Use of Fluorescent Light

cowbert098

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I am working on making a light tent (so I can stay inside and take pictures during the Wisconsin winter :D) and I am now looking to purchase some lights. My budget is small and I felt this would fit my needs.

However, I would like to use a light that doesn't get so hot. Would I be able to purchase some of those screw in fluorescent lights and still receive good results?

Thanks for the help!
 
I'm by no means an expert on fluorescent lighting, but most fluorescent lights I've had to deal with where obviously created by Satan himself to torment color photographers. Besides color and white balance issues, some fluorescent bulbs pulse, requiring long exposures. They can change color and intensity as they warm up.

Then again, you could try it, and if it doesn't work out just use the bulbs in your house lamps.
 
Look out for a few reasonably high powered Halogen desk lamps.

You may need to improvise a stand or tripod arrangement if you're not working at a table or even stand the lights on a couple of boxes to get the light overhead.
 
I often use my studio overhead fluorescent lights to get even light over a subject without any problems. I use a Nikon D100 which can either be set for fluorescents or can be set to balance whatever is the available [ambient] light source, [as long as all lights are the same colour balance] Do a test and you will soon find out if it works.
 
I'm not a lighting expert, but flourescent lights seem to have gaps in their spectra which tend to cause whitebalance issues as mentioned. You can buy filters which attempt to compensate for this ... but flourescent would be my last choice in lighting to use ...
 
I have seen lighting kits that come with fluorescent bulbs in them. Either a one bulb head or a three bulb head. I don't know how well they work though.
 
If you're shooting color, a tungsten film is the solution that you're looking for. They're balanced for cooler light temperatures (specifically tungsten, of course, but I've had great results shooting under flourescent light with them). Any film with the letter "T" at the end of the name will do.
 

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