Digital BW, The Print

On Feb 25, 2010, at 4:55 PM, keesatindy wrote:

> My 18w Ott-Lite vision saver bulb just died and I just discovered  
> they no longer make this bulb. The switch on this lamb quite working  
> long ago. Fortunately, it was in the "on" position and I've used a  
> switched surge protector for the on/off function ever since. These  
> bulbs were always a pain to replace anyway. Even dangerous, I think.
>
> Anyway, I'm wondering what you guys are using for lighting these  
> days. Is it too soon to expect LED to come to the rescue? If so,  
> what's working for you?
>
> Thanks.....


If there's only one 18w Ott floor lamp, then that's one of two Ott  
lamps which I have. I had no idea that its bulb has been discontinued.  
The one in my Ott floor lamp says "True Color", not "vision saver". I  
found it in a craft store for a little more than $100+, maybe 125.

The other Ott lamp I have is a 13w desk lamp. Its bulb isn't branded.  
But the whole assembly was too inexpensive (about $25?) at Staples for  
anything about it to be anything special.

Both these Ott lamps work, after a fashion, for me. But I'm sure I  
scrutinize my prints under them less carefully than many, probably  
most, subscribers of this list scrutinize their prints under their  
lamps. I care also about how mine look under ordinary lamps (mine are  
now mostly compact fluorescents) and even in daylight, both outdoors  
and near windows. But when I get worried about how one of them looks  
in some particular, I look at it hard under the Ott lamps.

I don't recommend my casual approach, and I hope to improve on it, for  
color as well as for B&W prints, without waiting for LED bulbs.
--
Sam