Lessons learned in Melbourne: Dimming, 3500k, Gobo projection and more
Last month, Bryan, Abhi & Dave from our team made the trip across the ditch to visit the Unios Experience Centre and the WE-EF Lightbox in Melbourne.
The trip was an opportunity to learn about new products and technologies as well as the latest lighting trends. They all came back with a lot of new insights and ideas. Here are the highlights.
The underestimated role of dimming
This was one of the bigger takeaways from the Unios session. Dimming tends to be treated as a comfort feature rather than a specification priority, but seeing it demonstrated properly shifted that thinking. The impact on ambience and visual comfort was more significant than either Bryan, Abhi or Dave had expected, and in practice more influential than colour temperature adjustments in shaping how a space feels.
It’s something worth thinking about earlier in the brief going forward, rather than leaving it to sort out at the end.
3500K: a colour temperature worth specifying
3500K doesn’t usually get much attention in most conversations. 3000K and 4000K are the familiar reference points, and 3500K tends to get skipped over. But the Unios session made a convincing case for it. Seeing it alongside the standard colour temperatures, it’s a genuinely useful middle ground for corporate environments moving away from cooler light, or spaces where 3000K reads as too warm or flat.
If you haven’t specified 3500K before, it might be worth a look on your next project.
Bathroom lighting: a design problem
The Unios session opened up a really detailed discussion on bathroom lighting, and it was a good reminder of how much thought this area actually demands. The challenge is the balance: task lighting that functions without being harsh, avoiding shadows on the face, and moving beyond the single downlight approach that’s still the default in a lot of spaces.
It’s one of those areas where intentional, layered thinking from the start of a project makes a real difference to the outcome.
Gobo projection: what’s possible might surprise you
This was a highlight of the WE-EF Lightbox visit, and genuinely exciting to see in action. WE-EF’s gobo projectors use advanced optics to cast precise patterns, images, logos, or artwork onto surfaces with minimal light spill. The results are sharp and controlled, and the range of applications across both interior and exterior environments is broader than you might expect.
Gobo projection is one of those techniques that tends to sit in the back of your mind until the right project comes along. Seeing it demonstrated well changes that. The team came away with a much clearer sense of when and where to reach for it, and we’re looking forward to putting it to use.
Keen to learn more? Get in touch
If any of the above is relevant to a project you’re working on, or you’d like to discuss further, feel free to get in touch with the team.