Zoning with light is one of the many potentials lighting has to support architecture and interior design.

Warm white or warm white lighting describes a luminous colour or colour temperature from a light source.

The visual task expresses the perceptual performance required from the eye to perceive an object. The grade of difficulty of the task increases with the diminishing of colour contrast, size and detail.

In lighting design the visual experience is way more than “just” adding fixtures to a space. One of our crucial tasks consists of shaping the way any given space or object is perceived.

Visible light is the electromagnetic radiation within the portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that is perceived by the human eye. It is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometers (nm), between the infrared or IR (with longer wavelengths) and the ultraviolet or UV (with shorter wavelengths).

The Unified Glare Rating or short the UGR is the measurement of glare coming from an artificial lighting source . There are different types of glare, see disability and discomfort glare.

Tunable white or dynamic white light is the term used to describe light fixtures that can produce a variable light colour within the spectrum of white light. It can vary from a cool blueish white reminiscent of bright daylight to a warm reddish white reminiscent of incandescent light.

Task lighting is a term used to describe the illumination of a task area within a workplace (e.g. a desk, a counter).

It is used to support a visual task, which expresses the perceptual performance required from the eye to perceive an object. The grade of difficulty of the task increases with the diminishing of colour contrast, size and detail.

There are many standards for workplace lighting that take the visual accuracy and detail of the task into account.

Lighting has so many terms, a lot of characteristics and “shades” to take into account.

Studio De Schutter started creating this Lighting ABC to capture a selection of the terms that describe light.

To describe light is to describe perception with its diversity, complexity and ephemerality. Which is also what we most love about lighting design.

Seasonal Affective disorder or SAD is strongly related to seasonal changes and influences our circadian rhythm. SAD or commonly referred to as winter depression, is a mood disorder caused by the lack of light. It causes feelings of depression, and sleep disturbance.

Scotopic vision is the vision of the eye under low-light levels. The term comes from Greek skotos, meaning “darkness”, and -opia, meaning “a condition of sight”.

Under low lighting levels, the visual accuracy is poor and colour and details are less detectable. Scotopic vision is enabled exclusively through rod cells. As most of us live in urban environments we seldomly experience this type of lighting situation. This is due to the interference of light pollution which in urban environments does not allow us to experience real darkness.

A recessed lighting fixture is a luminaire that is built-into or integrated in the architecture. A recessed luminaire can be as simple as a downlight, however, as a lighting specialist, we love to think further than just that. Knowing that details make the design, we love to think of lighting as an extension of architecture. Good integration of lighting fixtures makes lighting products from mere functional add-ons to visual elements that enhance the architectural experience.

The requirements for lighting concept are a combination of client wishes, architectural vision and legislative norms (like DIN-norms and specifications for listed buildings). Architectural lighting design has the potential to reinforce the way buildings and spaces are perceived, how these are used and how users feel in them. The intention of the architectural concept can be enhanced through lighting.

Photometry is the science of measuring visible light. A photometric study of a luminaire would generally describe the fixtures’ spectral distribution, the direction of the light, the brightness of the luminaire and its visible spectrum.

Perceptual psychology is the field of science concerning the way visual stimuli are processed in the human brain.

Tip from a lighting designer

We design our lighting concepts always keeping in mind principles of perceptual psychology as everything we perceive is light.

The abbreviation OLED stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode. OLED is made of organic molecules capable of producing electromagnetic radiation.It is an ultra-thin light source and it comes in pre-printed light tiles of variable sizes.

OLED light sources are commonly used in screens for cellphones and TVs, but also in architectural lighting. However, their application is currently limited to the dynamic and decorative range as they are not as bright as standard LEDs and more expensive to produce.