Lighting for digital photography

Pat Griffin <pgriffin [at] clevelandart__org> writes

>Has anyone investigated the lighting parameters for high end digital
>photography to determine what systems are safest for the artwork.D

I recommend that you consult a special Digital Imaging Issue of
"Spectra" (published by MCN, Museum Computer Network) available from
<URL:http://www.mcn.edu/pdf/MCN_Spectra_Fall00.pdf>.

It includes a rather detailed article on the subject of lighting:

    Blackwell, Ben
    Light Exposure to Sensitive Artworks During Digital
    Photography. Spectra, Fall 2001, Vol. 26, No. 2, p. 24-28.

(Another article in the same issue, titled "Conservation Issues in
Digital Imaging", is worth a read too.) There are oodles of
variables within the imaging system and workflow to consider, of
course, but the author concludes that a typical maximum exposure
time of 20 minutes for a scanback set-up (includes time to focus,
make adjustments, and create the scan itself) is equivalent to about
13.75 hours of "equivalent gallery time at 50 lux."

    **** Moderator's comments: Thanks also to Michael C. Miller and
    Martin Juergens who provided similar information

Hannah Frost
Media Preservation Librarian
Stanford University Libraries


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 15:63
                  Distributed: Tuesday, March 19, 2002
                       Message Id: cdl-15-63-004
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