Bright or Dim?

Flashy

Sexy Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2007
Posts
7,901
Media
0
Likes
27
Points
183
Location
at home
Sexuality
100% Straight, 0% Gay
Gender
Male
Is it just me, or does anyone find places that are made really bright, like restaurants, people's homes, bar's, parties etc to be rather annoying?

I prefer lights to be dim, in almost all cases...i love restaurants where at dinner, it has a darker ambience

also, when you go to people's homes for dinner parties or just in general, i always prefer it to be dimmer...

is it just me or do others find places where "brightness" is at the maximum to be rather annoying or severe?

My parents are "bright" people...they have *EVERYTHING* on at the highest levels in their home...and it drives me crazy...

am i alone in this, or do others prefer the more appealing/soothing ambience of a dimmer lit room/restaurant/apartment etc...

I know some people are light sensitive and get headaches and such, but just in general, what do you guys prefer?
 

Gillette

Sexy Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2006
Posts
6,214
Media
4
Likes
95
Points
268
Age
52
Location
Halifax (Nova Scotia, Canada)
Sexuality
100% Straight, 0% Gay
Gender
Female
I prefer bright for better contrast and truer colour. Given my druthers everything would be lit like a bright summer afternoon.

The romance of candlelit dinners seems contrived to me. Those dilated pupils of the person across the table aren't because they're enchanted with you, they're dilated because it's bloody dim. If the pupils dilate during an out door picnic, then you've got serious attraction. Regarding the food, I like the splash of colour different foods offer. Also wine and spirit producers make much of the depth of colour of their products so I'm at a loss why it should be a natural thing to serve them in diminished lighting. Seeing these things muted fails to whet my appetite.

Same thing applies for sex. I want to see. The only time the lights go out for sex is if I'm expecting to sleep immediately afterwards. You chose each other, why hide now?

What I find strange is that every man of my acquaintance has the NEED to watch television in pitch darkness. If there's a light source other than the screen it has to be eradicated. Platitudes about ruining one's eyesight often spring to mind but they're always followed by the certainty that they're busily going blind anyway.:wink:
 

Pitbull

Sexy Member
Joined
Oct 25, 2006
Posts
3,659
Media
0
Likes
51
Points
268
Sexuality
100% Straight, 0% Gay
Gender
Male
A candlelight dinner with my love
Would not be contrived
I want to shut out the world
And focus on her alone
Flickering flame moves the shadows
A light show on her beauty
With colors muted
I feel the softness
Of her sweet face and being
Darkness closes in
And brings us closer together
Holding hands
I feel the warmth that is her
Quite whispers
Romantic love
 

nudeyorker

Admired Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2006
Posts
22,744
Media
0
Likes
776
Points
208
Location
NYC/Honolulu
Sexuality
100% Gay, 0% Straight
Gender
Male
It al depends on what I'm doing. The kitchen and bathroom are lit like an operating room. Living room and bedroom I prefer subtle lighting. I like a bright light to read. Dining...I like candle light.
 

Flashy

Sexy Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2007
Posts
7,901
Media
0
Likes
27
Points
183
Location
at home
Sexuality
100% Straight, 0% Gay
Gender
Male
yes, i agree on the kitchen and bathroom,

but everything else i like it to be more dim.
 

Bbucko

Cherished Member
Joined
Oct 28, 2006
Posts
7,232
Media
8
Likes
322
Points
208
Location
Sunny SoFla
Sexuality
90% Gay, 10% Straight
Gender
Male
Back in another life, I did in-home design consultation for my customers at the various furniture stores I staffed (and, occasionally, independent contracting where there was no conflict of interest). My specialties were custom furniture specification, placement, color coordination and lighting.

I always told people that every personal space need three different lighting options:
1) You should be able to hit the "panic button" and light a space bright enough to clean cobwebs from the corners at 3AM. Life requires this occasionally;
2) Mood lighting that is indirect and which can be dimmed as low as possible;
3) Task lighting that creates pools where required for work, reading, etc.

Many people though I was trying to oversell lighting and felt that an overhead in the center of the ceiling <shudder> on a dimmer and a couple of table lamps would do. But smart clients understood the wisdom of what I was saying and were inevitably pleased with the results of implementing my recommendations.

