Picture lights are a great way to showcase and enhance artwork or photographs in any room of your home. But what considerations should you take into account when deciding on the type of picture light? In this guide, we explore why to use picture lights and what size is best for your particular artwork.
What Size Should a Picture Light Be?
This is the most frequently asked question from people considering fitting a picture light is, what size is right for the artwork? Selecting the right size for your picture light can be tricky perplexing many. Generally, landscape and portrait having slightly differing sizes requires different sized fitments.
For landscape format pictures choose a picture light that is 1/2 to 1/3 the size of the picture not including the frame.
For portrait Format pictures select a picture light that is as close to 1/2 the width of the picture as possible, not including the frame.
If your picture has a really wide frame you may need to choose a slightly different size or two picture lamps to ensure the correct balance is maintained or alternatively light with recessed ceiling lights angled towards the wall.
What Are Picture Lights and How Can They Enhance Your Home?
Picture lights are a type of direct lighting typically used to create the perfect illumination to enhance artwork, paintings and photographs. Whilst called picture lights the use isn’t limited to pictures they can be used above mirrors or even menu boards in restaurants anywhere where you wish to direct some light towards the wall.
Picture lights, sometimes referred to a s swan neck lights come in many shapes and sizes – from small or large, traditional, heritage or simple modern designs there’s a picture perfect light – to suit any style, taste and price point.
They emit a bright and focused beam of light that illuminates your canvas or photograph perfectly, making it stand out as the focus of the room.
The Benefits of Using Picture Lights
Picture lights are ideal for highlighting and showcasing artwork or photographs, making them the focal point of any room. By using picture lights to specifically illuminate your chosen art pieces, you can create a beautiful atmosphere that brings the piece more attention and appreciation.
Picture lights only light up the specific area of focus and not brightening up an entire room, allowing you to experience the illumination in the desired spot. Lit artwork stands out and being brighter in the evenings allows paintings to shine even when the room is dimmed.
Picture Light Styles
Both modern and traditional styled picture lights come in various metals allowing you to match the light fitting to the decor. Brass and aged brass picture lights are the most popular as they often enhance the decor by bringing a little opulent touch, almost elevating the status of the art work and the room in one swoop.
Explore the Brass Picture Light Collection.
Slim Picture Lights are suited to modern art or those with simple frames the sleek nature of the lights are unobtrusive allowing the picture to be the focus. Whilst more traditional heavy framed art may suit a solid looking brass picture lights.
Explore Modern Picture Lights
The type of light source should be considered. If you want to make the most of the art the type of lighting is a consideration. Led is cool to the touch and won’t damage even the finest art. Light lighting is by far the most sensible choice, being cost effective to run.
Choosing the Right Position.
Lighting pictures is not an exact science but these general rules may help you make the correct decision.
The basic rule of thumb is to position pictures on the wall with the centre at eye level – about 5 feet from the floor level and to position the picture light centrally above the picture.Most picture lights have adjustable heads that can be swivelled to direct the light correctly onto the picture below.
Additionally, make sure to consider the distance between the piece and the wall when determining what size lighting fixture to use. The further away from the wall it hangs, the larger size light you will need in order to position the light emitted effectively to brighten up the artwork.
Want to highlight a mirror or artwork without a picture light?
If you’d like to shine light on a piece of art you may also consider other ways of lighting your art perhaps spotlighting from a recessed ceiling light or wall mounting spotlights. Picture lights are electrically wire in and not all homeowners want to disturb the decor, in these cases plug in wall lights could be an option they work in the same way as table lamps do, by simple plugging them into a socket.
Can you use Picture Lights In a Bathroom?
Bathrooms are becoming more like living spaces, being enhance by softer decorative touches. Bringing light into a bathroom above pictures is an obvious step to dressing the space.
Bathroom Mirror and Picture lights can be used safely in bathrooms, bring illumination to light pictures and also create a calming ambience.
All lights in bathrooms need to be protected against water getting into the electrics. These lights are rated as bathroom safe, if they have an ingress protection rating of IP44