Thursday, February 14, 2013

Intervention


sold

So, the fork ran away with the spoon, but the pig was sure they were bad for each other, so he tracked them down and had an intervention.

And now on to lights. At my last workshop I tried a new bulb that I liked, so I bought one today and compared it to my other two regulars. I found it interesting so I thought I'd share the pros and cons (in my opinion). From left to right -->

1. Ecosmart 27W, 5000K spiral florescent2. Sylvania 39W, 2800K flood3. Philips 60W, 3000K, LED, bright white (on sale right now at Home Depot! - this is the new one for me).

Below are some pictures I took with my camera set to P - thus the colors remained true. You can see that 1. is the whitest - bordering on blue, and the softest, most spread out light. I've liked this one in the past for doing flowers. 2. is definitely the yellowest, and also the most focused of all three lights, which I often like (and have used most often). I also like the sharper shadow edge, and the drama the light creates. And 3. is still fairly yellow, but for me not overly so (I've tried MUCH yellower lights). The light also spreads out a bit, which can be useful. It also doesn't break (necessarily) if you drop it : ) and it doesn't get nearly as hot as the other two when on. I did several paintings with the LED light today and really liked it. I will probably switch around between all three depending on what I'm looking for.



15 comments:

Angelini Studio said...

Great info Carol. Thanks for being so openly generous with all that you learn. And of course, another great painting!

Celia Blanco said...

Great information! Thank you for sharing!

Patrick said...

Thank you so much for this info, Carol.

Sea Dean - Paint a Masterpiece said...

Ah Carol! I'm so glad you shared this. When I was packing for my 3 month trip my OTT light bulb was something I had to leave and my paintings show it :( It takes me much longer to get the colour balance and values right without it. Also I can't paint for as long because of the eye strain. My second choice is Halogen and I would be interested in how they compare to your other photos. I've been known to travel with both Halogen lamp and Ott light bulb.

Kathy Cousart said...

Awesome post with great information about lights. Good to know some additional options and what you liked about them. My favorite cool blue is no longer made. And I like to also change out lights depending on what I am painting. Thanks Carol!!

Shelley Breton said...

Carol
I was JUST struggling with lighting a still life last night, trying to get something I like...too yellow, too stark, too diffuse, etc... Thank you for your timely info! Love the new pig, btw. He certainly has an air about him (her?) ;) Shelley

Dan Kent said...

Thanks for the tip! I assume here that you are talking about lighting on your still life, given the last paragraph. But - f you don't mind me asking - what lighting, if any, do you have on the work-in-progress itself? Quite a bit behind you in experience, I used a lamp I got with a drafting table on my acrylic painting the other day when I was working on it at the easel. I was very careful with the values.

Then, when I turned off the light and was in ordinary room lighting, it was too dark - black blotches on a grey background! Oy!

Dan Kent said...

Fun painting, by the way - love the brush strokes and the reds!

Sue Marrazzo Fine Art said...

SWEET painting...and your post helps alot.

Deborah L. Taylor said...

Thank you so much for taking time to compare the lighting. Wow, what a difference! I go back and forth with lighting but find myself drawn to the blueish light again and again but really can see the value in switching to a more yellow light. Thanks again for all of your ideas!

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

It's a ploy ;) He's in love with the fork...love the shade of blue against the pig..

Thanks for the light demo. I use whatever is there and currently is a 75 watt standard light bulb, but you've given me the info to go buy some bulbs. :D

Stephanie Berry said...

Thanks for sharing this info on bulbs. I find #3 the most appealing. I never give thought to light bulbs in my studio. Guess I should visit the options.

Unknown said...

Thanks Carole for sharing this about the lights you've tried. It's helpful to know!

Sharon Griffes Tarr said...

Carol: This is good info. What I need to know, tho' is where are you purchasing the Sylvania flood? I can't locate a source anymore. Can you help?

Sharon Tarr

Connie Nobbe said...

This is so helpful! Thanks for photographing that apple under various lights so that we can see the differences.