Colour Temperature and Rendering
LED based lighting has had a reputation for appearing ‘cold’ and ‘blue’ due to their phosphorous coating technology.
However today’s high efficacy devices can rival traditional incandescent light sources for colour and ambience. When selecting LED interior lighting, colour temperature is an important consideration. Colour temperature is measured in Kelvin and describes the effect of heating an object until it glows incandescently. The emitted radiation, and apparent colour changes in proportion to the temperature; envisioned when considering hot metal in a forge that glows red, then orange, and then white as the temperature increases.
HELLA describes higher colour temperatures (4600K to 5600K) as ‘crisp white’ and lower colour temperatures as ‘warm white’. ‘Neutral white’ is considered around 4200K range.Crisp white is recommended for visual tasks, work areas and exterior lighting. Warm white is suggested for interior spaces as it adds life and vibrancy to people and objects.
It is considered more flattering to skin tones or fabrics and makes food look fresh and attractive.
