Not all white light is created equal. Take a look at the apple below. Under one white light source, it’s bursting with color. Rich, crisp, and enticing—you can practically taste it. But under the second white light source… not so much. What’s the difference?
It’s not the correlated color temperature (CCT), which is the same in both images. And it’s not the location of the light source—the fixtures are positioned identically. The difference is something called Vibrancy—a first-of-its-kind feature built in to every Ketra light source.
Vibrancy is only available on Ketra products. Come along as we break down exactly what this innovative ability is, how it works, and how you can use it to make everything in your space, from food to art to furnishings, look its absolute best.
A new level of control for tunable white light
Vibrancy is Ketra’s unique ability to tune only the individual colors that make white light at a given white-correlated color temperature (CCT). In other words, you’re not tuning the color of the light—you’re tuning white light, such that it reflects off of objects in the way that you want.
To explain this visually, let’s look at one of our favorite vibrancy use cases: illuminating artwork.
This is a painting by Sebastian Vallejo, lit under 3000K tunable white light. Click play to see what happens when we add Vibrancy.
As you can see, Vibrancy completely changes how you perceive the art. Colors pop, compelling details are enhanced, and previously hidden characteristics come forward into stark relief. Ketra’s ability to illuminate art in this way is unparalleled in the field, making our brand the lighting choice of many renowned galleries and museums.
To understand how Vibrancy works, let’s take a step back and talk about how we perceive color in the first place. Objects themselves don’t possess color. The apple above isn’t really red. Rather, when white light (comprised of many colors) is cast on it, the surface of the apple reflects the color we perceive as red—and absorbs the rest.
So what does the way we perceive color have to do with Vibrancy?
Let’s say you’ve decided to light the apple above at a given Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) of white light. As you “sweep” the Vibrancy control on a Ketra product from 0-100%, the recipe of white light within that fixed CCT shifts, which in turn reveals a previously hidden spectrum of color nuances that can now be adjusted to enhance the look of the apple—or any other object.
The result is transformative. By adjusting Vibrancy level, finishes and furnishings burst to life, food looks more delectable,
You may recall learning in physics class that white light combines colors, including red, green and blue—much like the red, green and blue pixels of a television screen.
Similarly, we can also create white light with a mixture of RGBW LEDs. This is how Ketra produces white light, mixing light from the individual red, green, blue, and white LEDs present on every Ketra architectural light source.
What’s important to know is that white light can be made up of many many different distributions of color. In lighting science, this is called spectral power distribution (SPD)—and that’s what Vibrancy manipulates.
These charts show 10 different snapshots of light, all having the same correlated color temperature (CCT) but varying SPDs of white LEDs. In other words, we are showing a variety of SPDs that result in the same CCT of white light.
The CCTs above are all the same. It’s the SPDs that are changing—and that can have a dramatic effect on how an object looks.
Evaluating optical performance is critical when selecting tunable light sources, especially for architectural and luxury applications. Low-quality optics result in poor quality illumination, which could manifest itself as non-uniform color or intensity across the surface or object being illuminated. This will distort the color rendering and overall appearance of a surface or object.
When evaluating LED optics, use this simple test to check uniformity of color and intensity of light:
Ketra has developed a patented LED optics system to address the challenges of using traditional optics with more modern, high-tech lighting solutions such as tunable, full spectrum light sources. Our precision optics for full spectrum light delivers high quality light exactly where you want it, upgrading the visual appeal and the experience of any space.
Let’s go back to Sebastian’s painting. Now, we’ll watch the painting transform under Ketra Vibrancy—while also watching what happens to the SPD of the colored LEDs, as white light is adjusted.
Vibrancy allows designers and occupants to take personalization to a new level. It goes beyond tailoring light for
Just like cooking with different recipes, methods, and spices, Vibrancy allows us to change the recipe of how white light is created to enhance a space—and the things in it.
To experience Ketra Vibrancy for yourself, find an authorized dealer near you.
24/7 Technical Support:
1-844-LUTRON1 (588-7661)
lightingsupport@lutron.com
Customer Service:
Monday-Friday 8am- 5pm EST
1-844-LUTRON1 (588-7661)
The Ketra logo, Ketra, TruBeam, Color Lock, and Calibration360 are trademarks or registered trademarks of Lutron Electronics Co., Inc. in the US and/or other countries.
©2024 Lutron Electronics Co., Inc. All rights reserved.
Get inspired with all the best from Lutron and Ketra: exclusive news, project features, and more.