TorchBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
How many lumens should a headlamp put out to use it comfortably for reading in bed?
How bright to read with?
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Flying Turtle
Flashaholic
I've got an old CMG Tracer headlamp that probably puts out around five lumens. It's pretty weak, but just right for reading in bed.
Geoff
Geoff
SilverFox
Flashaholic
Hello Ian,
I am happy with enough lumens to produce 3 - 5 lux on the page that I am reading...
Tom
I am happy with enough lumens to produce 3 - 5 lux on the page that I am reading...
Tom
Oddjob
Flashlight Enthusiast
I can read comfortably as low as 1 lumen but to reduce eye strain, 3 to 5 lumens is a good range.
TorchBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
Thanks guys, that's quite a bit less than I thought. Maybe my low mode will have to be a bit lower. Or maybe I should add some 5mm LEDs for the purpose...
It's not about lumens, it's about the evenness and the absence of a hot spot. Many years of industrial research have shown that the lighting level you ideally want is around 500 lux, so that's how they set up office fluorescent lights. Anything less than that is sub-optimal even if it's usable.
Almost all flashlights and headlamps suck for reading because their beams are too concentrated. The exceptions are the McLux flood flashlights and the Zebralight H50 headlamp. The H50 on high puts out 50+ lumens in a smooth, tremendously wide flood beam and is absolutely wonderful for reading. It runs for 2+ hours on a rechargeable AA which is plenty for most purposes. In medium setting it's maybe 10 lumens and still pretty good and will run a lot longer on a charge. This is basically the reading headlamp I'd recommend above all others. If you think whatever you're using instead is any good, it's because you haven't tried one of these
.
Almost all flashlights and headlamps suck for reading because their beams are too concentrated. The exceptions are the McLux flood flashlights and the Zebralight H50 headlamp. The H50 on high puts out 50+ lumens in a smooth, tremendously wide flood beam and is absolutely wonderful for reading. It runs for 2+ hours on a rechargeable AA which is plenty for most purposes. In medium setting it's maybe 10 lumens and still pretty good and will run a lot longer on a charge. This is basically the reading headlamp I'd recommend above all others. If you think whatever you're using instead is any good, it's because you haven't tried one of these
.
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TorchBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
Thanks for the suggestion Paul, but don't you think it's a bit arrogant to suggest a raw/naked Cree has too strong a hotspot?
For the above reasons, I too use a Zebralight to read by.... on low mode. And once fully adjusted to the dark room, those 2 lumens are plenty bright! I sometimes find myself checking to make sure I'm not on Medium mode by mistake.
Remember, it's a popular myth that reading in low light hurts your vision.
TorchBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
If one is reading a brightly lit book with a dimly lit background, wouldn't that be bad? Every small angular adjustment by the eyes might mean they would adjust their pupil size. Sounds like a recipe for eye fatigue.
NotRegulated
Flashlight Enthusiast
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- Nov 2, 2004
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A minimag lite with a nite-eyes 3-LED dropin. I use the IQ tailcap.
I don't understand what you're saying. The H50 has NO hotspot and that's what makes it great for this purpose.
GuyZero
Newly Enlightened
I agree with PaulR: The Zebralight, with it's naked Cree LED, is wonderful to read with.
In a dark room I use low at 2.6 lumens, and I too occasionally check to make sure it's not on medium by mistake after I've been using it for a while.
In a dimly lit room (like a bedroom with a low wattage bedside table lamp on) medium at 13 lumens works well for me reading. (I actually prefer the even beam of the Zebralight to my bedside lamp which comes from the side instead of straight on to the book).
High is too bright for me to read with at 66 lumens unless it's already a brightly lit room, but in that case I probably wouldn't need to use a headlamp.
But it sounds like you're building your own headlamp. If I had to choose one brightness, I would probably split the different and land somewhere between 5 and 7 lumens, but I would make sure it's a very diffused, even beam. A naked 1+ watt LED at low power is going to be much nicer than a 5mm LED with a built in lens.
In a dark room I use low at 2.6 lumens, and I too occasionally check to make sure it's not on medium by mistake after I've been using it for a while.
In a dimly lit room (like a bedroom with a low wattage bedside table lamp on) medium at 13 lumens works well for me reading. (I actually prefer the even beam of the Zebralight to my bedside lamp which comes from the side instead of straight on to the book).
High is too bright for me to read with at 66 lumens unless it's already a brightly lit room, but in that case I probably wouldn't need to use a headlamp.
But it sounds like you're building your own headlamp. If I had to choose one brightness, I would probably split the different and land somewhere between 5 and 7 lumens, but I would make sure it's a very diffused, even beam. A naked 1+ watt LED at low power is going to be much nicer than a 5mm LED with a built in lens.
TorchBoy
Flashlight Enthusiast
It wouldn't be the first time I've sanded flat some 5mm LEDs, although I might not bother, and just use the main beam Cree for reading as well. I'm still waiting on parts so I haven't finalised my design yet.
