Hell yeah, these videos are right up my alley! I have been in the process of researching lighting for my displays and possible photography venture, so this info helps
This was well put together! Gives me ides for future lighting set ups. I use a professional grade bulb as a key light and some smaller LED panels as b/g and fill
I use LED puck lights in different types of Ikea display cabinets they have 16 levels of brightness, leaving them on 1-3 emits more than enough light even in the larger cabinets while not having to even think about heat issues. I live in the UK so I don't have to deal with heat & airflow issues with the display cabinets. I do leave some very small gaps instead of trying to 100% dust proof them.
Very informative. I knew about sunlight but wasn't aware of florescent light damage. I have no such lights except in the basement and garage but good to know anyway. For my display cases, I actually use COB LED strips with Natural White and I love them. They're uniform, like neon trim and even at 10-25%, are bright enough to capture the figure from most angles.
In low light I use led bulb light for taking pictures of figures. It's multicolour and I can change colour temperature and brightness in steps. Very useful. But single bulb isn't enough and emit a lot of heat (sometimes circuit cut off the power so that bulb can cool down. As it is I have to correct colour temperature in camera to match true to life colours as possible. Thanks for tips on topic.
Another great video! Do you know if acrylic cases can protect the figures from UV or IR? I need to get some acrylic cases to protect my figures from dust and I've heard that some cases also protect from UV (just by being thicker).
I'm sure there are display cases with higher protection against UV/IR but they will probably be overkill and over priced. I think it would be easier to buy blinds. I have metal venetian blinds that block out most of the sunlight. If blinds are not an option you could try window UV film on the display cases or the windows.
So in my religion, there’s a lot of incense burning. For one thing if you’re using resin incenses, strong likelihood that your figures do not smell normal. But, if you’re actually burning the incense and not just warming it, there is going to be a film that built up over every surface at least in the room incense is being offered. And the type of wipe down needed might not be friendly to figures. So overtime you might start seeing stains. And if you’re going to see stains, there will actually be quite a bit built up before you can even see the visible result of the problem. So at least make sure you don’t store them in the same room you burn it. And for that matter, anyone who smokes anything, if they happen to be reading this better not bother selling your figures online without the disclaimer that they smell like smoke. Smokers out there that do not keep their habit completely divorced from the hobby, including washing their hands before touching items can expect the collectibles to be pretty much worthless on the market. The smell never goes away fully no matter what process you go through to clean it..
I just discovered this channel of yours and subscribed. informative content. I don't know if you have talked about this or not yet but does bootleg or fake figures discolor / emit plasticizer faster than authentic ones? is mixing bootleg and authentic figures inside an enclosed display case affect one another? of course, i put silica gel inside the cases.
How do fluorescent bulbs produce a lot of heat ? They use like 15-30w of power, which is basically nothing in terms of heat dumped into a room, I doubt you'd even notice, certainly not gonna damage your figure.
Try touching a fluorescent bulb that has been turned on for 5 minutes and try not to burn your hand. =) In a display cabinet, the space is enclosed, even if it only creates a bit of heat it can build up (though i don't think anyone uses fluorescent bulbs for displays). In photography you put any bulb, be it LED or Fluorescent, inside soft boxes (those huge square or octagonal boxes), it gets really hot because you are trapping heat inside an enclosed space released by the bulbs. There is no such thing as no heat, because there are no electrical appliances with 100% efficiency. The lost energy during conversion from electricity to light, kinetic or other forms of energy is converted into heat. You would have learned that in high school Physics. The problem is when you start trapping that miniscule amount of heat and not give it any space to ventilate (because display cabinets are supposed to be sealed to keep dust out), the heat builds up.
@@EXkurogane I'm well aware of efficiency, that's why I mentioned power to begin with. You said the problem is they use a lot of heat at 6:30 in context of figure photography, not in using it for displays. There is no way in hell 30w of heat will do anything to the figure in a photography session, even if you run it forever, unless its 1cm away from it. Yes the bulb is hot to touch, which is obvious, even 5w LED bulbs get hot to touch, that doesn't mean they radiate any significant amount of heat, it just gets concentrated inside the bulb. yes the softbox will get hot, again that won't damage the figure in any way. Seems like a bit of a scare, 15-30w is not a lot of heat in any capacity.
@@lootyy what you just denied, is exactly the same thing when i pointed out other people are wrong when they said camera flash (or light bulbs for the matter) product enough heat to damage figures. They don't. But, when it comes to displays, especially when you leave it on 24/7, the heat will build up in a closed display cabinet. Unless you remember to open your cabinet doors every day then it's a different matter.
@@EXkurogane So we agree then, but in the video you made it sound like the heat is an issue. I don't believe it would be enough to heat up a cabinet anyway, it's just not enough power for the area. But I haven't tested it.
