Advice on day-light bulbs/lamps...

[KAINE-77]

Heya,

 

At the moment, due to work and lack of natural light in my building, I never see daylight and am getting frustrated at squinting and giving myself a head-ache whenever I wanna slap some paint on my Minis... Was hoping for some advice on Day-light Bulbs/Art lamps etc...

 

I've tried searchy, and google, and admit I'm a bit confused!

 

Would a daylight bulb in a normal desk lamp be adequate, or would it be better to try a specific artist style lamp?

(I'm rather limited by budget and space)

 

Thanks to anyone who point me in the right direction.

 

Duma

[DV8]

Any generic desk lamp will suffice. I use a pair of them from Staples ($30 each). There are three things to take into consideration/keep in mind when purchasing your lamps though:

 

1. Fluorescent bulbs. Desk lamps will come with either what's called a Halogen bulb, or a Fluorescent bulb. Halogen is typically the more common, and is the one you don't want. It gives off a yellowish tinge/hue and painting under it will mess with your colors (since you're not seeing the true color of the paint). So when purchasing a lamp, make sure it comes with Fluorescent bulbs (which is a white light, and allows you to see the true color of the paint).
   
2. Swivel arms. If you're looking for mobility in the lamp (that is, the ability to swivel and reposition the light with ease), consider investing in a lamp with swivel arms. They're typically more expensive, but the ability to shift the light around is pretty handy, especially when you have more than one. Invest in one with durable swivel arms (metal is best). I've had a few lamps in the past with plastic swivel arms and I've snapped them pretty easily, every single time. It'll cost you a little more, but you save in the end with not having to constantly replace your lamps.
   
3. Get more than one. I recommend at LEAST two, so you can light your workstation/whatever you're painting adequately.
   

 

Hope that helps.

 

DV8

[Tanhausen]

I'm looking into buying one of those lights that have a magnifying glass in the middle...any suggestions or things to keep in mind?

[winterdyne]

I've got one of those. The light is good (as it's effectively quite a large source, so it casts a bit less stark shadowing) and mine came with a daylight tube in it, which is great. Don't really use the magnifying glass much... but the lamp is heavy, so you need to tighten the arm bolts now and then. Also make sure you secure it to your desk properly. Not useful as a temporary get-it-out-when-you-need-it kind of thing.

[Ensis Ferrae]

this is essentially the style of lamp that i use:

 

swing arm desk lamp

 

 

its nice because i can generally position it in any position i need, and direct the light as i need.

[Tanhausen]

The idea of what I'm looking at is this:

 

Modelism Lamp

 

And I was already assuming that I would have to clamp it to the table... I'm lucky enough to have a "Warhammer room" :P

 

Currently I use a cheap Ikea desk lamp and more and more I'm only being able to paint at night.

[Commander Sasha]

Fluorescent bulbs. Desk lamps will come with either what's called a Halogen bulb, or a Fluorescent bulb. Halogen is typically the more common, and is the one you don't want. It gives off a yellowish tinge/hue and painting under it will mess with your colors (since you're not seeing the true color of the paint). So when purchasing a lamp, make sure it comes with Fluorescent bulbs (which is a white light, and allows you to see the true color of the paint).

(With my lighting designer hat on) A regular filament bulb (Like a classic 60W pearl) will give an oranger light, being a lower colour temperature; a halogen bulb (such as an MR16, or a capsule bulb) will be better, being a higher colour temperature.

'Artist' bulbs are usually regular filament bulbs with a blue coating, giving a 'true daylight' lightsource, but are dimmer for the power, as the coating absorbs some of the orange.

 

Fluorescent lamps give a very uneven light frequency response, with a high green content, which is why offices look pallid and depressing (well, that and all the work!), but on the other hand, if you play your games under fluorescent lights at a shop or club, your opponents will see them exactly as you painted them!

 

Personally, as a poor painter, I use a magnifier light with a 22Watt circular fluoro round it: it gives off less heat than a filament bulb, so the brush doesn't dry out so fast, plus it is easier to position it for maximum light on the mini, not shining back into your eyes.

(It is also ideal for defrosting mice for my pet snake, brining them up to body temperature. She's fussy.)