Pantone Light Booth Configurations

Pantone Light Booths provide controlled lighting conditions for accurate visual color evaluation. Because colors can appear different under different light sources, selecting the appropriate light booth configuration is important for consistent color evaluation and quality control.

Pantone Light Booths are available with D50 or D65 daylight and in 3-light or 5-light configurations.

D50 vs. D65 Lighting

The daylight option determines the color temperature used for evaluating your colors.

D50 – 5,000K

Representing horizon light such as morning or late afternoon conditions.

D50 lighting is recommended for:

• Printed materials
• Printing and packaging applications
• Evaluating and comparing Pantone Formula Guide samples
• Graphic arts and print production

D65 – 6,500K

Representing midday or noontime daylight.

D65 lighting is recommended for:

• Textiles
• Hard and soft goods
• Coatings
• Paints and other non-printed materials
• Evaluating and comparing Pantone FHI Color Guide samples

3-Light vs. 5-Light Configuration

The number of lights determines how many different lighting environments you can simulate.

3-Light Configuration

The 3-Light configuration provides three lighting conditions:

• D50 or D65 Daylight – depending on the selected model
• Home "A" Tungsten – simulates typical incandescent home lighting
• CWF (Cool White Fluorescent) – principally used to simulate store lighting in the United States

This configuration is a good choice when your workflow primarily requires daylight evaluation along with common home and retail lighting conditions.

5-Light Configuration

The 5-Light configuration includes all three lighting conditions available in the 3-Light model, plus:

• UV (Ultraviolet) – provides an additional condition for evaluating materials affected by optical brighteners and fluorescent properties
• TL84 Fluorescent – principally used to simulate retail lighting in Europe and the Pacific Rim

The 5-Light configuration provides additional flexibility when color needs to be evaluated under a wider range of real-world lighting conditions.

Which Configuration Should I Choose?

Use the following as a general guide:

Quick Recommendation

Choose D50 if your primary application is print, packaging, or graphic arts.

Choose D65 if your primary application is textiles, coatings, paints, or other hard and soft goods.