The Beauty of LEDs

AFAustin · Nov 12, 2004

Ok, I'm a new guy, so this observation is probably either off the wall, or else already been discussed a 1000 times, so I apologize in advance. But, I am learning a lot on this great forum, and would appreciate any feedback on this particular observation.

I'm not the engineer or technical type (though the incredible level of that expertise on CPF is truly impressive), so my interest in flashlights is very pragmatic. I slave away in the city all week for the chance to go out to our beautiful little place in the country on weekends. My better half and I love to see all the wildlife out there---rabbits, wild turkey, racoons, skunks, armadillos, red-tailed hawks, owls, foxes, snakes (yikes!),
etc., and many or most of those critters are most active at night. So, nocturnal hikes, aided by a trusty flashlight, are the order of the....night. I want to see where I'm walking, and I want to spotlight the critters at a distance when I get the chance.

In educating myself about flashlights, mainly through the excellent information on CPF, I have dived in and bought (usually through ebay, another small addiction), a small selection of the "greatest hits" flashlights praised herein.

What I have noticed is that, on these nighttime ramblings, I am increasingly reaching for the LED lights, rather than the incandescents----even though the incands are more powerful. What finally "dawned" on me (the pun possibilities in this forum are wide and deep) is that the reason for this is really quite simple: incands look like "daylight", and LEDs look like "moonlight". Nothing destroys the mood and mystery of night more than artificial "daylight" injected into it. The LED lights, simply put, preserve the mood and the feel of night.

Thank you all, for beginning my education about the tools that make possible the full enjoyment of... the other half of the day.

jtr1962 · Nov 12, 2004

I agree with the part about LED light looking more natural, although incandescent light really isn't like daylight at all. Rather, it's closer to sunset or sunrise, both of which are transitory events which human vision never adapted particularly well to. In fact, LED light is closer to daylight or moonlight. Either way, it looks more natural to my eyes and preserves the mood at night. I particularly like the way solar LED garden lights look but I don't really care for the 12V incandescent garden lights. They just look out of place, same as any yellowish light either indoors or out. Ditto for those disgusting sodium vapor streetlights used in most major cities. They totally ruin the beauty and majesty of the dark hours. I find even the yellowish cast visible inside any building lit with incandescents affects the mood at night. It almost as if there is a continual sunset all night long.

Lynx_Arc · Nov 12, 2004

part of the beauty of LEDs is they are white at lower lumen output which makes for less contrast in darkness which in turn is easier on the eyes compared to the higher output white incans turning into yellowing dimmer lights as the batteries fade. Most incans tend to be very spotlike or ringy floods neither of which is good for seeing a lot while LEDs flood gives you more to look at without severe contrast of color and intensity incans have.

sotto · Nov 12, 2004

[ QUOTE ]
AFAustin said:
What I have noticed is that...incands look like "daylight", and LEDs look like "moonlight".

[/ QUOTE ]

Well, that's quite an interesting observation, and even better it gives me an excuse to jump up and grab some of my lights to go outside and verify it myself. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

cheesehead · Nov 12, 2004

Hmm, good point, so what is the color temperature of moonlight, since the claim often times, it that for LEDs is that they are closer to sunlight than incandescents (which are closer to yellow). Now that I think about it, it makes perfect sense. With both moonlight and LEDs you can barely see where you're going, but with sunlight and incandescents, you can.

Eh, just trying to be funny, but that's a very good observation. Moonlight is much cooler than typical sunlight. Time to stock up on LEDs.

jtr1962 · Nov 13, 2004

Interestingly, according to this chart the color temperature of moonlight (4200K) is lower than sunlight (5500K). There's an explanation here along with lots of interesting info on LEDs. Basically, the moon reflects more red than violet, so this "warms" up the light a bit.