@@lootyy Well, I do not know where you lived. But as for me and this guy, we lived in tropical zone which is almost 30+C even in the night. So I kinda understand why the guy very concern about heat issue. Even we not install lightbulb in to cabinet or just leave Figure in the box still, the product are likely to degrade due to the heat. That why we try not to add any heat to the already-hot cabinet. Also you said it's only 30w bulb, for me 30w is not 'ONLY' it's kinda high power for such as small plastic piece when it come to expose 24/7 or even 16/7. and why bother about Fluorescent bulb, you can have LED bulb with same brightness and color within 4-12w and It's would be best if you have soldering skill, you can have adjustable low-power light with variants setup. Lastly, If you have no any issue about heat in where you lived(Congrats!) use low-power LED bulb could save your bill!
You have to be careful with the LED strips. SOME cheap ones emit heat and are a little bit warm Additionally, the scuffed ones start to yellow over a period of 3 years when left on 24/7. There are light bar diffusers to fix the issue of the single-point light source but the diffusers I tried shopping for are kind of pricey.
unless you are a kid and might need it sometimes to fall asleep, it is not good to sleep with lights on. It affects your sleep quality and even at what time you want to sleep or wake up @@SemekiIzuio
@@SemekiIzuio Up to you if you want to accept the degradation of the LED light strip. I soldered my own wires and LED together, so it's cheap for me to throw it away every few year.
@@SemekiIzuio wow that's one way of using display lights I've never thought of, because i prefer to sleep without lights. I assume you must be keeping the brightness levels down right? Well the surefire way to tear things is to leave a thermometer inside a display and see the readings. By right a low setting shouldn't harm your figures much.
To put it simply, there is no need to add or place a led lights inside the display cabinet unless you wanna showcase your collection to anyone else.
Hell yeah, these videos are right up my alley! I have been in the process of researching lighting for my displays and possible photography venture, so this info helps
This was well put together! Gives me ides for future lighting set ups. I use a professional grade bulb as a key light and some smaller LED panels as b/g and fill
I use LED puck lights in different types of Ikea display cabinets they have 16 levels of brightness, leaving them on 1-3 emits more than enough light even in the larger cabinets while not having to even think about heat issues. I live in the UK so I don't have to deal with heat & airflow issues with the display cabinets. I do leave some very small gaps instead of trying to 100% dust proof them.
Very informative. I knew about sunlight but wasn't aware of florescent light damage. I have no such lights except in the basement and garage but good to know anyway.
For my display cases, I actually use COB LED strips with Natural White and I love them. They're uniform, like neon trim and even at 10-25%, are bright enough to capture the figure from most angles.
Very informative. Thank you.
Thx for the advise!
In low light I use led bulb light for taking pictures of figures. It's multicolour and I can change colour temperature and brightness in steps. Very useful. But single bulb isn't enough and emit a lot of heat (sometimes circuit cut off the power so that bulb can cool down. As it is I have to correct colour temperature in camera to match true to life colours as possible. Thanks for tips on topic.
Another great video!
Do you know if acrylic cases can protect the figures from UV or IR?
I need to get some acrylic cases to protect my figures from dust and I've heard that some cases also protect from UV (just by being thicker).
I'm sure there are display cases with higher protection against UV/IR but they will probably be overkill and over priced. I think it would be easier to buy blinds. I have metal venetian blinds that block out most of the sunlight. If blinds are not an option you could try window UV film on the display cases or the windows.
Yes. anti-UV glass do exist, but extremely expensive. If i could afford such a thing I'd want them for my display cabinets too
Thanks a lot for your replies, I might change my figures placement as my current place is quite open so blinds are not an option.
I like to burn incense or fragrant resins (like frankincense). Do you think it is damaging my anime figures (they are not in detolfs)?
So in my religion, there’s a lot of incense burning. For one thing if you’re using resin incenses, strong likelihood that your figures do not smell normal. But, if you’re actually burning the incense and not just warming it, there is going to be a film that built up over every surface at least in the room incense is being offered. And the type of wipe down needed might not be friendly to figures. So overtime you might start seeing stains. And if you’re going to see stains, there will actually be quite a bit built up before you can even see the visible result of the problem. So at least make sure you don’t store them in the same room you burn it. And for that matter, anyone who smokes anything, if they happen to be reading this better not bother selling your figures online without the disclaimer that they smell like smoke. Smokers out there that do not keep their habit completely divorced from the hobby, including washing their hands before touching items can expect the collectibles to be pretty much worthless on the market. The smell never goes away fully no matter what process you go through to clean it..
