Are you looking to learn more about lighting gel sheets? This article is packed full of information about how to select a gel sheet color, how to attach a gel sheet, temperatures at which gel sheets will work, gel sheet dimensions, gel sheet functions, types of gel sheets, and popular gel sheet colors.

What is the primary use of a lighting gel sheet?

Lighting gel sheets are used primarily to change or filter the color of light. There are several categories of gel sheets, including color effect, color correction, diffusion, reflection, LED, and scrim. Gel sheets are typically used by theatre directors, technical directors, production managers, and stage crews to change the color of light in theatrical or stage productions Gels are also used for photography, television, film and movie production purposes. Gel sheets can also be used to block unwanted light, with the use of black foil, from a shoot.

Who are the primary manufacturers of gel sheets?

In the United States, consumers are able to purchase gel sheets from Lee Filters, Rosco, and Apollo. This article will focus on Lee Filters as this is the product line with which we are most familiar.

Where can I purchase gels?

• In the USA, you can purchase gel sheets, gel rolls, gel packs and swatch books from Knight Sound & Lighting.
• Outside of the USA, you can purchase gel products from Knight Sound & Lighting on their eBay store.

What types of gel sheets are there?

The major types of gel sheet categories are color filters, diffusion filters, and LED filters.  

• Color filters are used to change the color of a light.  
• Diffusion filters are used to soften or spread a light beam and reduce the contrast between highlight areas. The diffusion filter range includes many sub-categories including diffusions, frosts, flexi-frosts, grid cloths and spuns.  
• LED filters, which are known as Zircon filters in the Lee Filters line, are specifically designed for use with LED applications. Zircon gels are used to warm up or cool down and correct white LED light, remove green tints, or reduce light levels.

What size (dimensions) are Lee Filters gel sheets? Are gels available in a format other than a gel sheet?

Lee Filters gel sheets are available in many different sizes:

• Standard regular temperature gel sheets are in the dimensions of 21 inches by 24 inches.
• Zircon gel sheets which are made for LED lighting are in the dimensions of 24 inches by 24 inches.

Lee Filters gels are also available in different size rolls:

• Standard color gel rolls are 48 inches wide by 25 feet in length.
• Zircon gel rolls are 4 feet by 10 feet.
• Some gel colors are also available as "quick rolls". Quick rolls are available in 2 inch increments (2,4,6,8 inches in height) and are 25 feet in length. The customer selects the width inch increment that they need for their application.

How thick are gel sheets?

• Most polyester colored effect filters (also referred to as standard regular temperature gel sheets) are 0.08mm thick
• Diffusion filters vary in thickness
• Zircon gels are 0.18 mm thick

What if I have a competitors gel sheet number? How do I locate the Lee Filters gel sheet number that is the came as a competitor's product?

The Lee Filters website has a great function, which is named "gel comparator", which allows you to plug in the name of any make of gel sheet and find the comparable Lee Filters color. You can find the gel comparator at the following link: GEL COMPARATOR

What if I am trying to adjust for a certain type of lamp or fixture? What if I have an originating light source color temperature and want to adjust for a desired converted color temperature?

If you would like to figure out which gel sheet would work best with a specific type of lamp or fixture, then you can consult the Lee Filters "mired shift calculator" at the following link: MIRED SHIFT CALCULATOR You will input the original source value and the converted source value, in kelvin, and the mired shift calculator will recommend the appropriate gel filter color.

Is there an easy way to see all the gel sheet colors?

Lee Filters currently has about 250 different colors available in their product selection of gel sheets. There are a couple of different ways to look at the full offering of Lee Filters gel sheets:

The handy Lee Filters "Swatchball" has been replaced with the even higher-functioning "Lee Swatch Book App" which is available for iOS and Android. This app has the complete range of Lee Filters on one screen, with an innovative color picker so you can easily build and save palettes anytime inspiration strikes.

Another method to view the full line of Lee Filters products is to order a Lee Filters swatchbook which has a small (roughly 2 inch by 1/2 inch) sample gel sheet for each gel.

How do I attach a gel sheet to a lighting fixture?

The recommended method for attaching a gel sheet to a lighting fixture is to use a color frame or gel frame. The color frame/gel frame is attached to the light emitting end of the lighting fixture. The gel sheet is then placed in the color frame. Although these gel sheets are designed to withstand high temperatures, the manufacturer does not recommend putting a gel sheet directly against a light source.  If your fixture cannot use a color frame or gel frame, then you could try adhering the gel to the fixture with heat-resistant glue.

At what temperature do gel sheets work?

