Household Lighting Tips from a Set Lighting Technician
Some of you may not know this, but I spent nearly a decade working as a gaffer—that is to say, a set lighting technician—on film shoots. It’s what I studied in university, and as such, I’m quite knowledgeable and particular about lighting.
Lighting goes beyond just the scenes that are too dark for you to see on Netflix. Of course, lighting is a key part of the spaces we inhabit, most importantly the home. How a space is lit can completely change the tenor and feel of being in a room; from cozy, to somewhere you can focus in, to somewhere you want to get out of as soon as possible.
I thought I’d give a crash-course on lighting your home or spaces, so that you can make sure it’s right for you.
The five variables of light:
First things first, it’s important to know the different variables that affect light, so you can know which items to manipulate to get the result you want. There are roughly five of them, and they are: Quantity, Quality, Color, Direction, and Shape.
Quantity
Quantity is the easiest: this is simply how much light is emitted by any given fixture. Basically, how bright it is.
How does it work in practice?
This one is a little tricky to address, because it’s variable. In general, you want a lot of light, especially natural light. You want to use artificial light at night, but particularly after sunset, don’t overdo it: not only can it make your space feel uncomfortable, it can have some negative effects on your health, as well.
Quality
Quality is how hard or soft the light is. Think about the difference in texture between the sunlight through a big window, and the light from a flashlight.
How does it work in practice?
This is largely determined by the size of the source in practice. The Sun is massive, but it’s just a tiny dot in the sky, so it casts very hard shadows. When it’s cloudy, the whole sky becomes the source, so everything becomes soft.
For most people, in most situations, softer is better. It looks more pleasing on people, and in a space, and is gentler on your eyes.
Color
Color is also pretty self-explanatory, but rather than simply all the colors on the rainbow, what’s most relevant is what’s known as the color temperature: i.e., how warm or cool a light source is. Think about the cold light inside hospitals, versus something like a candle. You might be familiar with terms like “Cool White,” but this is best expressed in terms of Kelvin, ranging from around the mid-2000K (warmer) to the high 6000Ks (cooler)—look for this number somewhere on the box or product listing!
How does it work in practice?
Daylight is roughly 5600K, and Tungsten lamps are generally around 3200K. Especially in our LED society, people often go cooler than they should. Daylight is fine in daylight, but for most spaces, keep your artificial light around 3200K where possible.
Both of these lamps are too bright, but look how much cozier "warm white" looks compared to "cool white."
My one exception to this is in the kitchen, where I prefer a slightly cooler tone to better see the food and focus on the prep (but even here, I’m closer to 4000K than daylight). Some people also prefer cooler lights in the bathroom.
Direction
Direction is where the light is facing. We all know how someone looks when shining a flashlight from their chin to the top of their head, versus what the light looks like when you’re sitting next to a lamp.
How does it work in practice?
No overhead lights! Light from overhead, particularly hard light, is unpleasant. When using artificial lights, stick to table and floor lamps; though you don’t really want light below your eye-level.
Shape
Finally, Shape is closely related to direction, but refers more to how light is controlled in a space. Think about a desk lamp, which points completely downwards, versus something like a lantern, which will cast light across a much wider surface.
How does it work in practice?
Most people let light spill too much. It’s okay, even preferable to have some shadows in your living space, particularly at night. Be mindful of how your light is bouncing or being blocked in a space, and how you might shape it to be more pleasing.
Of course lighting for the home is largely personal preference, but there are easy rules to keep in mind. In general, I think most homes and apartments are overly-lit (you want things to fall a bit into shadow at times), are too hard (softer light is generally more flattering), too cool (think warm cozy lamps, not an operating room), and both too high and too spilly (directly overhead light, and light that’s not shaped well tends to be unpleasant).
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This should be enough to get someone started, but here’s a few more quick tips to keep in mind:
- Light actors, not the set.
There’s no point in lighting a space without any characters in it. Where are you going to sit? Your light should be concentrated around where you are. Rather than a single overhead light that lights the room, how about a floor lamp next to the couch, and a reading lamp next to the armchair? Your space will benefit from being lit based on how you use it, rather than broadly.
- Maintain contrast ratio.
Contrast ratio is the difference between the brightest and darkest part of something that’s lit. You don’t want the contrast to be too high, otherwise it starts seeming like you live in a noir film, but too low, and it looks like you live in a commercial. Note that this works across multiple lights, too: the floor lamp should be brighter than the desk lamp.
Find a nice middle ground: enough shadows, without being dim, and your space will thank you for it.
- You can never be too soft.
This is one of those things I was told half-jokingly in college I’ll never forget. The truth is, you can be too soft, but the margin for error is a lot wider. It’s very easy to make your light too hard: too many shadows, too harsh; whereas for soft light, generally it looks okay. Err on the side of soft, and you’ll probably be fine.
- Put a dimmer on it.
It’s always nice to have a bit more flexibility with your lighting. Sometimes you want to dim the lights to watch a movie, or brighten things up while you’re working on something. Luckily, with LEDs, this is easier than ever—you can control all the lights in your home via a smartphone app if you’re rich and very trusting of technology. Either way, I like starting off with my lights around 75% of their max output, and dialing things in for a space. This also helps you balance multiple lights with each other, so that everyone gets along.
- Don’t mix color temps.
When you find a color temperature for a room, stick with it. I have few pet peeves stronger than walking into a space that has just one bulb that doesn’t match. It makes things feel off, like one note that’s slightly out of tune. Once you’re set on fixtures, just pick up a bunch of bulbs in the same color, so you’re always ready to go.
In general, it’s best not to mix artificial and natural light for this reason, though tungsten and daylight play better together than a bunch of shades of artificial together. Be prudent, and use your best judgement.
- Do mix quality / textures.
While mixing color temperatures feels bad, mixing hard and soft light can feel good. Imagine a window with sheer curtains, where the curtains are parted just a little bit: you see the hard streak of light from the sunlight, maybe a splash of refracted light from the windowpane or a prism, and the soft light from through the sheers. Now that’s the good stuff.
Let's look at an example of a very well-lit space:
In the daytime shot, you can see the light is from the windows; no need for a lamp! Still, they're mixing qualities, with the harder light where the blinds are up, and softer (in the area you're most likely to be) from the area with blinds.
In the nighttime shot, you can see the "key" light comes from the table lamp on the stool, with some "fill" light from the overhead light. Because the lamp is in the corner, it's naturally shaped into the room, and rather than letting the overhead light spill everywhere and wash everything out, it's kept extremely dim to ensure things stay cozy.
If I have one suggestion for a space like this, it's that it would greatly benefit from replacing the table lamp with one of these Noguchi "Akari" lights (which also matches the design of the overhead lamp):
But overall, that's a beautiful space.
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