Well, I’ve signed up to exhibit at the September convention of the American Institute of Organ Builders (AIO) in September. There, these influential people will be able to see our latest developments in organ lighting products. Should be fun.
Will
AIO convention
August 1st, 2011Remote control for picture lights
August 1st, 2011Wouldn’t it be nice to illuminate your favorite picture for everyone to admire? Wouldn’t it be really, really cool to be able to remotely turn the light on and off, as well as to control the brightness. If you’re having a romantic evening you might not want the picture to be as bright as it would be for, say, a cocktail party.
For over a year we’ve been providing folks with art lights. I’m happy to announce that now we can supply a remote control for the lights that will not only turn them on and off, but control the brightness of the lights.
How cool is that?
Check out our line of lights at www.ektralamp.com
Will
Lakewood Old House Fair
April 18th, 2011Last Saturday I joined by son in exhibiting at the Lakewood Old House Fair. He was promoting his custom furniture and home remodeling business, and I was promoting our picture lamps. The gym at Harding middle school was filled with eager exhibitors and there was a continuous stream of traffic.
What a great idea of having local businesses promote their wares and services to the local community. This is a model that could, and should be, replicated in many cities.
Kudos to the planners and promoters of this event.
Custom organ light
April 15th, 2011Today we shipped a custom organ lamp for a Viscount organ to replace the very dim light powered by three three-watt incandescent bulbs. The owner said using those lights was like playing by candle-light.
Made in the USA
April 14th, 2011It occurred to me recently how lucky I am to have a small manufacturing company in the United States. Here are just some of the reasons:
1. The United States is a huge market.
2. Next door is Canada which is another large English-language market.
3. I have full control of the manufacturing and quality of my product. I’ve spoken to an importer who gets lamps from China. He never knows from batch to batch exactly what the specifications will be or the quality of the lamps. Plus, he has to wait forever for a shipment.
4. We can quickly meet custom requirements. For example, we got an order early this week for a custom lamp, and we will ship this Friday. Try that with a large manufacturer or importing from China!
Will
Adjustable and solid wood music stands
June 28th, 2010Musicians, why use the boring black music stands when you can be enjoying the beauty and warmth of wood – with the same adjustability of the black ones?
Wolcraft is now producing wood music stands that are extremely sturdy and use the same adjusting mechanism as do the Manhasset metal stands. I think you’ll like these stands.
Check them out at www.wolcraft.com.
Will Limkemann
American Guild of Organists Convention
June 7th, 2010It’s less than a month away as I write the post, and we are excited about exhibiting Ektralamp lighting products at the AGO (American Guild of Organists) national convention in July. We will be showing our overhead organ lights, piano lights, and music stand lights. In fact, there will be a drawing for one of the Ektralamp music stand lights valued at $159. If you’re an organist who will be attending the convention, look us up in booth 309.
Will Limkemann
www.ektralamp.com
Lighting artwork
February 5th, 2010What are the first impressions of visitors entering your place of business or home? Artwork is often the crucial and memorable element that completes a well defined and designed space. Your artwork speaks volumes about your values and interests. Artwork reflects your image, promotes a stimulating work environment, and enhances a comfortable living space.
After spending time, and often a lot of money, for the right pieces of art, the works must be carefully placed or hung to best be seen and to complement the spaces they occupy. What is often overlooked is proper and effective lighting of the art. Imagine the difference in impact between an unlighted painting at the end of a hallway and the same painting artfully illuminated. In the first case, the painting will often fade into the background. A well lighted painting will become a focal point.
A picture can be illuminated either from a ceiling-mounted spotlight focused on the work, or from a tubular lamp mounted above it. A spotlight mounted at the right angle can provide excellent illuminating, but may have the drawback of attracting attention to itself as an element of the ceiling.
When considering a tubular light mounted above a painting, many of us think of the 8″ wide incandescent lights that have been prevalent for this type of lighting. These lights have been very warm in color, produce a fair amount of heat, and tend to illuminate just a small center area of a picture. Until recently, the only real alternative has been fluorescent lighting which, due to its color and potential flicker, has not really been an option.
Recent developments in LED lighting technology provide pleasing lighting colors in various widths of lighting strips, and allow the illumination to be focused on the artwork with minimal “spillage” onto the surrounding area. LEDs have the further benefit of producing virtually no heat, which can be destructive to artwork.
When choosing appropriate lighting for your paintings, here are some things to consider:
1. How much heat and infra-red radiation does a light source provide. In this case less is better.
2. Does the light source produce ultra-violet radiation which can be detrimental to artwork? Does the fixture provide ultra-violet filtering to eliminate the ultra-violet light?
3. What color is the light? The color should bring out the colors and mood of the piece being lighted. A painting with oranges and reds will be complemented by a warm-colored light. Conversely, a predominantly blue painting will look best with a cooler light.
4. Will the light provide even illumination over the width and height of a picture?
Our new Ektralamp art LED-based lamps produce virtually no heat, are available with ultra-violet filters, are inconspicuous, can produce a variety of light colors, are available in a variety of widths, and mount above the picture. Check them out.
Will Limkemann
Ektralamp picture lights
December 24th, 2009Our line of lamps is expanding. We have just released our new Ektralamp Art Lamp for great illumination of any flat art work. The lamps attach either to the back of the frame of to the wall behind the lamp. Using the same technology as in our music lights, the Art Lamps are modular in width, have adjustable light tubes, and provide even illumination across the entire picture. These are great lights for galleries, businesses, museums, homes, or anywhere you want to let people clearly see your great pictures and art works. Visit our art light site.
Will Limkemann