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Recommended bulbs for Studio Lighting
I need assistance with LED lights choosing the correct bulbs for my art studio and how should setting up my lights for my application. I want to be able to render pencil/charcoal/and paint with the lights. I will be using 8ft ceilings unfortunately but do not currently intend to do many large paintings so hopefully, I will have enough height. I was personally thinking of your 5000K LED Art Studio Tubes or the LED 5000k bulbs but I was not sure if tubes or bulbs made more sense. And if I get either the tube or the bulb what fixtures to mount them with and what wiring info?
It does indeed sound like our NorthLux LED products with 95 CRI and daylight-calibrated color temperatures will be an excellent option for your space.
You are correct that you're in perhaps one of the more tricky stages of planning your lighting, and we'd be more than happy to offer some recommendations.
The first question would be to determine what kind of fixtures (if any) you would be interested in utilizing in the space. For BR30 lamps, for example, you will require residential/commercial style recessed can lights, which typically will go directly into the ceiling, meaning there will be some construction and electrical work needed.
With the tube lights, you can also consider similar ceiling fixtures such as 2' x 4' fixtures, but there are also options such as strip light fixtures and other ceiling mount fixtures that won't require as much involved construction or electrical work.
One of our new products that might be most convenient and the best fit for you would be our integrated T5 LED linear fixtures. These lights have the same 95 CRI NorthLux LEDs inside, but also include screw or magnet-based mounting systems, which means that you do not need any additional accessories or electrical work. They simply plug into a wall outlet, and can also be daisy-chained to connect multiple fixtures.
I've included the product link below - please let us know your thoughts!
Do you have to daisy chain the end of the light to end or can you use a jumper wire to set the lights up parallel to each other?
You can daisy chain them end-to-end, or they can be connected using a daisy-chain wire. See below:
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2793/2316/products/4026_512x512@2x.jpg?v=1595978321
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2793/2316/products/4026-3_512x512@2x.jpg?v=1595978321
Have you had the artist install the NorthLux 95 CRI BR30 LED bulbs in adjustable lamp track lighting? Like gallery Style? Would you recommend a track lighting system or a tube light system for an oil painting studio with an 8 ft ceiling?
The BR30 lamps are generally used in ceiling fixtures (e.g. recessed can light) and not track light fixtures. One of the concerns is that the BR30 beam angle is very wide and spread out, making them less suitable for track light fixtures which generally are designed for narrow beam angle spotlights generally seen, as you mention, in gallery settings.
For art studios, the tube lights would definitely be a great option, as they can provide full and evenly distributed light coverage.
To get a sense of how much light you will need, we would recommend using our Lumen Estimation Calculator, which can be found at the link below:
https://www.waveformlighting.com/lumen-calculator
Do you think if you used the BR30 bulbs with the track light fixtures you could get a wider distribution of light from the track light system giving you the wide soft light without hotspots but also being very adjustable in where you direct the lights?
If adjustability is an important feature, the track system may indeed work well for your needs! The LED strip lights are quite permanent and fixed in place, so that would definitely be a big downside.
Question posted under:
Art studio lightingT5 linear fixturesBR30 Bulbs