A standard polyester gel sheet should sustain temperature up to 180 degrees Celsius/356 degrees Fahrenheit. A high temperature gel sheet should sustain temperatures up to 280 degrees Celsius/536 degrees Fahrenheit. There is not any published information regarding the various wattage of sources and how they affect the filters. The best we can offer is the melting points/max temperature ranges for each type of gel. This is 356 Fahrenheit for the polyester gel (regular gel sheets) and 536 Fahrenheit for the polycarbonate (high temperature) gel sheets.

What material is a gel sheet made from?

Gel sheets are made from a few different types of materials. Standard gel sheets are made from a very thin polyester material. Gel filters are also available in dichroic and glass forms.

Can I cut a gel sheet?

Yes, a gel sheet is made of very thin material which can be cut easily with scissors or a box-cutter. The gel sheets can be cut down to whatever size dimensions you should need.

Are lighting gels fire-proof?

Standard lighting gel sheets are not fire-proof and the user must use the product carefully so as to avoid fire hazards when working with light fixtures. A gel sheet should never be placed directly on or in close proximity to a light source (i.e., lamp or bulb). The light source could cause the gel sheet to catch on fire. To attach a gel sheet safely to a lighting fixture, the user must attach the gel sheet to a gel color frame which is compatible with the lighting fixture in use.

What if I need help selecting the right color of gel sheet?

The selection of a gel sheet color is a very personal process. Everyone sees colors in a slightly different way. It can sometimes be difficult to communicate exactly which color you are envisioning in your mind's eye. For instance, one person's definition of the color "plum" will not necessarily be the same as another person's. For these reasons, we would definitely recommend that you consult the Lee Filters website or download the Lee Filters app. It is also very useful to use a Lee Filters swatchbook to guide your product selection. Please also bear in mind that the picture images online of all gel filters are best viewed at a depth of 256 colors or more.

What if I am working specifically with LED lighting?

Lee Filters has introduced an LED specific line of filters called the Zircon gels. Zircon gels are great for use with LED lighting applications. To see the full line of Zircon gels, you can go to the Zircon product section. The Zircon gels are a new concept in LED filter design with a lifespan of up to 200 times longer than standard lighting filters.  As per Lee Filters, Zircon is a new concept in LED filter design that has been designed from the ground-up for exceptional performance with LED Lights. 

What are the most popular colors of gel sheets?

Since color preference is personal, we can only use our sales data to suggest the most popular colors of gel sheets. The gel sheets purchased in the highest volumes from our store are as follows, divided into gel sheet categories:

Color Effects:

• Lee 106 Primary Red strong red effect.  Good with cyclorama lighting
• Lee 181 Congo Blue looks like black light when used with a fluorescent source; great effect color
• Lee 071 Tokyo Blue a deep blue, used for midnight scenes and cyclorama lighting
• Lee 139 Primary Green good for set lighting and cyclorama lighting
• Lee 797 Deep Purple used in musical performances for general color washes and set lighting
• Lee 026 Bright Red a vibrant red, good for cyclorama lighting
• Lee 119 Dark Blue good for mood effects created by backlighting and sidelighting; creates great contrast
• Lee 767 Oklahoma Yellow a rich blend of brigh sunshine and warm ochre overtones
• Lee 104 Deep Amber Lighting good for sunlight effect, accents and side light
  
• Lee 736 Twickenham Green a powerful green with depth, for music or light entertainment
• Lee 021 Gold Amber great for sunsets, cyclorama lighting and fire effects 

Diffusion/Color Correction (Lee Filters Diffusion App available for iOS or Android)

• Lee 204 Full CTO Orange converts daylight (6500K) to tungsten light (3200K)
• Lee 205 Half CTO converts daylight (6500K) to tungsten light (3800K)
• Lee 216 White Diffusion a strong diffusion used for soft effect lights
• Lee 211 Full CTB converts tungsten (3200K) to photographic daylight (5700K)
• Lee 299 1.2 Neutral Density reduced light 4 stops, without changing color
• Lee 206 Quarter CTO converts daylight (6500K) to tunsten light (4600K)
• Lee 209 0.3 Neutral Density reduces light 1 stop, without changing color
• Lee 211 0.9 Neutral Density reduces light 3 stops, without changing color

LED Correction:

• Lee 808 Zircon Warm Amber 6 offers major warm up correction of cool white LED; 3500K LED to 3000K
• Lee 807 Zircon Warm Amber 4 offers major warm up correction of cool white LED; 4000K LED to 3000K
• Lee 806 Zircon Warm Amber 2 offers major warm up correction of cool white LED to Tungsten

Can gels be used outside?

Yes, gels can be used outside.  Depending on how you attach it to the lighting fixture, you may get some shadowing or other indications of weather such as rain or snow being projected through the light and the gel.  You may also experience a faster deterioration of the gel sheet due to the weather conditions to which it is exposed. 

Thanks for reading our primer on Lee Filters lighting gels.  If you should have any questions please email us at info@goknight.com or call us at 1-866-457-5937.