{"id":2618,"date":"2024-04-17T08:00:40","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T08:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new-blog.artlist.io\/?p=2618"},"modified":"2025-09-02T08:20:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T08:20:00","slug":"fresnel-lights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new-blog.artlist.io\/blog\/fresnel-lights\/","title":{"rendered":"What a Fresnel light is and how to use one in your videos"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Quiz question for you: What do lighthouses, theaters and film sets have in common? Got it yet? It’s the Fresnel light \u2013 sometimes known as the Fresnel lantern or Fresnel lamp. Although it was initially developed in the 1820s by French engineer Augustin Jean Fresnel to improve lighthouses, the Fresnel light has become a staple of the film and theater industries. It produces a highly versatile light that you can use as a spot or a flood, as part of a 3-point lighting setup<\/a> and high- and low-key lighting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A quick pronunciation guide: Fresnel still carries the French pronunciation of its inventor. That means it’s “frey-NEL” with the emphasis on the second syllable, rather than “frezz-nul.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is a Fresnel light?<\/h2><\/div>

A Fresnel light consists of a lamp positioned between a Fresnel lens and a reflector, housed in a box. The light from the lamp is sent toward the lens by the reflector, forming a controllable beam.<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\"fresnel<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A Fresnel lens comprises layers of concentric rings, each smaller than the previous one, rather than a regular spherical lens. Each ring bends the light a little more than the one beneath it, steadily converging the light into a beam. These concentric rings are what Fresnel worked on in order to improve lighthouse lanterns. The size of a regular lens would have been impractical for producing a beam of the required width and intensity to be effective in a lighthouse. Still, the bending properties of the concentric rings changed that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The lamp, which can vary in wattage, and the reflector sit on a track and can be moved nearer to or farther from the Fresnel lens to widen or narrow the light beam. In addition, you can attach light modifiers<\/a> to the front of the box \u2013 for example, barn doors \u2013 to help control the beam.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you use a Fresnel light?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fresnel lights are very simple to use, making them an excellent choice for any set, as well as for lighting for YouTube videos<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you move the lamp closer to the Fresnel lens, you get a wider fall of light that can flood a scene. Shift the lamp and reflector farther away from the lens, and the light beam becomes narrower, giving you a spotlight. This is what makes a Fresnel light so convenient: you can alter the beam angle from a Fresnel light without having to move the light itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s easy to attach modifiers to the front of a Fresnel lamp. For example, barn doors are used to shape light, scrims to help reduce light intensity, gels for color correction and speed rings for adding a softbox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Types of Fresnel lights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Fresnel lights can be determined by their lamps, which tend to be built in either three-, six-, or eight-inch lens diameters. These lights come in different wattages and intensities. They also have unusual names, given to them by Mole Richardson:<\/p>\n\n\n\n