Color Rendering Index (CRI)
Not all lights are the same. Many mediocre incandescent and LED lights available in the market utilize less energy but emit white light which is of extremely low quality. In stadiums and field photography where appearance and quality are of paramount importance, you can’t compromise the light quality and go for low CRI. Precise and accurate discrimination of colors is crucial in visual arts and photography and that is where Color rendering Index plays a vital role.
What is the CRI?
Color rendering index or CRI is the measure of the accuracy of the object colors when it is illuminated by the light source. The index is measured in the range of 0-100 where 100 represents the perfect illumination of the object under the light source. This means that the object will appear the same as it would appear under natural sunlight. In short, CRI gives a measure of naturalness, vividness, preference, hue discrimination, and color accuracy. Low Sodium vapors lamps have CRI close to 0 while high-quality incandescent lamps and LED lights scores close to 100.
What is a good CRI score for LED sports lighting?
While buying LED sports lighting, you must take CRI into account. It is essential to go for a high CRI rating of 90+ when an accurate color presentation is a must. A score greater than 80 is acceptable for most of the sporting applications but for detailed photography and true video streaming, you must aim for a CRI score over 90. A score greater than 90 is considered as “High CRI” lights. Such lights render beautiful vibrant color tones across the entire color spectrum. Also, you can blend high CRI and color temperatures in LED sports lights to achieve the desired configuration.
However, CRI is not the stand-alone parameter to consider. Energy consumption and light durability matter as well. But CRI is one of the most important factors while buying LED sport light fixtures.
