. Illuminance
• As luminous flux travels outward from a
source, it ultimately impinges on surfaces,
where it is reflected, transmitted, and/or
absorbed
• Illuminance on a surface, Eis the density of
luminous flux incident on that surface
• Measured in lumens per square meter
• Lumen/m2is called a luxwhile lumen/ft2is
called footcandle
III. LIGHTING METRICS
3. LUMINOUS INTENSITY
• Generally speaking, a light source emits its luminous flux (Φ) in
different directions and at different intensities. The visible radiant
intensity in a particular direction is called luminous intensity (I).
The unit of measurement is the candela (cd).
III. LIGHTING METRICS
4. Luminance
• The luminance (L) is the brightness of an illuminated or luminous
surface as perceived by the human eye. Unit of measurement is
candelas per square meter (cd/m2).
III. LIGHTING METRICS
5. Luminous Efficacy and Efficiency
• Luminous Efficacy (η). Luminous efficacy indicates the efficiency
with which the electrical power consumed is converted into light.
The unit of measurement is lumensper watt (lm/W).
• Luminaire Efficiency. Luminaire efficiency (also known as the
light output ratio) is an important criterion in gauging the energy
efficiency of a luminaire. This is the ratio between the luminous
flux emitted by the luminaire and the luminous flux of the lamp (or
lamps) installed in the luminaire.
III. LIGHTING METRICS
LAWS FOR POINT SOURCES OF LIGHT
The following are used to calculate the illuminance at a single point in
a plane
• Inverse Square Law
• Cosine Law of Incidence
III. LIGHTING METRICS
INVERSE SQUARE LAW
To understand this law, consider a cone-shaped beam of light coming
from a small point source and hitting a surface some distance away.
Suppose that the luminous flux within the cone is one lumen, and that
it strikes a surface 1-meter away, producing an illuminated area of 1
square meter. By dividing the luminous flux by the area we can find the
illuminance, which will be 1 lux.
III. LIGHTING METRICS
INVERSE SQUARE LAW
III. LIGHTING METRICS
COSINE LAW OF INCIDENCE
• If the surface is turned so that the rays hit it at an angle, the illuminated
area will increase in size and the illuminance will drop accordingly. The
ratio of the original illuminated area to the new area is equal to the
cosine of the angle through which the surface has been moved.
Therefore the illuminance will fall by the factor of the cosine of angle.
This is where Lamberts Second Law comes in, the Cosine Law of
illuminance.
• If a surface is illuminated to 100 lux and is twisted through an angle of
60 degrees then the illuminance will fall to half or 50 lux, because the
cosine of 60 degrees is ½.
III. LIGHTING METRICS
COSINE LAW OF INCIDENCE
III. LIGHTING METRICS
III. LIGHTING METRICS