Waveform 02 Viewing Environment

[HD Library]

Originally published 09/16/2004, HDTV Magazine, editor Dale Cripps
By Richard Fisher

We begin this week with a 3 part series on the viewing environment for your display.

Whether it be audio or video there is a particular environment we want to use to fully experience what these formats have to offer. The most critical aspect of the viewing environment is your viewing distance and the ability to control the lighting in the room. After that comes bias lighting, wall color and room decor considerations.

For all displays the brightness and contrast are set for the correct response and this will produce a specific amount of light output and black level which in turn determines what kind of ambient light you can use it in. I separate this into three categories. There is the dark room where you have full control over ambient light regardless of the time of day. Usually this is a dedicated home theater room which is the best way to view images. Most folks though have the display in a family room or for multipurpose use which takes us to the next category medium and bright rooms. A bright room is one with many windows so during the daytime it is fully immersed by sunlight. A medium room has some windows and darker areas during the day and at night your room lighting tends to bring it to about the same level. Bright rooms tend to become medium or dark rooms during night and are the most difficult to deal with in terms of decent imaging with all light levels. The key here is when do you watch the display the most and that should determine what type of display brightness you need for that level of ambient light.

Many of the newer displays now have separate day and night settings to compensate for this and it can be effective unless you are the bright/dark room type. For these folks the range is simply too wide for one display type to perform adequately in both applications and it should be noted that even in less severe cases such as bright to medium or medium to dark it is still difficult to get one display that will perform at it's best with both lighting levels. While day/night settings can improve your image under varying light conditions in the end there is only one setting on the display that will produce the best image. So, again, the key is when you watch the most and choosing the right display for that ambient light application.

Another aspect is the height of the screen relative to your head. Display height or the viewing position should be set so your head is facing the middle of the viewing screen for optimal results. If you have an RPTV, regardless of technology, this is even more critical as these products bend and focus the light into a beam which causes the brightness to change if you are too high or too low. This is easily demonstrated by moving your head above and below the screen with any still frame image. Less critical for one viewer but still of concern for others is being too far left or right for the same reason and some others to be explained in future issues. Bottom line is you want the screen directly in front of you with the viewers head in the middle of the screen for optimal results.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Ambient room light determines what type of display technology you need for your application.

You want your head facing the middle of the screen for the best results.

VIEWING ENVIRONMENT

Bright room: lots of windows during the day with plenty of sunlight

Medium room: some windows and darker areas during the day with some partial sunlight

Dark room: you have full control over ambient light day or night. Normally very low ambient light to no light at all.

Light output rule of thumb: The smaller the screen the brighter the image

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