Lighting Glossary

A Simple lighting glossary of terms you should be familiar with. 

150w (Dedo)	3200k – Compact dimmable unit with lens.
300w (Ianiro)	3200k – Compact open face
650w	3200k – Fresnel
800w (Redhead)	3200k – Open face
2000w (Blonde)	3200k – Large Open face
LED	5600k – Light Emitting Diode - Can be in Lite Panels (spot or Flood) or Fresnel. Ultra lower power and heat output.
Fluorescent (KinoFlo)	3200k or 5600k - Fluorescent lighting that either uses daylight or tungsten balanced tubes. Comes it various sizes. Very cool and low power consumption.
HMI	5600k - Metal-halide gas discharge medium arc-length lamp. These are widely used in Film and TV lighting. They produce a daylight balanced light output and are approximately 3-4x more efficient compared to Tungsten lights. Available in Fresnel or Par (open faced). Because they are daylight balanced no gels are needed, reducing light loss when shooting a daylight scene. Requires a ballast to power it.
Cookie	Placed in front of a Hard Light, it throws realistic or abstract shadows, or dappled light, on bland walls or areas of the scene.
Diffusion	A translucent material placed in front of a light to soften highlights and shadows and reduce contrast. Can be anything from net curtains to muslin to frosted lighting gels. Often used on a diffusion panel or frame.
Scrim	A screen-like metal mesh used in front of a light to reduce intensity, not to diffuse it
Flag	An opaque panel used to block light and shadow the subject, background, or camera lens, or to add negative fill.
Gel	A strong, flexible, fade-resistant material that changes the colour, amount, or quality of light. Various are available, the most common are: CTB=colour temp blue, CTO=colour temp orange, ND=Neutral Density.
Colour Temperature	The colour of light is measured in degrees Kelvin. Daylight is approx. 5600k and tungsten lighting is approx. 3200k.
Tungsten	Most interior lighting (not energy saving/fluorescent or halogen) use tungsten bulbs. It is the common term for interior lighting that is more orange that daylight in colour. Approx 3200k for studio lighting or 2600k for household.
Daylight	Blue in colour at approx 5600k (direct midday sunlight) but can vary depending on time of day and cloud cover.
Key light	Usually the brightest light illuminating a subject and motivated by some light source within a scene, i.e. Window, Practical, TV.
Back light	Often used in conjunction with a Rim light the back light separates the subject from the background.
Rim light/Kicker	Also used to help make the subject stand out by illuminating the head or hair from behind. More focused than the back light and often brighter.
Background Light	A light used to illuminate the background.
Practical	A light that is seen within the scene. i.e. a table or desk lamp.
Open Face (Par)	A hard light with just a bulb and built in reflector, no focusable lens. Also known as PAR which stands for parabolic-reflector.
Fresnel	A light that uses a lens and can be focused from spot to flood allowing for more versatility. And are more light efficient than open face.
Hard Light	A direct light that creates strong highlights and dark shadows. More controllable than soft light.
Soft Light	Diffused, bounced, indirect light; the opposite of Hard Light.
Contrast/Lighting ratio	The ratio of Key Light plus Fill vs. Fill Light only. Film can handle higher ratios than video due to its extended exposure latitude.
Reflector	A device that is used to bounce light. Available in white, silver, or gold
Dimmer	A device use to reduce or increase the light output by allowing more or less electricity to flow to the lamp. In tungsten units this will change the colour temperature. Warmer less power, cooler more power
Softbox	A diffusion unit that can be attached directly to the lamp head to soften the light output.