Bella Pedranti

Lighting Safety Essay

January 14, 2019
Video & Performing Arts

Lighting Safety is Our Number One Concern

Safety when using lighting is very important. There are many reasons that learning
lighting safety is a prominent part of our shop. This is a very important topic in our shop
because: the lights are hot, not getting oils from your fingers on the lights, covering cables, and
paying attention to wattage.
One of the many examples that I will be including to help support my reasoning is
realizing that the lights are hot, and if they're not used correctly, they can burn someone.
(Tungsten lights= HOT) (LED lights=COOL) Ex: Touching light when opening the barn doors
you could accidentally touch the light.
A second of the many examples that I will be including to help support my reasoning is,
making sure not to get oils from your hands onto the light bulbs. It is imperative that when
handling the light bulbs that you do not get oils from your fingers or hands onto it. When you do
get oils onto the light bulbs the bulbs could most likely explode. Ex: When you open barn doors
or when you are changing a light bulb (WHEN CHANGING LIGHT BULBS ALWAYS WEAR
COTTON GLOVES!), you may accidentally touch the the light bulb, which could lead to the bulb
exploding.
A third of the many examples that I will be including to help support my reasoning is,
covering cables. To prevent future injury, make sure to cover cables with either a carpet or tape
them down. Ex: People may trip and fall, the cables could get ruined and get pulled out of the
socket. There are times where you won’t need to bring the cables down, like when there are too
many people on set and when the cables become a danger.
The fourth and last example that I will be including to help support my reasoning is,
paying attention to wattage. Knowing the wattage that you are using in one outlet will help you
immensely, this will help prevent shortages in the outlet's circuit. Ex: If you put two Omni lights
in the same outlet, you could blow a fuse and lose electricity. (500+500= 1000W=1000W/100
Volts= 10 Amps) At home if you were to use high wattage objects like a hair dryer and a heater
you would plug them into opposite outlets.
In conclusion, lighting safety is one of the most important skills a photographer and/or
videographer must learn to make sure they are safe on set and their talent is safe as well. Each
of my examples demonstrates why lighting safety is so important in our shop.