My mother was always keen on very low light, especially as she got older. Eventually she'd make do with nightlights and candles which, while romantic, were hardly functional. She was also big on colored bulbs, which I always thought gave her homes a Funhouse feel.
 

Onslow

Sexy Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2004
Posts
2,392
Media
0
Likes
40
Points
183
Sexuality
No Response
Is it just me, or does anyone find places that are made really bright, like restaurants, people's homes, bar's, parties etc to be rather annoying?

I prefer lights to be dim, in almost all cases...i love restaurants where at dinner, it has a darker ambience

also, when you go to people's homes for dinner parties or just in general, i always prefer it to be dimmer...

is it just me or do others find places where "brightness" is at the maximum to be rather annoying or severe?

My parents are "bright" people...they have *EVERYTHING* on at the highest levels in their home...and it drives me crazy...

am i alone in this, or do others prefer the more appealing/soothing ambience of a dimmer lit room/restaurant/apartment etc...

I know some people are light sensitive and get headaches and such, but just in general, what do you guys prefer?
When there's too much light in places like restaurants I have noticed the level of sound is higher. People seem to think brighter lighting makes it harder to hear because they are shouting all the time. I prefer low level lighting.
 

vince

Legendary Member
Joined
May 13, 2007
Posts
8,271
Media
1
Likes
1,672
Points
333
Location
Canada
Sexuality
69% Straight, 31% Gay
Gender
Male
When there's too much light in places like restaurants I have noticed the level of sound is higher. People seem to think brighter lighting makes it harder to hear because they are shouting all the time. I prefer low level lighting.
Yes. Chinese restaurants and Turkish wedding salons are good examples. Everything bright white, hard surfaced and lit with fluorescent lights. It makes me very nervous to go in those places.
 

nudeyorker

Admired Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2006
Posts
22,744
Media
0
Likes
776
Points
208
Location
NYC/Honolulu
Sexuality
100% Gay, 0% Straight
Gender
Male
Yes. Chinese restaurants and Turkish wedding salons are good examples. Everything bright white, hard surfaced and lit with fluorescent lights. It makes me very nervous to go in those places.

I prefer all my social engagements to be with either near sighted people or in dimly lit restaurants or bars.
 

DaveyR

Retired Moderator
Joined
Jun 15, 2006
Posts
5,422
Media
0
Likes
30
Points
258
Location
Northumberland
Sexuality
No Response
Gender
Male
Like Nudey said I like the kitchen and bathroom burning the watts.

Restaurants and bars should have low lighting which creates a nice atmosphere. I'd never really put the two together before but Onslow is right. A brightly lit restaurant does tend to be noisy.
 

Flashy

Sexy Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2007
Posts
7,901
Media
0
Likes
27
Points
183
Location
at home
Sexuality
100% Straight, 0% Gay
Gender
Male
Like Nudey said I like the kitchen and bathroom burning the watts.

Restaurants and bars should have low lighting which creates a nice atmosphere. I'd never really put the two together before but Onslow is right. A brightly lit restaurant does tend to be noisy.

very true...they are noisy,...and bright parties as well...because i think all that light creates a "look at me" or "pay attention to me" type of vibe.

low lit affairs tend to give off a more relaxed, lower key vibe...people are more serene, more at ease...bright lights all over, like bright white light, with tables with spotlights shining down on them too in restaurants, tend to emphasize everything and everyone...you feel as if you are on a stage...as if spotlit.

that has always made me very uncomforitable, like when you had to be in plays when you are younger (if you did not like plays)...the spiotlight to me is glaring, and it feels very trapping, confining, as if you have nowhere to hide and there is a reason...it is "pointing" something out...focusing attention...which i do not like. i prefer to socialize in a setting that is more conducive to nice chatting, fun, simple conversations in ssmaller groups, as opposed to the huge brightly lit, herd type of socializing, with everyone milling around, greeting, then moving on, having a quick chat then moving....

it feels odd...but i think it also has to do with what i mentioned about the spotlight...some people really do enjoy being "spotlit" or "on stage" and as such, a party, or dinner is no different.