The lighting in the Folger Shakespeare Library bindery hit me different

I popped into the Folger Shakespeare Library in DC last week for a tour, not even thinking about bookbinding stuff really. But when I got to their conservation lab area, the lighting setup caught me off guard. They had these big north-facing windows with adjustable filtered blinds plus track lights all over the ceiling. The person giving the tour said they designed it that way so no glare hits the leather or paper at any time of day. It made me realize I've been fighting shadows and hot spots on my workbench at home for years just using a desk lamp. I never even thought about how museums and libraries plan out their light specifically to avoid reflecting off materials. Has anyone else here swapped to a proper lighting setup and noticed a big difference in how clean your work looks?

3 comments

3 Comments

richard_wells599d ago

Question if it really matters that much for home use, seems a bit overkill to me.

emma5229d ago

no glare hits the leather" is genius, I'm stealing that window trick for my garage setup.

the_mia9d agoMost Upvoted

My buddy tried that same thing last summer on his workshop window and it went horribly wrong. He taped some cheap poster board up there, came back two hours later, and the sun had baked it into a crinkly mess that looked like a warped potato chip. The glue melted and dripped down his brand new saw, which was not a fun cleanup. Took him a whole weekend to scrape that gunk off the surface with a putty knife and mineral spirits. Just a heads up, make sure your material can handle the heat before you commit to it.