Home Applications Back to the Future
Ian MuirIan has worked in Technical Sales for Lighting manufacturers, often crossing the divide into fixture R&D for a number of years. His experience spans the pioneering days of LED based lighting in the Naughties to the present.
Written by Ian Muir
The development of lighting used in Film and TV production has a multifaceted history, influenced by technology, as well as the required aesthetic outcome.
Many types and methodologies of lighting utilised for periods in the last 120 years have had their time and fallen into disuse. But could it be that some elements of lighting technique once used extensively, can still be relevant when combined with other more current technologies? The incredibly soft, wrapping illumination of the incandescent Spacelight made it ubiquitous on soundstage around the world for decades. Is it possible to revive the methodology with a high output Gemini 2 1 Hard LED panel?
The History To start with, a history lesson of sorts.
Lighting has predominantly followed the technology of image capture, to complement the spectral constraints of the chosen medium. This can be charted from the use of Orthochromatic Black and White film in the early part of the last century, which is sensitive to the blue end of the spectrum, and reproduces higher wavelengths like red for, example, as black. To get the best result, Orthochromatic film was exposed with sources that provided the most appropriate wavelengths of light in relation to its sensitivity. Initially this was Mercury Vapour, then Carbon Arc as well as good old-fashioned daylight. Etymology note, daylight was often controlled using large sails, which is one possible origin for the term Gaffer as in the nautical Gaff rigged.
1922 saw the introduction by Eastman Kodak of the first motion picture Panchromatic Black and White Stock. Panchromatic film is sensitive to a much broader spectrum of light and therefore, lighting needed the spectral capacity to derive a more complete response (particularity in the mid tones), from the tonal values of the scene captured. This led to a transition to incandescent lighting (often referred to generically as Tungsten ), which offers a broader spectrum. Incandescent fixtures could also be more easily utilised with Fresnel lenses and barn doors which introduced better control, and more creativity into the process.
The introduction of Technicolor in the later part of the 30's (The Wizard of OZ being the first notable example), saw a return to Carbon Arc for reasons relating to the colour sensitivity of the process, however the technology was re-colour balanced in the 50's to improve its response to incandescents because they were more economical to use.
alt=wizzard of Oz 1939 data-nectar-img-srcset=https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/wizzard-of-Oz-1939.png 1160w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/wizzard-of-Oz-1939-300x190.png 300w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/wizzard-of-Oz-1939-1024x647.png 1024w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/wizzard-of-Oz-1939-768x485.png 768w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/wizzard-of-Oz-1939-600x379.png 600w sizes=(max-width: 1160px) 100vw, 1160px title=The Wizard of Oz. Credit: 1939 Warner Home Video />The Wizard of Oz. Credit: 1939 Warner Home Video
Whilst this is all very interesting the question you could still be asking what is your point?
Rock and roll lighting innovations As we move into the 60's things become much more rock n roll' in terms of the technologies available and perhaps most importantly, the protagonists involved. In a nutshell this was the introduction of better colour film emulsions with much better colour rendition and contrast ratios, Colour TV, and full spectrum Tungsten Halogen lamps. And John and Benny Lee.
John and Benny, from modest backgrounds spotted the rapidly expanding opportunities in both Film and TV, founding Lee Lighting in 1961. The shape and foundations of the UK film industry has its roots in the organisation which they evolved through the 60's 70's and 80's. Lee Lighting facilitated the growth that occurred by satisfying the increasing demand for lighting, camera, grip and rigging, as well as studio space.
Importantly Lee Lighting was also responsible for lighting innovations which provided better solutions to the problems that TV and Film production faced:
The Wendy Light. Built at the behest of Cinematographer David Wendy' Watkins, best known for films such as Out of Africa (for which he won an academy award), who wanted a means of filming actors traversing a scene in moonlight with constant illumination, without resorting to hiding lights at points along their travel. The Wendy Light, still widely used today, overcame this issue.
alt= data-nectar-img-srcset=https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use.jpg 1920w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use-300x110.jpg 300w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use-1024x374.jpg 1024w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use-768x281.jpg 768w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use-1536x562.jpg 1536w, https://www.litepanels.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/david-watkin-wendy-light-in-use-600x219.jpg 600w sizes=(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px title=Wendy Light. Image Credit: BSC />Wendy Light. Image Credit: BSC
Flicker free ballasts for HMI fixtures. HMI had replaced Carbon Arc as a daylight balanced fixture because of its ease of deployment and economy of use. Early variants however could produce flicker on film. Lee designed and built a balla
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
18/05/2026
Despite a bumpy start to the year, the provider of event-production support and ...
18/05/2026
Daktronics has partnered with the University of North Carolina to manufacture and install 11 LED displays totaling more than 10,000 square feet and more than 14...
