Choose the right lights

Shooting Industry, Feb, 2004 by Mark Diss

The right light is one of the keys to making visual merchandising work.

Retail stores usually use a combination of two types of lighting: ambient and accent. Ambient light, such as the light generated by fluorescent ceiling lamps, provides general illumination, but it can "flatten" a room. Accent lights, such as low-voltage halogen lamps, can enrich merchandise and displays within an ambient lighting scheme. However, accent lighting can also overwhelm the merchandise.

The most important component of light is its color. The Color Rendering Index (CRI) of a lamp measures how accurately it renders the color of items it falls on, including your merchandise. The higher the CRI, the better the lamp, and the more accurately it renders color. Lighting experts recommend you use lamps with a CRI of 85 or more to highlight special products.

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"Use soft, warm and subdued wall colors, so you don't overpower the merchandise," said Wm. Belcher, Ph.D., a behavioral psychologist in Tampa, Fla. "In the immediate area surrounding your featured products, go easy on harsh or direct lightning. If you create a barrier, even one of harsh light, you'll defeat the visual merchandising you're trying to accomplish."

When you start looking at lighting in terms of CRI, you're into an area of specialized lamps you won't find in the grocery store. Most major cities have lighting consultants who sell both fixtures and lamps, and offer help in designing lighting systems as part of the sale.

Lighting manufacturers also offer information and assistance in choosing what kind of lights to purchase. Three Websites to visit are Philips at www.lighting.philips.com, Sylvania at www.sylvania.com and GE at www.ge.com.

Finally, many do-it-yourself home-improvement stores sell lights that work well in creating attractive displays. They also have displays that use creative lighting. Find one you like, and then ask, "What lights did you use to do this?" You can bet they'll have the light for sale in their store.