When I tell people I maintain a website about light boxes, the response I often get is: “What exactly is a light box?”
In the simplest terms a light box is a type of light that uses a
low-watt diffuse bulb to spread light throughout a small translucent
box. They have several different uses.
In art, a light box is used for stenciling, transferring designs or
patterns, or tracing. For example, if you’ve ever gotten a tattoo, the
tattoo artist may use a light box to trace out the pattern you’ve
chosen or drawn for your tattoo with transferable inks, allowing him or
her to transfer the pattern to your skin as a guideline before they
start drawing on you. Or comic book inkers may use a form of tracing
for their art finishing in comic books and graphic novels.
Photography uses light boxes for looking at negatives and slides. With
a light box to lay small transparent images on to view, the
photographer has a much easier time figuring out what images he or she
wants.
Other uses include stained glass design, embossing, quilting,
calligraphy, or lettering. Basically, any purpose that requires a form
of tracing to transfer artwork from one medium to another can use a
light box.
Light Therapy: The Most Popular Use for Light Boxes
Because a light box delivers diffuse, non-straining light in a variety
of wavelengths, light boxes are sometimes used to treat Seasonal
Affective Disorder (SAD), a form of depression instigated by a lack of
sunlight, especially in northern climates. Not only do light boxes
deliver full-wave light for therapeutic reasons, they can also deliver
UV light.
Regular light used to treat SAD can be much too bright and intense.
With constant exposure to bright light, you can strain your eyes. The
diffuse light of a light box eliminates many eye strain problems and
allows you to expose yourself to light for much longer and with more
frequency. And because light boxes deliver light with little or no UV
light, it’s a safer way of getting light therapy than exposure to
sunlight.
Most light boxes that deliver light to treat SAD should concentrate
their light emission on the shorter wavelength blue light naturally
delivered by the sun. They should be cool and diffuse, allowing you to
stay close to your light box so you can expose yourself to the highest
possible amount of light.
Light boxes for SAD therapy should also be large enough to deliver
light all over the user, and make allowances for the user’s movements
during a normal day. You should be able to mount your light box on the
ceiling, which will allow the light to diffuse throughout the room and
provide you with the maximum amount of exposure when you want it
throughout your day.
You should also be aware of what times of day you should use your light
box. Your therapist or physician should be able to tell you what the
ideal times are, and you can adjust its location accordingly.
Portable light boxes are also a good idea. Hard-to-use or inconvenient
light delivery devices wind up in the closet. A light box on a stand,
with a handle so you can easily move it around, is probably your best
bet.