18/05/2026
CBS LA has announced a multi-year partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, covering exclusive local broadcasts of Rams preseason games, weekly year-round programm...
18/05/2026
Skyline Communications has announced an integration between its DataMiner xOps p...
18/05/2026
eCLUTCH, the hybrid esports platform powered by iKOMG, has announced an expansion of its distribution across Europe, MENA, Africa, and Asia, along with new cont...
18/05/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/05/2026
With 22 games this season, the production team looks forward to tweaking and enhancing the coverage
After 8,660 days off the air, the WNBA returned to NBC yest...
18/05/2026
(L-R) Midori Francis and Natalie Erika James attend the Saccharine premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 22, 2026, in ...
18/05/2026
Last night, the Spotify Podcast Awards in Mexico returned to the country's capital. Now in its second year, the evening honors creators whose voices are hel...
18/05/2026
ZEN-Core synth goes mobile
Roland's powerful ZEN-Core software synthesizer has just been introduced to the iPad, offering a convenient entry point into ...
18/05/2026
Versatile new limiter plug-in announced
Based in Sheffield, UK, fedDSP offer a range of plug-ins that span the music production, live sound and high-end med...
18/05/2026
A new use for convolution?
Viiri Audio's debut plug-in aims to do something a little different with convolution processing, allowing users to adjust all...
18/05/2026
Delta Goodrem shines for SBS as more than 3.27 million Australians tune in for E...
18/05/2026
The Australian Defence Force uses L3Harris T4 and T7 robots for explosive ordnan...
18/05/2026
Continued investment across Europe and Germany is expanding local teams and improving access to stock, regional expertise, and specialist broadcast support.
CV...
18/05/2026
18 May 2026
Dubai and New York, May 18, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (NASDAQ: VEON), a glob...
18/05/2026
Monday 18 May 2026
Sky News offers ad-free podcasts and bonus episodes for just...
18/05/2026
Comscore March 2026 Consumer AI Chatbot Usage Rankings Show Claude Gaining Share OpenAI's ChatGPT maintains lead while Anthropic's Claude continues to c...
17/05/2026
Delta Goodrem's Eurovision Eclipse marks end of a stellar run
17 May, 2026
Media releases
Bulgaria wins Eurovision 2026
Relive every spellbinding mome...
17/05/2026
Back to All News
Oasis Premieres on Netflix June 19
Entertainment
17 May 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Summer, sunshine, the beach, parties. T...
16/05/2026
Helps to deliver a clean, balanced midrange
Developed alongside Newfangled Audio, the latest plug-in in Eventide's software collection has been designed...
16/05/2026
Brings onboard stem rendering to RANE System One
Engine DJ have just released Engine DJ 5.0, a free update for their Engine DJ OS embedded hardware and Engi...
16/05/2026
Boris FX Continuum Pairs AI Precision and Advanced Creative Controls
Jessie Electa Petrov May 16, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic de...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC, in partnership with RAVE Foundation an...
15/05/2026
Dan Brumm has served as sound designer on Bluey, the Australian children's t...
15/05/2026
The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) and Shure Incorporated are accepting applications for the 6th annual Mark Brunner Professional Audio Schola...
15/05/2026
Netflix has announced an expanded NFL schedule for 2026 and beyond under a four-year partnership extension with the NFL through the 2029-30 season. Each season,...
15/05/2026
Ateme is supporting TVRI (Televisi Republik Indonesia) with a contribution and d...
15/05/2026
Concacaf has announced the launch of a new website and mobile app built on Deltatre's FORGE platform. Concacaf.com and the mobile app, available on iOS and ...
15/05/2026
Eutelsat has announced the launch of QBC Business Economic Channel by Qatar Media Corporation, broadcasting in 4K/UHD via Eutelsat's 7/8 West video neighbo...
15/05/2026
Major League Soccer has announced four original content series timed to the 2026...
15/05/2026
The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) has announced it will exhibit and present at InfoComm 2026, taking place June 13-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Cente...
15/05/2026
InfoComm 2026 will take place June 13-19 (exhibits June 17-19) at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show will include sessions and exhibits covering broadcas...
15/05/2026
Tracy McGrady's Ones Basketball League (OBL) and FuboTV Inc. have announced ...
15/05/2026
Disguise has partnered with Creative Technology (CT) to deliver visual playback ...
15/05/2026
Sony Electronics has announced two new products for professional imaging: the Alpha 7R VI full-frame mirrorless camera and the FE 100-400mm F4.5 GM OSS super-te...
15/05/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
15/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
15/05/2026
For sports organizations, the most valuable assets are often the most sensitive:...
15/05/2026
The NFL's broadcast partners released their 2026 regular season schedules ye...
15/05/2026
Besides drawing on experience with boxing, the production integrates specialty c...
Home Applications Back to the Future