I just discovered this channel of yours and subscribed. informative content. I don't know if you have talked about this or not yet but does bootleg or fake figures discolor / emit plasticizer faster than authentic ones? is mixing bootleg and authentic figures inside an enclosed display case affect one another? of course, i put silica gel inside the cases.
yes. bootleg does turn yellow even faster. As long you open your display case to air it out every once in a while you'll be fine
thank you @@EXkurogane
Light from certain angles also makes anime figures look like they have black noses.
Hi maybe stupid question but is the UV damage the same case for Statues? one of my statues get a little bit of sunlight during the day.
The damage manifests in a different way, but yes, not advised to expose figures to sunlight regardless of material.
thank u.
How do fluorescent bulbs produce a lot of heat ? They use like 15-30w of power, which is basically nothing in terms of heat dumped into a room, I doubt you'd even notice, certainly not gonna damage your figure.
Try touching a fluorescent bulb that has been turned on for 5 minutes and try not to burn your hand. =)
In a display cabinet, the space is enclosed, even if it only creates a bit of heat it can build up (though i don't think anyone uses fluorescent bulbs for displays). In photography you put any bulb, be it LED or Fluorescent, inside soft boxes (those huge square or octagonal boxes), it gets really hot because you are trapping heat inside an enclosed space released by the bulbs.
There is no such thing as no heat, because there are no electrical appliances with 100% efficiency. The lost energy during conversion from electricity to light, kinetic or other forms of energy is converted into heat. You would have learned that in high school Physics. The problem is when you start trapping that miniscule amount of heat and not give it any space to ventilate (because display cabinets are supposed to be sealed to keep dust out), the heat builds up.
@@EXkurogane I'm well aware of efficiency, that's why I mentioned power to begin with.
You said the problem is they use a lot of heat at 6:30 in context of figure photography, not in using it for displays.
There is no way in hell 30w of heat will do anything to the figure in a photography session, even if you run it forever, unless its 1cm away from it. Yes the bulb is hot to touch, which is obvious, even 5w LED bulbs get hot to touch, that doesn't mean they radiate any significant amount of heat, it just gets concentrated inside the bulb. yes the softbox will get hot, again that won't damage the figure in any way.
Seems like a bit of a scare, 15-30w is not a lot of heat in any capacity.
@@lootyy what you just denied, is exactly the same thing when i pointed out other people are wrong when they said camera flash (or light bulbs for the matter) product enough heat to damage figures. They don't.
But, when it comes to displays, especially when you leave it on 24/7, the heat will build up in a closed display cabinet. Unless you remember to open your cabinet doors every day then it's a different matter.
@@EXkurogane So we agree then, but in the video you made it sound like the heat is an issue.
I don't believe it would be enough to heat up a cabinet anyway, it's just not enough power for the area. But I haven't tested it.
@@lootyy Well, I do not know where you lived. But as for me and this guy, we lived in tropical zone which is almost 30+C even in the night. So I kinda understand why the guy very concern about heat issue. Even we not install lightbulb in to cabinet or just leave Figure in the box still, the product are likely to degrade due to the heat. That why we try not to add any heat to the already-hot cabinet.
Also you said it's only 30w bulb, for me 30w is not 'ONLY' it's kinda high power for such as small plastic piece when it come to expose 24/7 or even 16/7. and why bother about Fluorescent bulb, you can have LED bulb with same brightness and color within 4-12w and It's would be best if you have soldering skill, you can have adjustable low-power light with variants setup. Lastly, If you have no any issue about heat in where you lived(Congrats!) use low-power LED bulb could save your bill!
What’s the figure in the thumbnail?
Good Smile black rock shooter, original version. Very old figure, came out like in 2009 or 2010 but was later re-released once
You have to be careful with the LED strips. SOME cheap ones emit heat and are a little bit warm
Additionally, the scuffed ones start to yellow over a period of 3 years when left on 24/7.
There are light bar diffusers to fix the issue of the single-point light source but the diffusers I tried shopping for are kind of pricey.
Which is why in general i don't recommend turning on any form of lighting for long hours. Save it for when you have visitors.
Is having them only during the night ok? I tend to sleep with them as nightlights 😅
unless you are a kid and might need it sometimes to fall asleep, it is not good to sleep with lights on. It affects your sleep quality and even at what time you want to sleep or wake up @@SemekiIzuio
@@SemekiIzuio Up to you if you want to accept the degradation of the LED light strip.
I soldered my own wires and LED together, so it's cheap for me to throw it away every few year.
@@SemekiIzuio wow that's one way of using display lights I've never thought of, because i prefer to sleep without lights. I assume you must be keeping the brightness levels down right? Well the surefire way to tear things is to leave a thermometer inside a display and see the readings. By right a low setting shouldn't harm your figures much.